Speaking of Leadership
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- danmulhern: What do you think would be good questions 4me to raise on radio 4 #LaborDay? Future of the middle class? Of org labor? plz RT
Sep
27
5 Minutes in the Next 3 Days – Grumble or Act
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Friends,
The comments to last week’s RFL were the best ever, I think. They were richly diverse and deeply thoughtful. I’m looking for even better this week.
Apologies to non-Michiganians, but this is a huge week for political – and for everyday – leaders in my home state. Thursday we begin a new fiscal year. The legislature has been unable so far to agree to a budget to send to the governor. As the clock winds down, you can ignore them, grumble, or act.
The story is much simpler than most seem to think. The manufacturing meltdown and national recession have badly shrunken tax revenues. Various interest groups – e.g., finance, unions, manufacturing, hospitals, doctors, social service agencies, and the arts – are all vying to receive help – through lower taxes and/or government support. The Republicans have staked out a consistent, ideological view: they want to eliminate the $1.3 billion shortfall by cuts-only. They say that neither citizens nor businesses should be asked to pay more taxes. Citizens are hurting and businesses create jobs, so, they argue, why would we want to make it even harder for them. They know the cuts are going to be deep and painful, but they believe that in the long run we will emerge leaner and more competitive. Dem Speaker Dillon has supported this in a deal with Republican Sen Bishop, but has at other times said we probably need more revenues.
The Democrats have largely called for a balancing of cuts with some revenue increases. They argue that many proposed cuts will only lead to higher costs, for example, if you cut children’s preventive health you will pay more later; or if you take cops off the street, people will pay as crime victims and through their insurance. Some Dems also argue for the morality of fighting cuts that will close nursing homes and mental health clinics. They also argue that cutting funding to schools and scholarships will actually hurt our ability to attract good jobs and the diminish our citizens’ ability to hold those jobs. The Dems have accepted cuts to many programs, but they argue that we should also cut the special tax benefits that were given to some industries like oil and gas that other industries don’t get. They argue these are actually (tax) expenditures that should be cut. The Dems have trotted out different revenues they consider tolerable, e.g., a penny on a bottle of water, or a percentage surcharge on tickets or rental cars.
Those are pretty much the positions. Of course, there are a thousand nuances, as people support medicaid reimbursement, cops, arts, schools, etc. Who should take the biggest hit or be protected the most? So, what do you say? Don’t write me!!!!
Be part of the democratic process by writing the governor, your representative and senator. They count the votes. In a representative democracy your voice helps them lead with their best self. Taking a stand at a tough time is also a way for you to . . .
Lead with your best self!
Dan
Sep
20
Looking at Men from 38,000 Feet
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Friends,
Men are at risk.
I listened to a talk by Marianne Williamson yesterday, one of the wisest and most spiritual people I know. She was talking about the mythological and psychological underpinnings that shape the way we think about and act in our lives and relationships. Deep within – and the psychologist Carl Jung would say among – our minds, powerful forces of meaning shape the way we think . . . and, therefore, act. We are seldom aware of what’s there, but from these realms come strong fears, assumptions, expectations and hopes, and without being consciously aware of them, our actions are moved by them. Marianne offered a powerful connection between these potent, murky depths in our consciousness and the significant surface of our economic and social life, and concluded: These are especially difficult times for men.
The compelling suggestion we discussed – and I’d love to hear from you on – is this: Men have been equipped to work, to lift and toil, to exert, to direct and manage, and if necessary even to fight. We are programmed, deep in our minds and cells, to protect and to provide. And now many men are adrift in a massive sea change. Women already outnumber men in supervisory positions. Soon they will outnumber men in the workforce altogether. And “women’s characteristics” are increasingly valued in the workplace: cooperation, collaboration, relationship, listening, tolerance, diversity are surpassing assertion, competition, and command – let alone aggression. These changes challenge men in the white collar world.
The blue collar world is even more treacherous for men. Automation and low wage global competition continue to suck men’s jobs from Michigan and America. And so men wonder: How do I provide? How do I protect? Where is my place? How do I adapt to a world, where I can’t find a “real job” and where (hopefully) my wife is able to step in and lead?
