​Colleagues,
 
All of the outdoor analogies from the past two weeks seem to have resonated with people. This has got me thinking about leadership from a gardening perspective. If people are like gardens, then the leader is like a gardener.
 
Gardeners do a number of things to care for gardens and this week we’ll look at seven of them.
 
The first step in gardening is to evaluate the space. Not all things will grow in all places, so assessing sunlight, positioning, soil conditions and other things are integral. Basically, getting to know your garden is the first step towards helping it flourish.
 
People are the same way. I’ve seen leaders come in and immediately begin trying to remake or change people without understanding who those people are. If you are serious about leading, a core component of which is serving and growing people, you must get to know them.
 
What do you need to know?

1. Capacities, strengths, and weaknesses
2. Aspirations
3. Motivations
4. History, hurts, and hopes
5. Some aspects of their personal lives (assuming they are open to it)

 
Evaluating a garden takes time. A space that looks perfect in the spring may not get enough sun in the summer or be too exposed in the winter. It is similar with people. We all have our own “seasons” and we behave differently and have unique capacities and challenges in each one.
 
You can get a lot out of this series by doing these things today:

• Identify some specific people you would like to help grow
• Take inventory of what you know about them
• Identify your next steps for learning more

 
Do good and be well,
 
Frederick

Colleagues,
 
Instead of traveling to England for a Grand Adventure hiking the Pennine Way, my wife and I “decided” to stay home and tackle a bunch of home projects. One of them was redoing our firepit. Our first one, dug hurriedly 15 years ago, was simply a clean out of the one that had been built by the previous owners. It was basically a depression in the ground with a ring of stones.
 
The old firepit had become a mountain of ash. We also needed to move it to make way for a greenhouse. Although we don’t have hotdog roasts with the kids anymore, we do live in a rural area and frequently burn fallen limbs and other garden debris.
 
So, we decided that we wanted to build this firepit the “right” way, which in our case meant digging a foot down through the clay and rocks, and then lining the bottom with flat stones. As I was chipping out the last few inches of rock and clay, I wondered why we were going to all of the trouble.
 
There is no doubt the old firepit wasn’t serviceable any longer, but we should have asked ourselves a couple of questions before we began:

1. What purpose do we need it to serve?
2. What is the value it will provide?
3. What else could we do with the time and resources it would take?

 
In our case, it worked out well and the time and energy were worth the results. However, we should have asked those questions first.
 
Are you planning to make any changes in your organization this year? Maybe you should ask yourself those same questions before you pick up the shovel.
 
Do good and be well,
 
Frederick

​Colleagues,
 
We’ve been talking about intentionally planting seeds for the past two days. In writing yesterday about how to be more intentional in your seed planting, I got to thinking about a couple people I’ve known who seemed to plant seeds everywhere they went.
 
I hope you know the kind of person I am talking about. We are better because we spent time with them. Their lives seem to be one continuous journey of planting seeds.
 
The curious thing is that they are not intentionally planting each individual seed, but instead they intentionally live as farmers or gardeners. Some people are able to intentionally live, and this intentional living allows them to plant seeds without focusing on it. They are gardeners, not just planters.
 
For the rest of this week, I’ll be asking myself a few questions:

1. How would I need to change in order to become a gardener?
2. What are the barriers in my life that cause me to focus on myself instead of others?
3. How can I prepare each day to go out into the world and do gardening?
4. What person can I spend time with who will help me become a better gardener?

 
Maybe I could grow into a great gardener, maybe not, but it seems like the effort will make me a better leader.
 
Do good and be well,
 
Frederick

​Colleagues,
 
Yesterday I shared a cartoon and discussed being intentional about planting seeds instead of just burying nuts. My colleague, Dr. Robert Maddox, noted that sometimes we try and plant seeds, but if the soil isn’t fertile, no matter how hard we try, the seeds may not grow.
 
His comment got me to thinking about what it means to intentionally plant seeds. It begins with intention, but then what?
 
If you want to intentionally plant seeds, try these things:

1. Check your own motivations. Sometimes we get caught up in wanting people to be more like us so we try and plant seeds that won’t work for them, instead of figuring out the seeds they need. Planting a seed should be a gift. The seed needs to match the need of the person. 
2. Nurture what you’ve planted, but don’t work too hard. You can’t make the seed grow faster. It will grow in its own time. Certainly, you may water and fertilize through encouragement. Maybe you’ll even need to provide a stake for support, but you can’t make a seed grow faster. Just be patient but consistent with your care.
3. Don’t give up. Some seeds take a long time to germinate. Some plants grow mainly underground, so the changes can’t be seen until much later. Have faith in yourself and in the person you are working with.

 
The first point has always been the hardest for me. What about you? 
 
Do good and be well,
 
Frederick

Colleagues,

How intentional are you?