Devomania

Accentuate the Positive, Eliminate the Negative

Ran across this quote and couldn’t resist sharing it!

We all know what it’s like being around people who are habitually negative. There’s a corrosive quality to their attitudes, a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy that seems to say, “No matter how bad things get, they will probably get worse!” Sadly, that kind of toxic thinking is contagious, affecting the negative person’s friends, family, even an entire office full of people.

What’s more, as this little quote says, negative people tend to love drama. They wallow in conspiracy theories. They savor the direst of predictions. No positive motive goes unexamined. No good deed goes unpunished. Suspicion is the order of the day, along with a habitually thin skin. It’s exhausting!

So in light of all this, what are we positive thinkers to do?

Here’s the obvious answer: the best way (maybe the only way!) to overcome another person’s negativity is to find all the ways you can to stay positive. Practice the old “attitude of gratitude.” Strengthen your faith muscles through prayer and praise. Rehearse all the reasons you can find to be glad. Start hanging around people who will lift you up, not bring you down. If your circle of friends is the problem, pick new friends. Negative thinking can indeed become habitual — but then again, so can positive thinking.

Easier said than done? Perhaps…but I know what the power of negative thinking can do when left unchecked and unchallenged. So choke off the drama machine! Fight back with love and a smile! It may drive your negative friends nuts — but it will be worth it.

“One Thing” — the Power of Focus

Everybody knows the famous line from City Slickers. During the cattle drive, cowboy Jack Palance (the unforgettable Curly) offers to tell uptight radio advertising salesman Billy Crystal about the secret of life. It’s simple, Curly states, holding up his index finger. “One thing,” Curly says. “Just one thing.” Crystal’s character Mitch asks Curly to explain what the “one thing” is. “That’s what you gotta figure out,” replies Curly cryptically.

Speculation has abounded ever since as to exactly what old Curly really meant. (Spoiler alert: in the movie he dies not long after sharing this deep insight. “The man ate bacon every day,” said fellow tenderfoot Phil. “You can’t do that!”) But Curly’s quote came to mind the other day when I was thinking about how good leaders are able to maintain their focus in spite of a relentless rash of distractions. I’m sure you’ve experienced what I’m talking about. You and your team embark on a major project. Things get going with energy and enthusiasm. But soon other projects, other priorities, other agendas begin to pop up like moles in the old Whack-a-Mole game. The team gets distracted. Or worse, the leader gets distracted! He or she begins to take the old eye off the ball. And when the leader begins to lose focus, inevitably momentum grinds to a halt, progress evaporates, and frustration becomes the mood of the day.

When it comes to effective leadership I like to consider the example of one of my favorite Old Testament characters, Nehemiah. His book, especially the first 7 chapters, represents a terrific, highly practical manual on effective leadership. Nehemiah had been sent from Susa, 800 miles away, to the ruined city of Jerusalem, intent on rebuilding the wall that had been torn down decades before when the city was sacked. Without the wall the city could barely function, but with the wall intact Jerusalem could once again become a viable commercial and spiritual hub — so getting the wall completed was a huge priority. And as we read when we come to Nehemiah chapter 6, the big project was almost finished! The wall was practically done!

Doesn’t it seem like things can unravel the fastest as you get closer to the finish line? That’s when a handful of powerful opponents, made up of people who preferred the status quo (sound like anyone you know in your office?), really began to ramp up their opposition, trying to stop the work on the wall. They first tried to distract Nehemiah with pleasant invitations masking sinister motives. When that didn’t work they resorted to rumor, innuendo and false accusation. Finally they even threatened bodily harm as a way to deter this highly focused leader and those working for him. But Nehemiah refused to take the bait and become distracted. He said, in essence, “Sorry, guys, no chance — I have a job to do and a wall to finish, and my team and I are not going to be deterred.” And they got it done, an accomplishment that finally silenced the critics.

For Nehemiah the “one thing” was finishing the wall around Jerusalem. For me, I’ve come to realize that it’s reaching the financial goal for the alternative high school I raise money for. What’s your “one thing”? It could be personal or professional, a team effort or something you’ll accomplish solo. Whatever it is, I’m learning a valuable lesson from Nehemiah — and from Curly! Don’t get distracted. Figure out the one thing. Remember the power of focus!

Clueless…and Proud to Admit It!