In all candor: I live in this world, where the footing is hard to find. I was born and raised to provide and protect. Anyone who has a son knows this: if you don’t give us guns or spears…we will make them! At our best, we have nobly protected: put up with grimy factories, or in my dad’s case, stultifying corporate bureaucracies. But now we struggle to find a new way. Many of us exult as our wives and daughters soar, yet it’s a treacherous time to find our own footing, to learn to play # 2, to learn to nurture our kids, and to figure out both at work and at home, nothing less than what it means to “be a man.” I can’t protect my wife from a Republican attacker or media assailant, no matter how much my wiring stimulates me to do so. (Clearly: she does not need my defense.)
It’s not surprising many men feel like they’re under a cultural-economic attack. We’re chromosomally-ready to fight back. But against whom? And how? Glenn Beck and his ilk would have us fight “socialism,” or we can buy guns, or we can fight immigrants (there is legitimate substance to those issues, but there’s also some misplaced frustration at work beneath it all). The truth is our predicament is not caused by socialism but by global capitalism that has changed the battlefield for us. We can’t change that!!! India, China, Brazil – they’re not going backwards (and by the way most of them are a lot more socialistic than we are). No. We can’t go back to some supposedly wonderful former America (ask Blacks, women, and gays about how wonderful it was for that 70% or so of our populace). Global competition, fast-change, automation, the internet, diversity and (thank goodness) super competent women are here to stay.
Maybe we need to look not just to external reforms – health care and tax policy – but also to internal reforms: cultural and spiritual, and certainly educational changes. We need to train for brains not brawn in a way-big way. And, men let’s treasure the impulse to protect and provide, but also talk about how we improvise and innovate. Let’s find ways to raise boys and “be men” in this new and evolving world. I’m confident we can adapt to
Lead with our best selves,
Dan
Sep
13
The Power of Belonging
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A reminder that this e-column is about “everyday leaders,” therefore you don’t need to be authorized to lead, or to heed. Today’s message: Leaders always see, and tend to the importance of culture. Culture is what unleashes or traps energy, creates meaning or meanness, offers focus or fuzz. Here’s a way to think of unleashing purposeful energy in your culture (at work, or at home).
Check out an energized culture: 107,000-plus screaming fans at the Big House in Ann Arbor. A scene repeated across the country: white-outs, tomahawks, painted chests, Lions, Tigers, Canes, Horns, and of course Trojans and Spartans. The Wave, cartwheels and handstands, screams of passion, jubilation (or desperation) – all from belonging. Similarly, in these first weeks of elementary, middle and high school-life across the country, kids are seeking to establish identity and belonging. No leader should lose sight of that craving, aching human need! Belonging creates a powerful sense of personal identity, and unleashes strong feelings of purpose and power.
I re-learned this lesson last week when I spoke on successive days at Facebook and then the California Workforce Association. I saw at Facebook as I had at Google, that their employees feel mighty special. Part has to do with making their way through close to double-digit interviews; they’ve run the gauntlet and feel they belong: they’re proud, deserving and happily expect that much will be expected of them. Of course, they also feel like they belong – on top – because of the special place their companies hold in the world. But, how about the California Workforce Association? Not exactly the sexiest title for a group. Not even clear that somebody would know what they do. Well, in a nutshell: they are job trainers, community college folks, placement officers, and they are hugely busy these days helping people – including the hard-to-employ – to find work. God bless them for that!
Their Executive Director Virginia Hamilton told me that she’s proud of the conference she holds for her members, because they can easily think of themselves as “just people” helping others find work, but the conference helps them to see that they are more: they are part of a profession, with best practices, ongoing learning, and career development. They share common struggles, triumphs, and benefit from their diverse insights. They also have important learning to deliver to the world of legislatures and policy makers. Belonging to their Association, helps them see they have more to learn yet much to say. Virginia’s words reminded me of how valuable it was for me to belong to the National Society of Fund-Raising Executives, or to the National Governors Associations First Spouses group. Both took me out of my vocational isolation and offered me a world of allies and fellow-learners. Virginia’s words also reminded me of how much confidence I had felt emanating from a group I addressed called the Professional Assistants to Chief Executives. Together they expressed enormous confidence and passion to improve. I was struck with the contrast: how in their isolated offices they were often hidden behind a desk with a dirty little secret: If it weren’t for them their exalted bosses would be seen as confused, disorganized, and detached.
