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by Rick Baker
On Jan 31, 2012
The other day I read1:
"The source and center of all man's creative power - the power that above all others lifts him above the level of brute creation, and gives him dominion, is his power of making images, or the power of imagination."
"Imagination pictures the thing you desire. VISION idealizes it. It reaches beyond the thing that is, into the conception of what can be. Imagination gives you the picture. Vision gives you the impulse to make the picture your own."
Do these quotes resonate with you?
Do those quotes help you understand what people mean when they say things like:
- What's your Corporate VISION?
- Can I see your VISION Statement?
Do you agree:
- Leaders must have a Vivid VISION?
- Leaders must capture and communicate their Vivid VISION?
- Leaders must lead-by-example along the path to their Vivid VISION? Imagination?
What about IMAGINATION?
How important is it for Leaders to possess the power of IMAGINATION?
Do you agree, IMAGINATION is Invigorating...both to the owner of it and to those it affects?
***
I have been interested in IMAGINATION and VISION for many years. And, my interest increased as I took on supervisory, then managerial, then leadership roles. Now, looking back, I better understand the errors I have made in business and with People. One of those mistakes was not explaining things well enough: not explaining what I was thinking, assuming people heard and processed my words the same way I said and intended them, etc. That was a major communication problem. Often, the words we think we say are not actually the words we say. And, often, the words we say mean different things to other People....even when they are doing everything they know to try to listen, to understand, and to follow.
To help fix my communication problem I now define words. So, when I read words like those of Robert Collier, quoted above, I use those words to firm up and clarify the words we often use but rarely troubleshoot for shared meaning. As examples:
Definitions...
IMAGINATION: the source of creative power: creating images in the mind, picturing things in your mind's eye
VISION: holding the mind's-eye picture of the thing you desire, seeing beyond the things that are and conceiving and idealizing what can be, and communicating the desire you idealize to other People
Footnote:
by Rick Baker
On Jan 27, 2012
Many important words begin with 'in'.
One important Inword that cropped up several times this week is: INITIATE.
Seth Godin cited Initiative as the #1 imperative for future business and Lorie Saxby and I spent time honing a definition...
INITIATE: to commence thought or action aligned with goals
Spirited Leaders defines words to maximize the likelihood of communication...we have found clarity of message is critical.
Spirited Leaders has defined another Inword - INTEGRITY. We saw a need for that. INTEGRITY - a word that too often is taken too lightly. For example, years ago Integrity was cited in the Enron website as a corporate Value. [Perhaps a clear definition of the word might have helped the folks at Enron.]
Here's another Inword that's at the core of Spirited Leaders: INSPIRE.
And our definition...
INSPIRE: to exert an animating, enlivening influence on; to encourage, impel & motivate; to excite and impart motion; to bolster focused action
Spirited Leaders' mantra is: INSPIRE PEOPLE, GROW PROFITS!
A few more important Inwords:
- INTROSPECTION: this is all about self-analysis and self-knowledge, which paves the path for self-monitoring and self-regulation...key things for leaders who want to
- INSIGHT: the capacity of understanding hidden truths, especially about people's character and situations
- INTENTION: allowing wisdom, judgment, and volition to guide thoughts and actions
- INFLUENCE...and, of course, INFLUENCE is something leaders must do. Leaders also need to pay attention to their
- INTUITION. The largest mistakes I have made in business have happened when I have ignored my INTUITION. Laziness and logic should not take precedent over INTUITION. When laziness kicks in, as it tends to do from time to time, Leaders need to figure out how to set aside the facts and figures and opinions and check out gut feel.
- INVIGORATE themselves and other people. The words INVIGORATE and INSPIRE cover similar territory...important territory. When people are INSPIRED and INVIGORATED their fears have less hold on them. They are more confident and that confidence enables
- INVENTION and INNOVATION. Business Leaders know the status quo is not good enough. And, INVENTION and INNOVATION are remedies for the status quo. To quote Seth Godin, "The relentless act of invention, innovation, and initiative is the best marketing asset there is."
That's enough Inwords for now.
by Rick Baker
On Jan 25, 2012
Two Facts:
- When it comes to doing business, inspired People generate better results.
- Business Leaders can inspire their People.
Another even-more-important Fact:
- You can expand your ability to inspire the People who follow your Leadership.
This is an accurate statement, regardless of how well you inspired your People in the past.
The keys are:
- Accepting the fact People will need your injection of Inspiration: they need and want that from their Leader.