I don’t know whatever happened to Leslie, but if she’s still out there I have a message for her: “Thank you.” Leslie was the first real media buyer I ever called on, back in the early days of radio (I think it was during the Carter Administration). I remember sitting in her office on Capitol Hill asking about an upcoming buy and hoping I would get the chance to present my radio station for her consideration.

Finally she said, “Fine. Here’s what I want in the proposal.” I think what she asked for was your basic reach and frequency and gross rating point and cost per point and exclusive cume proposal. But to me, having been a radio rep for about twenty minutes, it sounded like she was asking me for the formula for nuclear fission. As she rattled off all the data points she wanted, I dutifully nodded like I knew what I was doing and wrote everything down, or tried to.

After a few moments, Leslie stopped and stared at me. “You don’t have a clue what I’m talking about, do you?”

I swallowed hard. “Um…nope,” I answered. Fortunately she was a patient sort — she probably appreciated my honesty — and she proceeded to give me a basic primer on a few of the tidbits of information she needed, and why they were important. She also made sure I got the terms written down properly so I could look them up on my own. Instead of leaving with my tail between my legs, I left feeling much more confident.

Did I get on the buy? I don’t remember, to be honest, but I do remember that Leslie did me a huge favor: she didn’t make me feel stupid. She could have fussed and fumed and complained that the station had sent her a useless rookie, and thrown me out of her office just to show how irritated (and important) she was. But she took the time instead to educate a new sales rep, give me valuable information, and help me learn the business. I have always appreciated that!

A lot of proposals have flowed over the dam since then, to mix a metaphor, and I’m an older and somewhat wiser man today. And I have learned a valuable lesson: nothing is more disarming than the truth. If I am faced with a situation in which I don’t understand what someone is telling me, I have learned that it’s infinitely better to admit it upfront, with confidence and even with humor. Invariably when I speak up I find that I’m not the only one for whom some of the important details are less than clear. Do I understand what the client wants? Am I clear on what the boss needs in the report? Is it obvious what the donor expects? Do I fully comprehend the next steps and relevant deadlines? If I don’t know, I would rather ask now than wait and be wrong. I can much more easily take the hit to my ego by admitting confusion early on — because I’ve learned the hard way that it’s way better than the pain that comes later from refusing to admit I was clueless at the outset.

So thanks, Leslie! You probably don’t remember but you did me a big favor. As a result, my occasional motto has been “Clueless — and proud to admit it!”

Primum Non Necere = “Don’t Lose What You’ve Got!”

I’m sure we all recognize the name Hippocrates. He was the father of modern medicine. He was also the father of modern sales and fundraising.

You say you never heard that last part before? Well, it may not be entirely true, but there’s one thing old Hippocrates said that we in fundraising and sales would do well to remember. In Latin the saying is rendered, Primum non necere — in English we say, “First do no harm.” I would prefer to translate it, “Don’t lose what you’ve got!”

If you’re in sales or fundraising you know all too well the relentless need to bring in new business and new donors. In order for our organizations to grow, or even to avoid shrinking, the pressure is more or less constant to generate revenue from new sources. I’m not arguing with that — but I am suggesting that, as we focus our efforts on new clients and new donors, we must not overlook the ones we already have. Just because a donor has supported your organization for years or a client has given you their business season after season doesn’t mean we can ever take them for granted, not for an instant. If you’ve ever had a steady client decide not to renew because someone else came along and took away the business while you weren’t paying attention, you know what I’m talking about.

For me the truth behind the axiom “First do no harm” is simple: it means, first, pay attention to the relationships you have. Shore them up. Keep them vital. Keep reminding these clients and donors why they want to do business with you. Avoid relationship complacency at all costs! Seems to me that there are at least four reasons why it’s imperative that we work hard to avoid losing what we’ve got.

Current clients can decide to go away. This seems obvious but it bears emphasis. Let’s say you have an In Kind client who gives your organization $25,000 worth of goods and services every year. Because it’s not cash, it’s easy to take it for granted and assume that In Kind gift will always be there. But one year that client is going to be preparing their budget, and if you haven’t done a good job of keeping the relationship active and reminding them of the benefits they enjoy by doing business with you, they may decide to terminate that deal. Your boss may suddenly have to start writing a $25,000 check every year, and she is going to wonder why you blew the relationship! So I need to continually re-sell the clients I have.