This belonging I’m talking about has tremendous rewards. Belonging to a profession, a team, or an organization that values its members, and teaches, celebrates, and challenges them to grow, doesn’t just reward those members, but it rewards everyone in the culture with whom they work.
Do the people at your place have a sense of belonging – in your place but also to something linking them with colleagues outside? Would your folks paint their chests or do cartwheels in pride at belonging? That’s an energy worth striving to create, as you
Lead with your best self!
Sep
11
Boys To Men
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It’s extraordinary how fast our culture has adapted. Thirty years ago women were rarities in halls of power – or even as supervisors of men in white collar settings. Now, it’s a non-issue. But have men come along? Are we ready for this, dudes? Take the survey and listen to the show on Saturday 9/12 at 7 am streaming online or a a local affiliate of the Michigan Talk Network.
Sep
7
Back to School Leaders
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I am struck today by contrasts and contradictions. In Michigan, today is back-to-school day!!!! Of course, college football began and the pros roll out this week. Tigers are roaring. And go, ahem, Lions. So, here’s the contrast, then the leadership lessons.
Last week a story ran in the News and Free Press. It seems the state’s schools had some pretty incredible progress last year: 5% more met statewide standards; 10% more were graded “A” schools; and the achievement of minority-heavy schools also improved significantly. It’s not all perfect. Some of the gains were fueled by changes in success measurements (e.g., a five-year high school graduation is now considered a success), and there was an increase in schools on the verge of total failure. But, all-in-all good news – no, really, great news for a state that absolutely MUST improve educational attainment in this new economy. Good news, which . . . doesn’t . . exactly . . . travel . . . fast, or for long. In fact, the News version of the story had exactly ZERO comments on it; not even one of the habitual cynics rose up to doubt the numbers. The Free Press had a whopping four comments. Does that stun you as much as it did me (comment below)?
Yesterday, Labor Day, the day before school was to begin . . . not a single story in the Freep about schools. (The New York Times had one front-page story about homeless kids in schools; I couldn’t find any others there.) Meanwhile, online with the Freep: 9 of the top 10 “most read” stories were – you guessed it – sports (Only Walter Reuther as the # 9 story spoiled the shutout!). My amazement is not with the papers. They are trying to stay alive and following the interest of their readers. My question is with us: Are we not interested in this great sign of hope? Not just for the rah-rah, but for the learning: Why are scores up? What are we doing better? How do we stay at it and get even better? This is amazing stuff, and unlike being a passionate fan, we can actually have an impact on this!
There are some lessons from the data. Here’s a few. You’re sick of me saying it, but vision, goals and challenge matter. It’s clear that Michigan’s higher, and clearer, standards have helped. Goals and markers then drive change, so new curriculum – strategy-aligned-to-goals – has helped. Data has also helped, as teachers have identified curriculum that works. Parental involvement continues to drive achievement, and in successful schools it’s up.
I think it’s unpatriotic (if not downright ludicrous) that school boards (in Oxford, Rochester and Warren Van Dyke) would prevent the elected leader of the world’s greatest democracy to speak to their students about effort and achievement. The President is himself an incredible model of can-do. But in the end it will be everyday leaders – focusing less on sports (Coach Rodriguez) and more on learning that will make Michigan great. To our parents, older siblings, grandparents, teachers, principals, secretaries, janitors, bus drivers, superintendents, coaches, social workers, and cafeteria workers I say: Happy Labor Day, congratulations and let’s do it again. On the field that matters most,
Lead with your best self,
Dan
Sep
4
As Women Take Over – what changes?
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Women are now at about 49.7% of the workforce. The shift in 30 years has been extraordinary. So, questions arise, as we look to our girls (on this week’s show) and boys (next week). Do the messages need to change?
And is there any meaning to “act like a lady,” or “be feminine?” Take a two-minute survey and you might find the results surprising. Listen Saturday at 8:00 AM.
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