Colleagues,

While at my mom’s last week, I wanted to take care of a few things in her back yard. I didn’t have a lot of time but there is so much to do:

• Relay pavers so she can walk safely on a smooth surface
• Build a handrail so she can get off the deck
• Weed
• Weed some more
• Fill in gopher holes
• Plant some seeds
• Pick up limbs and other debris

 
With limited time, where should I start? What criteria should I use for making the decision?
 
The real question is why do anything at all? What is the outcome that warrants investing time in the garden?
 
If mom can sit in her garden safely, then that would be a win.
 
So, my first project was to install the handrail so she could get off the deck and into the garden. None of the other things would have mattered until the handrail was complete.
 
It is a lot more fun (and easier) to plant seeds, but they wouldn’t matter if she couldn’t get to them.
 
Reflect:
Are you building handrails or planting seeds? 
 
Do good and be well,
 
Frederick

Colleagues,

Unfortunately, my mom was in the hospital last week. She is doing better now, but we had an interesting experience as we were working through the release process to get her home.
 
We had a wonderful nurse named Joyce who managed the process, which included paperwork, reviewing important points, and showing me how to use some medical equipment. Joyce was awesome. She was fully present for us and radiated positivity – a real lighthouse.
 
However, during the hour, Joyce received about 10 phone calls. She answered each one, and in many of them, she was providing the caller with a discrete piece of information relating to care coordination for a patient.
 
Each time she received a call she had to stop working with us, shift her focus to the caller, answer a question, and then return to what she had been doing. She was used to this, so she seemed to transition fluidly, but I wonder how this impacts her performance and health over the course of a day, of weeks, or of months. 
 
This is an organizational issue. How much time was lost in transition? How much more likely is it that mistakes will be made? What is the impact on the person over time?
 
Is there a leader in a position to change how communication flows within the organization?
 
I hope so. For both Joyce’s sake and for her patients.
 
Do good and be well,
 
Frederick

Colleagues,

The first principle of strategic leadership is to be purposeful by prioritizing the important over the urgent. Thinker and innovator Seth Godin suggested in a recent 115-word blog post:
 
What if… the last thing we did [in a day] was make a list of exciting opportunities for the future? And if the first thing after waking up was doing some morning pages and jotting down what we’re looking forward to?

Colleagues,

I’ve been doing a number of workshops recently that are focused on helping leaders “see the big picture.”
 
The answer doesn’t need to be overly complex. Leaders who can see the big picture:

• Have a framework through which they view organizations
• This framework brings clarity to what it means to lead
• Understand that there are core strategies that will drive organizational success 

 
These three things provide a leader with clarity of purpose and of action.
 
Do good and be well,
 
Frederick