Current clients can be encouraged to grow. Again, this is obvious to those of us who have been around the sales/fundraising block a time or two. Generally speaking, which is easier to find — a brand new dollar from a brand new source, or a dollar increase from a source who already has a relationship with you? As you cultivate current relationships, you clearly need to avoid pushing too hard, but you also need to avoid being fearful. Asking for a larger gift or a larger sale, when done properly and appropriately, can be your quickest route to increased revenue.

Current clients can be encouraged to refer. Few things are more gratifying to a sales rep or fundraiser than a referral. It means someone we already call on felt good enough about our relationship to tell a friend! But let’s not assume that referrals will happen in a vacuum — instead, I have to be reminded of the need to stay in touch with current donors, give them success stories, and reinforce the importance of their gifts. Then I’ve earned the right to ask for those golden referrals! But if I’m not cultivating those current relationships, I’ll bet those referrals will be few and far between.

Current clients provide a vital base of support. Even if present clients or donors never change their spending or giving from one year to the next, those dollars are vital to your success. Treat them with honor and care and attention! Again, reminding donors why they give, or clients why they do business with you, helps keep those current dollars flowing. If that flow stops, your work just got a lot harder!

So let’s all get out there and find those new sources of revenue! But in the process, remember, friends, Primum non necere — “Don’t lose what you’ve got!”

In the Weeds

The Big Team Project starts out with the loftiest of intentions. The boss brings everyone together and launches the new initiative. We are going to re-organize the way we do business! We are going to come up with a Vision Statement and a Set of Values that will define us for the next three decades! We are going to establish new paradigms in Customer Service and Total Quality Control! There will be brainstorming assignments, work teams, and No Bad Ideas. We will re-invent ourselves! So roll up your sleeves, because today we begin!

Everyone comes to those first few meetings salivating with anticipation, eager to reinvent, re-think, re-launch and re-imagine. But after a few months all the team wants to do is retreat. What happened? The energy has dissipated, the fresh thinking grown stale, the milestones fewer and farther between. Where’s all that the excitement? When did the air go out of the balloon? Who rained on our brainstorm?

Here’s how these efforts sometimes progress. During those first few meetings, fueled by great intentions, the team makes great progress and everyone seems to be on board. But then the questions become more complex. The issues grow more opaque. The take-aways become increasingly obscure. The impatience grows more obvious. The lofty goals evaporate into the fog of petty argument and passive aggressive “whatever” attitudes. That dreaded nemesis “Process Fatigue” begins to set in — a toxic condition where a few impatient nay-sayers are finally joined by a growing chorus of equally impatient colleagues asking with one irritated voice, “Can we please just get on with it??!”

Face it, Project Leader — you and your team are deep into the weeds.

Most of us have been there. I was once part of a Strategic Planning team that met weekly for a period of, as I recall, at least two years. We found ourselves in the weeds a lot, debating about the meaning of terms and the pointless details of timelines that would never be met. Ultimately there was an organizational change at the top and the whole project was shelved. Hopefully your project isn’t headed for that same dismal fate!

If you’re a Project Leader and your team seems stuck, the team needs you to help get things moving. So here are three things you might want to focus on. First, replace confusion with context. When a complex project goes awry it’s easy for members of the team to lose sight of the goal and start asking, “Can someone remind me why in heck we’re doing this? What’s the point?” That is the leader’s Central Question! You may understand the point fully, but your team might not, so you need to remind everyone frequently why this project is important. Make sure everyone comprehends where we’ve been and where we’re going. Put the project into a larger context and your team should become reinvigorated.

Second, overcome complexity with clarity. Some projects are just inherently complex, and you’ll never succeed by trying to “make it simple.” But you can make it clear. Use straightforward, non-technical language. Break big concepts into bite-sized chunks and, again, help people see how these smaller pieces fit into the larger task. If you’re a highly analytic leader, learn to use emotional terms to motivate your non-analytic colleagues. When you speak with enthusiasm, confidence and conviction, your clarity can overcome a lot of fear. Take charge and be clear.

Third, turn paralysis into progress. Leaders need to understand just how frustrating it is to be on a team that’s going nowhere! The fastest way out of the weeds may be to back up a bit — something strong-willed leaders hate to do. Figure out where things began to go off the rails. Maybe you need to re-frame the discussion, rearrange the teams or reconsider the timeline. Maybe you need to focus on one or two areas where progress is possible and leave the others for later. Momentum brings a kind of energy that can often sustain itself — just as the feeling of being stuck in the mud brings the fear that it will always be this way!

