Ownership

In their book, "Extreme Ownership" former Navy Seals Jocko Willink and Leif Babin say that an effective leader must take ownership of everything in your world.  Ownership of a situation allows a leader to approach a subordinate  and say "its my fault" (whatever the situation may be), "I didn't set clear expectations, and this is how we are going to fix this."  This is so good.  How much time is spent playing the blame game?  How much time is spent navigating or anticipating emotional reaction to negative feedback?  How much respect is lost because leaders do not take ownership of situations, provide guidance, challenge the team to improve, and move forward.  Lastly, how much time is wasted hiding behind pride instead of stepping out in humility?  This is not excusing lack of effort or poor decision making.  This is not accepting bad team members.   This concept is taking ownership of the situation and the team so that the goal can be obtained, the mission completed.  The mission might be the completion of an audit, the pursuit of a new client, or the development of a new service line.  Everything that happens between the beginning and end of the mission falls on the shoulder of the leader.  Own it!

At my firm, we have several several young team members who struggle to meet professional expectations.  Timelines are ignored, clients are not a priority, communication is week, work is of minimum effort, dress is sloppy and on and on.  We might consider cutting these team members loose but we need them.  I went through several rounds of addressing the professional issue by saying, "your feedback says: you ignore timelines, you don't seem to make serving clients a priority, you are not returning calls, you need to polish your shoes."  The responses I received were "why do I have to do that, why doesn't anyone tell me those things to my face, timelines weren't communicated, and I'm not paid enough to dress like a lawyer."  Recently I had a coaching discussion with one of these team members and I simply said, "this situation is my fault.  I (the Firm) have not communicated the rules of the game and what we expect of our team members."  This led to an open conversation about the culture of the firm, why I've stayed on for 13+ years, how client's want to be served, and what that person needs from the firm.  It was a great conversation.  I was able to talk about the issues, without playing the blame game, the team member was never threatened, and I was able to communicate expectations and consequences in a very personal way.  That person immediately stepped up their game.  We all won, perhaps more importantly, we all learned.    

Debt Sucks

"What's left to be prized? This, I think — to limit our action or inaction to only what's in keeping with the needs of our own preparation ... it's what the exertions of education and teaching are all about — here is the thing to be prized! If you hold this only, you'll stop trying to get yourself all the other things. ... If you don't, you won't be free, self-sufficient, or liberated from passion, but necessarily full of envy, jealousy, and suspicion for any who have the power to take them, and you'll plot against those who do have what you prize. ... But by having some self-respect for your own mind and prizing it, you will please yourself and be in better harmony with your fellow human beings, and more in tune with the gods— praising everything they have set in order and allotted you." — Marcus Aurelius, "Meditations," 6.16.2b–4a

I hate debt.

It drains energy.

It strains relationships.

It blocks dreams from happening.

"Know thyself"

“Know thyself, know they enemy.  A thousand battles, a thousand victories”

My sons are 8 and 5 years of age.  The battlefield, which we call home, is covered in LEGO projects, digging equipment, NERF weapons, and automobiles of every form imaginable.  Our dinner table has one reoccurring conversation:  “Who is the strongest superhero?”  Amongst the misplaced juvenile adrenaline of my children is a profound imaginative interest in superhero performance.  My wife made the mistake of sharing the encyclopedic comic book geekery of my youth with our boys, who now pick my brain zealously.  I’m peppered with questions like, “Daddy, what happens when Iron Man gets wet?  What would happen if the Hulk was thrown into the sun?  Would Thor still be strong if he cuts his hair?  How does Batman go potty?”  My dinner table is a constant superhero performance evaluation.

Over the next few weeks, you will like be undergoing a period of self-evaluation, and perhaps a formal performance evaluation through your employer.   I hope no one is evaluated on the grounds of their super powers or their performance in an iron suit, however, I’m pretty sure we are all going to be evaluated from the perspective of how our individual strengths can best be utilized and placed in the puzzle we call employment.  When done correctly, both you and your firm!   This period of self reflection and external evaluation in is an opportunity to ponder individual interests, strengths are and how we can better ourselves.  To take that two steps further it is an opportunity to develop a plan to explore your interests, build upon your strengths, and grow as professionals.

I challenge you to consider the following:

• Your year to date performance is a measurement of the the past, how are you going to increase your value to the firm in the future?
• What is one project that you are going to make a difference in?
• What is one area within the firm that you can improve?
• What is an industry that you want to learn more about and who can you go to lunch with to learn more about it?
• When client work is slow, what are some noncharge projects that you can work on (examples include newsletters, being a technology champion, refreshing webpages,).
• What does your personality profile (DISC, Meyers Briggs, etc) say about your tendencies? 
• What are some books, magazines, blogs, etc. that you can read this year to grow as a professional?
• Would anyone want to read a book with you?
• Do you feel connected to the firm?  Are you utilizing your coach?  Do you need to find a mentor?
• What are some community activities that you can get involved in?
• Are you satisfied with my health and overall well-being?
• What do you want the next 3 years to look like?

Spend some thinking about what you want to do in your career.  You may not know for certain for years to come, but make a plan to take some baby steps over the next 12 months.  Keep in mind that is it is YOUR career so take advantage of the tools and resources made available to you.