During this leadership development course one of the instructors quoted one of his previous mentors saying that leaders should have stories ready about:
mission, discipline, loyalty, and safety
This is in line with what one of my former mentors told me more briefly, “you need stories”. Ok - I thought, but stories about what? I have stories… I can tell a story… Typically I’m coming up with something appropriate on the spot. There are pros and cons to that approach.
… Read more »It will be a continuing struggle to stay on top of how the Air Force is changing in the feedback system, and the systems they add over the years.
Here’s a new one I need to stay on top of - a new additional feedback form. It looks fantastic - the “Airmen Leadership Qualities”.
During the Leadership Development Course communication section, the Chief said:
Great leaders help people understand their “now”, then help people understand the future
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I’m finding this course pretty interesting.
They asked us to reflect on some of our results from a personality quiz - the one at 16personalities.com. I got an INFJ, but normally I’m INTJ and think I probably still am, really.
How will we apply what we know about our personalities to our interactions with our teams?
I’ll try to be more conscious about how I react to “perceiving” teammates. They may wait a while and not set a plan - that can be ok. It often feels wrong to me, though, in large part because it’s not how I’ve learned to work. As reflected by my personality.
… Read more »This video discusses organizational culture - I don’t love it because it’s too cheesy-motivational to me.
One think I do like about the video is that it provides some solid ways to change organizational culture. By providing a solid definition (even if it’s not the one I’d choose), the video is able to specify how to move the needle against that decision:
Determine what behaviors will be rewarded or corrected in your organization, and clarify that to the entire team. Embody those behaviors and live up to them. As someone in my group said with the embody piece, “you get what you tolerate”, so correct or reward the right things. Find the right things to celebrate and do.
… Read more »I’m sitting in the Leader Development Course from Air University - distance learning. One of the stories I heard this morning has the crux - the commander needs to walk a line between being too involved and not being involved. The story involved the former commander trying to show he cared by being there when new members arrived, by sitting with folks as they did work, and by visiting them when they were out in the field. Later he learned that folks felt like he was checking up on them, making sure they were doing what they were supposed to.
… Read more »I’m listening to a webinar Air University is putting on called “Managing Traumatic Transitions” with Dr. Allen. She is actually talking about managing any type of transition, because all kinds of transition are traumatic to people.
She asked:
How many of us consider how individuals will grieve when we introduce change?
It’s clear that some people do better with change than other people. Any type of change. But grieving?
Other sources agree, ‘change at work can trigger loss and grief’
I recently saw a quote from an old boss of mine. The full paragraph is below, placing it in context, but the part that seems notable (pointed out by a friend of mine) is the, “it is important for a leader to … not limit the potential of those they serve.”
The command sets the tone/culture – which is difficult to quantify. I believe the best culture allows decision capability to those “closest to the fight,” while still maintaining a sense of responsibility should a problem arise. By properly leveraging the concepts of mission command to empower every Tiger to lead at their level, I’m expanding our influence and positively impacting the squadron in a way I could never do by myself or by taking a more hands on approach. Much like a doctor takes an oath to first do no harm, it is important for a leader to first not limit the potential of those they serve.
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This morning I finished Planet Money’s Episode 963: 13,000 Economists. 1 Question.. These fine folks make one of my favorite podcasts - each week is a different look at something weird from a weird perspective. It sounds like it’s very market/economy focused, but it’s really focused on everything economics. In the past decades economics has branched out to look at nearly every field of human endeavor with a mathematical eye. It’s not always very successful, but the economist perspective does make me look at things differently.
… Read more »Idaho National Labs has a program right now called “CO-STAR”. Their researchers do great work, but as with any research group they are constantly advocating for funding, and researchers are constantly advocating among themselves for time.
Everybody spends time advocating for something. “Pitching” something. You want your boss to consider a smarter way of working, one that you’ve come up with? You pitch it to her. You want someone to use an open-source project you’ve created? You pitch it to them.
… Read more »A recent episode of the Freakonomics podcast covered meetings. Two or more people gathering to accomplish the business of business, as they defined it. It gave me some things I hope I remember the next time I’m organizing a recurring staff meeting…
Meetings need agendas, just about every book I’ve read which touches on meetings agrees on this point. The agenda needs to be communicated to participants in advance, so folks can come ready to accomplish it. Folks need to know what to expect. Without an agenda meetings usually devolve into chaos, although sometimes it takes a couple aimless meetings in a row to hit this point. Staff meetings often don’t have a pre-published agenda, but they generally do have a set of topics they proceed through in a set order, and that becomes the known-agenda for the group.
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