Context, clarity, progress — help restore these to your project and leave the weeds behind.

The Things You Plan For (and the Things You Don’t)

You can pretty much plan for every contingency, right? Dream on! Murphy, the gent who wrote his famous law, is alive and well, thriving in the overlooked details of our best intentions.

I’ll bet the guy who planned to move this building down a rural highway made all the right plans — almost. He made sure the building was secure on its trailer. He checked the tire pressure. He made sure the tow vehicle was operating properly. He probably had the pilot cars in front and behind to warn motorists he was coming. He took care of practically everything! But one important detail he assumed would not be a problem turned out to be a REALLY huge one.

Unanticipated problems often surface despite our best efforts. I have a good friend who spent years in the direct mail business. She told me once that they had a client in Hawaii for whom they were doing a direct mail piece — tens of thousands of brochures bearing the company’s address. Only thing was, the company was on the Kalanianaole Highway. Not wanting to mess up such a complex name, the team proofread the address a dozen times to make certain they spelled “Kalanianaole” properly. Finally satisfied, they sent the piece to press. Only after the final brochure came back did someone notice that, while they had indeed spelled “Kalanianaole” correctly, they had misspelled “Highway.” The whole order had to be reprinted.

One of the keys to good planning is not to do it all by yourself. I can think back on several examples in my career where I thought I was taking care of all the elements of a project solo, only to overlook one or two really obvious, really important details — like ordering 2,000 sales folders for my radio station and finding out I had specified the wrong colors. (Teal green and magenta came out as baby blue and bubble gum pink — yuck.) Or the time as a junior officer in the Navy when I took custody of 20 copies of an important document that I was supposed to relay immediately to another ship, only to forget and leave them behind my desk — where we found them three days later after we had sailed away. (The admiral was not amused.) Or the time…well, you get the idea.

The wonderful Old Testament book of Proverbs says a lot about this — for example, “The way of fools seems right to them, but the righteous listen to advice.” Ouch! So Rule #1 is to surround yourself with good people and don’t make plans in a vacuum. Rule #2 is to control what we can control. Do your best to plan for every reasonable contingency. But try your best not to obsess unnecessarily — because remember Rule #3: Murphy was right.

Boss — Don’t Withhold Your Encouragement!

It was a magic moment — a beaming Seattle Seahawk Coach Pete Carroll showered with confetti as his team basked in the glow of their Super Bowl win. But obviously that moment came at the tail end of long months of tireless effort. What was it that Pete Carroll did as Seahawks head coach that helped propel his young, untested team to the pinnacle of achievement in the NFL?

I’m sure there’s a long list of things he did do to build his Seahawk team. But based on what I’ve read and heard in the weeks since that memorable Super Bowl victory, there seems to be at least one thing Coach Carroll didn’t do: he didn’t withhold his encouragement. In post-game interviews, player after player repeated variations on the same theme. Pete Carroll builds us up — he lets us be ourselves — he builds on our strengths. He’s an encourager.

Are you someone who hungers for encouragement at work? I am. An encouraging word from the boss, or an encouraging note or email, can sustain me for days! Still, in the past I’ve worked for a few managers who seemed to feel that too much encouragement is dangerous, creating a sense of complacency. These leaders simply never seem to offer encouragement — or if they do they dole it out with an eye dropper. It’s as if I hear them saying, “Encourage your people too much and they’ll stop trying!”

That may be true for some people, but in four decades of workplace experience I have never seen it. Many things can breed a sense of workplace complacency, or more accurately workplace apathy, but I don’t think genuine encouragement is one of them. Quite the contrary, in fact: encouragement energizes. If the boss is distant, aloof, hard to please, or seemingly oblivious to an employee’s efforts, it’s demoralizing. Few things create workplace apathy more quickly than the sense that my efforts don’t matter.

And as the example of Coach Carroll shows us, encouragement is NOT the enemy of performance! Maintain high standards. Hold people accountable. Don’t let up in your quest for excellence. You can do all these things and still encourage your workers by noticing them, complimenting their efforts, asking their opinions, praising them in public and reprimanding them in private. “Seek the good and praise it,” as the old saying goes.

