Colleagues,

Note: I’m challenging myself to keep every message under 100 words this week. Just for fun.
 
What do leaders do?
 
Many people look to leaders to fix things.
 
That’s a trap.
 
If you are busy fixing things, how will others learn to do their own fixing? 
 
If you are busy fixing things, who is helping people grow?
 
Fixing things feels good, so it is easy to jump in and start fixing.
 
How can you break the habit?
 
Try asking the issue’s owner, “What are some possibilities for improving the situation?” Then be quiet and listen.
 
Cheers!
 
Frederick

Colleagues,

Fall has come to the mountains! Change is everywhere. Trees that were bright green are now yellow, gold, brown, and even orange.
 
Change is so visible with the trees, but what about with us?
 
Now, please just pause for 60 seconds after reading the next few questions…

• Can others see how you have changed?
• Can you see our own changes?

 
I know you have changed and grown as a leader over the past few months. The fact that you take a few minutes some, most, or all days to read these messages is evidence.
 
So, my friend, how has your leadership changed over the past six months? 
 
If you want extra credit, send me a 1-3 sentence statement about how engaging with this daily email has impacted your leadership. I’m redoing the front page of my website and a testimonial from you would be really helpful.
 
Have a great weekend!
 
Cheers!
 
Frederick

Colleagues,

Do you love getting down on your knees and reaching far into the depths of kitchen cupboards? Neither do I, which is why I failed to confront a situation early on.
 
On weekday mornings I make a protein shake, and the mixer I use is on the bottom left of a cabinet. It is heavy and a bit of a hassle to get out. It is harder to put away because the stack of trays on the right side of the cupboard frequently spills into the space vacated by the mixer, usually at the exact moment that I’m down on my knees about to put the mixer back into place.
 
I have been dealing with this for months. It is a minor annoyance and I’ve never felt like rearranging all the trays on the right side. Today, I decided to pull the top layer of trays and see what the problem was. I pulled out one tray and saw that there was a glass bowl in the back right corner causing the tray to continually slide to the left. I took out the bowl, returned the tray to its spot, and put the bowl on top of it. Problem solved.
 
Identifying the problem took the same amount of time as I would have spent fighting the tray, except that I only had to do it once, not every morning.
 
Why did it take me months to decide to treat the root problem? Because I was living in the urgent zone. When I finish making my shake I just want to get to work. “I don’t have time to deal with this!”
 
Try this: As you move through your day today, are there issues that you just accept as being either unsolvable or tolerable? Take a moment to think about them. What’s bothering you is a symptom. What’s the problem?
 
Let me know if you discover anything interesting!
 
Cheers!
 
Frederick

Colleagues,

Yesterday, I shared four options for working in the rain and suggested that the best option was dependent on your specific context.
 
One way to understand context is to look at my friend Dr. Steve Gross’s turbulence model. Inspired by aeronautics, Steve identified four patterns of turbulence in organizations:

Colleagues,

I’ve been trying to work on the green-shed, but it poured rain all last week. Given the weather, I had four options:

1. Get wet and work in the rain
2. Get less wet by covering the worksite
3. Stay mostly dry by doing some detail work in the garage
4. Stay dry and not work at all

 
Working in the rain will allow me to keep progressing, but it will be more dangerous.
 
Covering the worksite will allow me to keep working somewhat safely, but at a slower pace.
 
Doing detail work will allow me to work safely, but more slowly and with the possibility of making some bad mistakes.
 
Not working will allow me to rest my tired body but will stall all progress.
 
These same options apply to the work we do as leaders, especially change initiatives.
 
I know a school that is implementing a new math curriculum and experiencing large numbers of student, teacher, and staff absences.
 
The leaders in this school have the same challenge I do, and they have the same four options.
 
Urgent leaders will try to keep doing what they are doing (option 1).
 
Strategic leaders will pause and consider all four options, and then make an intentional decision.
 
There is no single best option. The best option is context specific. The key is to be intentional about choosing.
 
Cheers!
 
Frederick