- Working at it: taking specific inspiration-actions designed to accomplish specific inspiration-results.
Wise folks have taught this throughout the ages.
Here is one example: about people who are struggling, in 1926, Robert Collier1 wrote:
"For men and women like them do not need "Charity" - nor even sympathy. What they do need is Inspiration - and Opportunity - the kind of Inspiration that makes a man go out and create his own Opportunity."
Everyone struggles from time to time.
The People who follow your Leadership will struggle from time to time.
So - from time to time, your People will need an injection of Inspiration.
As a Leader, you can assume or hope somebody else will deliver that injection of Inspiration. Or, you can embrace it as part of your role.
HOW?
***
Spirited Leader's Definition of INSPIRE2:
- to exert an animating, enlivening influence on
- to encourage, impel, & motivate...to excite and impart motion, to bolster focused Action
Footnotes:
by Rick Baker
On Jan 20, 2012
My friend and I got into an interesting discussion of CHANGE the other day.
We ended up sharing thoughts about the definition of CHANGE.
Obviously, the word 'change' has a very broad definition, including: make different, alter, make radically different, transform, replace with another, shift from one to another, etc1
When it comes to business, we must be able to provide a definition of CHANGE that is:
- clear and easily understood
- accepted by the business people who hear and see us use the word
About CHANGE, 2 parameters2 must be considered as most-important:
- Consciousness [Yes or No]
- Origin [Internal versus External]
These 3 Things register or show up as thoughts and actions. When Good Habits, Bad Habits, & New Things register or show up they are within the realm of at least one person's Consciousness. So, for business purposes CHANGE is a Conscious thing. And, for all involved it is has both Internal and External impact and implications. As we blend in Spirited Leaders' view that People Only Do 3 Things, it is clear, CHANGE is pretty much the opposite of Habit. In fact, CHANGE is so close to the opposite of Habit we can say Habits do not contain enough meaningful amount of CHANGE to justify further consideration.
So, for business purposes: CHANGE = the arrival of New Things. [that's our definition]
There are two types of CHANGES:
Footnotes:
- Merriam-Webster on-line dictionary
- Origin: we are not going to get all philosophical here, debating chickens-and-eggs about what goes on in human brains etc. Nor will we get all metaphysical here. Those are topics for another day...or another week...or, is it, another millennium.
by Rick Baker
On Dec 23, 2011
Do you spend enough time Learning?
Do you view learning as knowledge sharing?
Do you view learning as knowledge creation?
According to experts1, learning is essential to Leadership.
Leaders with Good Judgment Are Committed Learners
- They constantly evaluate their own performance.
- They seek knowledge and build on experience.
Knowledge Creation for All Constituencies Is an Explicitly Stated Goal
- Operating mechanisms support teaching and learning.
- Judgment capacity is a key leadership development target.
Customers, Stakeholders, the Larger Community Are Tapped for Input
- Everyone teaches. Everyone learns.
- Front-line employees are the new knowledge workers.
That's how Tichy and Bennis introduce the importance of learning in the business sector.
Learning is one of Spirited Leaders' Values....part of our corporate culture.
We approach Learning this way:
- Learning must be embraced naturally...curiosity is the best starting point.
- Learning must be life-long...the fun of it must not diminish with age.
- The majority of learning must be aimed at understanding and communicating with People.
- For your work, focus much of your learning time on specialized knowledge.
- For your work, concentrate specialized knowledge around your talent themes.
- For your work, use specialized knowledge to hone your skills.
- For your work, learn cutting-edge theory...and learn even more about practical things.
- For your work, learn how to tap into your creativity.
Footnote:
by Rick Baker
On Dec 22, 2011
An excerpt1, about Character & Courage:
To Sustain Good Judgment, a Leader Must Have Character and Courage
- Character provides the moral compass.
- Courage produces the results.
People With Character Have Clear Standards
- They take responsibility and hold themselves accountable.
- They value self-respect over public esteem.
Maintaining Standards in the Face of Obstacles Requires Courage
- Character without courage is meaningless.
- Courage without character is dangerous.
Spirited Leaders values Courage. I mean Courage is our highest-ranked personal/corporate Value. The above excerpt...well, we could not say it better ourselves...so we embrace and 'relay' the wisdom of Tichy and Bennis.
Footnote:
1. An excerpt from 'JUDGMENT - How Winning Leaders Make Great Calls', Noel M. Tichy and Warren G. Bennis, 2007
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