A word to you leaders: if you are the kind of person who willingly and freely gives encouragement, thank you. If you’re not, you can start today. Start offering sincere words of unqualified encouragement. At first your staff may react with skepticism — but keep it up. Your encouragement can be the wind beneath your employees’ wings — or its absence can be the anchor that keeps them tied down in frustration. Your call.

Was Pete Carroll’s encouragement the only thing that caused the Seahawks to win the Super Bowl? Of course not. But take away that encouraging attitude, and the difference Coach Carroll’s encouragement clearly made, and the outcome might have been different. Something to think about!

The Toxic Power of the “Downer Club”

I was once the newest member of the “Downer Club.” I didn’t realize it at the time, and we never called it that, but that’s exactly what it was.

We all worked for the same company, and I was the brand new sales rep, naive and eager to please. So after a few weeks on the job when I was invited to join a co-worker for breakfast, I jumped at the chance. After all, I wanted to make friends and fit in, and here was a great opening to do just that. And it got even better, because when we arrived at the restaurant I was surprised to see three or four of our co-workers already at the table. Apparently this group get-together took place on a regular basis, often every week, and now I had been invited in!

We re-introduced ourselves around the table, placed our orders, and started to chat over coffee. And I may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but it didn’t take me long to figure out that this wasn’t just a periodic gathering of colleagues — it was a 90-minute-long gripe session. Sometimes it went even longer, as one after another my new co-workers started dredging up a litany of issues: times when the boss had chewed them out unfairly…times when accounts had been shifted arbitrarily…times when commissions had been calculated incorrectly. Two things became clear to me: first, that my fellow salespeople hated their jobs; and, second, that they loved getting together to talk about it. I sat there silently absorbing this endless list of corporate malfeasance on the part of my brand new company, and before I had finished my scrambled eggs I was wondering — “When I took this job, did I make a terrible mistake?!”

Welcome to the Downer Club.

Did I have the good sense to stop going after that first negative encounter? Are you kidding? Of course not! I wanted to fit in, to be part of the group. I had been a sales rep for maybe twenty minutes and I figured hanging around with my so-called colleagues would be a good, productive way to spend my time. And after a few of these breakfast gatherings I got to where I could come up with negative sob stories just like everybody else. The Downer Club had initiated a new convert. What I soon discovered was that I felt great during those breakfast sessions, hanging with my so-called friends, but I felt lousy afterward — negative about my job, my boss, and myself. The false high of being part of the peer group quickly gave way to the hangover caused by an overdose of negativity.

I lasted in that job about six months. Could I have stayed longer, done better and not violated my boss’s trust in me when he hired me? Probably. But whether or not the job was the right one isn’t the point. I see now that my desire to run with the pack caused me to make toxic decisions. The so-called “power of positive thinking” may not be absolute, but I can attest to the power of negative thinking! It is guaranteed to be corrosive to your enthusiasm and productivity!

So here’s a question for you: when it comes to your work, who is on your “Mental Committee”? Do you surround yourself with people who pick you up or who bring you down? I suggest that some self-examination may be in order. As for me, I changed jobs, got into a much healthier environment, and quickly came to realize that I had been part of the problem, choosing to surround myself with the wrong crowd. How about you? Is it time to turn in your membership card to the Downer Club?

Boss — Don’t Waste Your Anger!

Ah, the anger of the boss. It’s a powerful thing — too powerful to be wasted!

Don’t believe me? Think back on a time when the boss, or the coach, or the team leader got really ticked off and started venting, not just at you but at everybody. I’ve been on sales teams where this happened: the sales manager was getting seriously frustrated with a few sales reps, but instead of dealing with the “problem children” privately, he decided it was best to chew out the whole team. Believe me, that sales meeting got really quiet, really fast. The boss wasted his anger on the whole team, and it didn’t accomplish what he thought it would. In fact, it was deeply counter-productive, breeding resentment and mistrust.

The Angry Boss also wastes his or her anger by blindsiding people in individual settings. In past sales jobs I’ve been in one-on-one meetings with my boss where I was suddenly on the receiving end of an angry outburst that caught me by surprise and felt unjustified. In meetings like that we tend to get really defensive really fast, and the quality of the communication goes downhill rapidly. Instead of engaging in fruitful problem-solving, we can’t wait to get out of the door.

