“Roger, Wilco!”

Sitting on my deck, with fresh brewed coffee, breakfast, and a good book.  Cooper, my 3-year old Golden Retriever, is entranced and antagonized by the ground squirrel exploring the back yard (likely looking for more annoying places to dig tunnels).

Out of sheer laziness (my current books are all upstairs), on my way to the deck, I picked up the dogeared copy of Peter Block’s brilliant The Answer to How is Yes.  It’s been several years since I last read this piece, and, as usual, in just the first several pages, I’ve gleaned new insights and perspective.  Block is fantastic for doing that no matter how many times you’ve read his works.

“Roger, wilco.”

It’s military jargon meaning, “We will comply.” Both as an infantry scout and a linguist flying off the coast of North Korea or Russia, we used this phrase daily, perhaps even hourly.  It was a hard-wired part of the culture.

Take a military objective?  Consider it done.  Obtain a piece of vital information?  No problem.  Sacrifice for the greater good?  Without question.

In recent months (as evidenced by many of my blog entries), I’ve been reflected increasingly on my years in the military, on the heritage it provided to me, and the lessons in leadership, teamwork, and simply about people have been remarkable.

I don’t know the origin of the expression “Improvise, Adapt, and Overcome,” but it speaks to the same message in Block’s book.  Stop thinking about why we might not be able to accomplish a task, and focus instead on simply figuring it out.

I should emphasize that “getting it done” was not without challenges.  But rather than dwell on the difficulties of making something happen, we simply set about overcoming any obstacles in our path.  With the framework of the Code of Conduct and the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), we approached each directive with confidence in our abilities to meld creativity, experience, and sheer gusto.

So, if you haven’t read The Answer to How is Yes, I’d strongly suggest it make your “short list,” of future books.  It’s an easy read, yet markedly poignant and articulate in getting us to look beyond the challenges and difficulties that perhaps would sidetrack or permanently sideline so many in our society.  Let’s be those who do “improvise, adapt, and overcome,” not those who focus on questions of “how” will we get things done.

Say it with me……”Roger, wilco!”

Vulnerability and Shame: A TED Talk

If you ever find yourself with a free 20 minutes of time, one of the best choices you can make would be to peruse the numerous fantastic TED talks.  Some are brilliant.  Some fascinating.  All enlightening.

Some of you may recall Brene’ Brown’s original TED talk several years ago.  Well, Brene’ is back, with her wonderful humor, humility, and powerful message.  Focused on the topic of vulnerability and shame, this is the best TED talk I’ve seen in quite some time.  Some of the key ideas that Brene’ conveys include:

• Vulnerability is not weakness
• Vulnerability fuels our daily lives
• Vulnerability is the most accurate measure of courage
• Vulnerability is the birthplace of creativity, innovation, and change
• Empathy is the antidote to shame
• If you wait to engage (in anything worthwhile) until you’re perfect, it will never happen

Take 20 minutes and watch her talk yourself.  It’s well worth it….Enjoy!

Egg on Leadership’s Face: When Humanity Fails

It’s almost enough to make you laugh, if only to avoid crying.  The frequency with which leaders make some of the most asinine mistakes is mind-numbing.  We read about it on the many news and blog sites we visit everyday.  We react with incredulity, shaking our head and judging the callous insensitivity of it all.  How could they do that?  What could they be thinking?  I can’t believe that happened!

Executives enroute to a government bailout meeting in Washington, D.C., pile into the corporate jet.  Corporate vice presidents mistakenly tweet their disappointment over quarter million dollar bonuses, while workers agonize over impending layoffs.  Company officers revolt over loss of reserved parking spaces for their fleet vehicles.  The horror…..

Give them a break.  Most of us have made gaffes in our personal, professional, or social lives….dare I say, we all have.  The difference?  Our mistakes are not as subject to scrutiny as are those of our organizational leaders.

So, yes, give them a break.  We owe our leaders the benefit of the doubt when they make truly ridiculous (and sadly pathetic) mistakes.  They’re human after all, right?  Their leadership prestige does not lessen their on frailty.  Rather, it simply highlights it to the rest of us.

So, give them a break.  But then hold them accountable for what they have said, done, or decided.  (Uh oh…this isn’t going in the direction you thought, is it?)

That’s right.  Hold them steadfastly accountable.  Why?  Because they ARE in leadership roles, and as such, they represent the values of the organization and the entire leadership corps.  That’s part of the deal.  Even leaders can make mistakes.  That doesn’t make them evil or mean.  But it does mean they need to answer for the underlying beliefs, values, and perspectives from which their gaffe originated.  So, hold them accountable.  Take them to task.  Demand not only an explanation, and where appropriate a recantation, but require them to face the angry mobs.

Why, you might ask?

Because this is precisely where humility defeats ego, where servant leadership trumps tyranny.  Sometimes, leaders need to feel the consequences of their actions, even if those consequences are used to raise awareness of joint sacrifice and collective purpose.

So, when your leaders mess up.  Forgive them.  Let them know it’s not the end of the world.  But leverage the situation to forge deep conversations involving the entire organization about the values, beliefs, and interdependence that will move the organization forward.  In the end, you will have a stronger company as a result.