Leaders Adjust

The word of the day is “adjust.” This is one of the most important lessons I learned when I joined the Army. Talk about being frustrated. We would be set to do something, and then, at the last second, the world would fall apart, and then we would suddenly do something completely different. It was not ideal, to say the least. Then I talked to one of my buddies, and he told me that if I did not get used to this way of life, I would not make it. So, I adjusted.

"Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face." -Mke Tyson

My question is: Where do you need to adjust in your life? What I do know is that we all need to make adjustments. It’s just a fact of life. As a leader, you will be put in situations that require you to change and adapt. In the Army, we call this "adjusting fire." And, as we see in the quote above from Mike Tyson, life is not always nice to us. So, I encourage you today to be ready for the unforeseen. It is not a matter of if but when. As leaders, we need to make changes when necessary so that our teams can have faith that we will get them through the tough stuff. Lead well.

Winning in Leadership

Defense wins championships. That’s what the great Paul Bear Bryant once said.  That's all there is to it. I think everybody tries to make it more difficult than it is. Sure, the entire football world has gone to new styles of play where they just scored a bunch of points, and they hope that they can have more at the end of the game in the last one. I mean, offense is sexier for television and brings out the fan base and your ship. But that still means you must have a good defense because letting the other guys score too much will not bode well. What does that mean for leadership?

It means that although you want to get out there and do all the fun things, like speaking in front of people to be the hero, the reality is you aren't doing enough of the boring work that never gets seen. Championships are one by doing the slow of a problematic, not this everyday work. For leaders, that is stuff like reading a ton of clips, listening to other leaders, and taking enough time to analyze what is going right and wrong in your industry. I want you to win. I want you to be a champion in your field. So, let me leave you with a great quote by one of my favorite competitors ever, which I think will do well for you to post on your computer screen or bathroom mirror…

“The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses - behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.” ~Muhammad Ali