So, bosses, listen up: your anger is a powerful force. You may not realize it, but unless I miss my guess the majority of your employees or direct reports are highly attuned to your moods. I suspect they really do want to do a good job — and in so doing they actually want to help you look good. You have considerable power to establish the tone and culture of your organization, company or team through the careful management of your moods! Please, manage those moods wisely.

You Old Testament fans may want to check out a great example of this leadership principle in the book of Nehemiah. In chapter 5 we read that the people working on rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem had to stop work due to acute financial stress. Had Nehemiah been like some bosses he might have come unglued at this work stoppage and started kicking rear ends — but he didn’t. Instead, as angry as he was with the situation, he took a deep breath and realized who was responsible: the self-centered so-called community leaders who were fleecing their own people. He went to these greedy gougers and confronted them head-on, got them to change their ways, and the work on the wall resumed. I suspect morale soared as well.

So, leaders, those of us who report to you are asking you — please — use your anger carefully, wisely, selectively. Your anger can motivate a positive change or it can create deep resentment and chronic mistrust. Next time your temper starts to flare, take a breath, determine where the real problem lies, and use your anger like a scalpel, not a machete. Because of hard work and wise leadership, Nehemiah and his people got the wall built in only 52 days! I’ll bet your team can accomplish great things, too.

Leadership Lessons from “Twelve O’Clock High”

Recently my wife and I watched the World War II classic, “Twelve O’Clock High.” And I realized again what a great study in leadership this movie really is.

Many of you know the story. General Savage, a.k.a. Gregory Peck, takes over a demoralized “hard luck” B-17 bomber squadron in England the early days of World War II. The former commander is a great guy whom everybody loves — but somehow by identifying too strongly with his men, worn down by the danger and death they face every day, he has failed to inspire the kind of courage and pride essential to the mission. The men have stopped believing in themselves, and their performance has begun to suffer. Air crews are being lost through careless and sloppy tactics.

So Gregory Peck takes over the squadron and immediately adopts a “take charge” attitude. His my-way-or-the-highway leadership approach is met with hostility, to the point where every single pilot puts in for a transfer. But by buying time, developing some key alliances within the squadron, and giving the men the chance to learn, grow and perform together, he rebuilds the team into a top-notch unit, with a deep bond of loyalty and shared high standards.

The movie demonstrates the overwhelming power of good, effective leadership. Knowing my personality, I might have been like the former commander, the one who got too close and didn’t set standards high enough. But General Savage knew from personal experience what the squadron needed — a leader who would establish the tone and adhere to it no matter what. So what are the take-aways from “Twelve O’Clock High”? Here are a few.

First, leaders define reality, After all, this was early in 1942, a highly dangerous time at the start of the war when the strategy of daylight bombing was unproven. It was potentially life or death for the Allies. General Savage never sugar-coated the facts: the frightening reality of the situation demanded a hard-edged uncompromising leadership style.

Second, leaders build an inner circle. Almost immediately after taking over, General Savage starts creating a nucleus of key leaders within the squadron and helps them see what his brand of leadership could accomplish — he helps them see and share his vision. He didn’t try to be the Lone Ranger, something ineffective leaders can tend to do. And he learned to listen to these key players, using their valuable insights to adjust his approach.

Third, leaders understand the need for patience. When faced with a virtual mutiny, General Savage did what he could to buy time instead of reacting to the immediate situation. Eventually the entire squadron came around to his point of view, something that would not have happened had he over-reacted. While it’s important to maintain a healthy sense of urgency, an impatient leader is often an ineffective leader.

Fourth, leaders lead by doing. In the film, General Savage trained with his men, flew with his men, and faced danger with his men. He wasn’t an armchair leader content to remain behind in comfort and safety. He knew what could be accomplished because he himself had done it. He led by example.

Fifth, leaders stay the course. There was no doubt in General Savage’s mind that his squadron could perform. He kept an unwavering eye on the prize of excellence, and eventually his team achieved it. Even though many hated him at first, they came to believe in him and trust him because he modeled absolute integrity and adherence to the mission. (After all, what else would you expect from Gregory Peck?!)

So go watch “Twelve O’Clock High” and see what you think. Could you work for a leader like the one Gregory Peck depicted in that classic film? I’ll say one thing for him: he did a great job of defining reality for his men — and in so doing he actually re-shaped reality, creating a whole new belief structure. A classic example of the power of effective leadership!