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Name of author Rick Baker, P.Eng.

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When your propeller stops turning...

by Rick Baker
On Jan 18, 2012

Some airplanes are still powered by engines and propellers.

Sometimes airplane engines fail and airplane propellers stop working.

This is a problem.

It is a problem that has only 2 solutions:

  1. get the propeller working or
  2. land the plane safely.
When I took some flying lessons 10 years ago, we used a little single-engine plane. Not that I was nervous or anything... I asked my instructor, "What happens if our engine fails and our propeller stops turning?" And, I asked about the relative safety of 1-engine planes [which have no engine when the engine fails] and 2-engine planes [which have 1 engine left when one engine fails]. 
 
I was surprised to learn - when an engine fails 1-engine planes have a better safe-landing track record than 2-engine planes. 
 
Why?
 
Why would propellerless single-engine planes have better safe-landing results than 2-propeller planes with one propeller not working?
 
Was it something to do with engineering, pitch and yaw and all those things?
 
No.
 
It was due to a human factor.
 
Specifically, it was due to FOCUS1. 
 
Put simply, when a pilot is flying a single-engine plane and the engine fails the pilot immediately shifts full attention to finding a safe landing spot and finding it immediately. Immediate landing is the singular FOCUS. When a pilot is flying a 2-engine plane and one engine fails the pilot faces a less-urgent situation. With less urgency, some pilots seek ideal or almost-ideal landing sites. And, that splitting of FOCUS increases the risk of crash landings.
 
So...
 
When your propeller stops turning...you gotta FOCUS!
 
 
Footnote:
  1. a link to a Thought Post about Executive BrainSmarts, an introduction to our thoughts about Focus
 

Tags:

Brain: about the Human Brain

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Thought Tweet #393

by Rick Baker
On Jan 18, 2012
Thought Tweet #393 “No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical.”
 
The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet
The Danish physicist, Niels Bohr, said that. And, Bohr's point applies in business. In business, we often hear people talk about 'doing the right things' as opposed to 'doing things right'. 'Doing things right' is all about doing process 'right'…doing a good job when performing logically-generated processes. 'Doing the right things' is about dealing with people 'right'...doing a good job when working with people.

Tags:

Hero Worship | Thinking as in Think and Grow Rich | Thought Tweets

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Wages in the world of work

by Rick Baker
On Jan 17, 2012

As part of our BIG PICTURE, Spirited Leaders has 5 Values. 

One of those 5 Values is: Labours of Enjoyment & Enthusiasm. 

In simple words, we want our People to at least enjoy their work.

Why?

We have several reasons, here are 3:

  1. work Enjoyment means People are putting their Strengths to productive use,
  2. work Enjoyment paves the path for work Enthusiasm, which in turn paves the path for work Passion, and
  3. work Enjoyment results in full wages.
Full Wages...what does that mean?
 
It means People, in return for their work, receive much more than money.
 
In the 100-year-old words of James Allen1, People receive "the completion of wages in its sevenfold fullness as follows:
  1. Money
  2. Usefullness
  3. Excellence
  4. Power
  5. Independence
  6. Honor
  7. Happiness"
Now, James Allen had strong thoughts about People and work. He wrote, "Work is of two kinds - it is either loving labor or enforced slavery". At one end of the spectrum, Allen described working People as slaves. At the other end of the spectrum he described working People as true workers. And, he didn't see much middle ground.
 
That's not the way we see working People.
 
We see working People experiencing a range of feelings about work. People's feelings at and about work change frequently. People's feelings at and about work tend to fluctuate within a range. We use a Minus10-to-Plus10 Scale to describe and measure People's feelings at and about work.
 
Our goal is to help People feel good about work...that is, at least Enjoy their work. Using our Minus10-to-Plus10 Scale, that means People score on average at least Plus4.
 
When People score at least Plus4 their enjoyment is contagious...
 
That's why we Value it!
 
 
Footnotes:
  1. James Allen - an excerpt from his book 'Men And Systems' (1914)
  2. link to a friend's thoughts about Workplace Passion

Tags:

Emotions & Feelings @ Work | INSPIRE PEOPLE - GROW PROFITS! | Measure & Monitor | Optimism & Pessimism | Values: Personal Values

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Thought Tweet #392

by Rick Baker
On Jan 17, 2012
Thought Tweet #392 "We bemoan the loss of our forests. We worry over the dwindling resources of coal and oil."
 
The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet
and..."We decry the waste in our factories.” This is a quote from Robert Collier, 'The Secret of the Ages' (1926). This book was written the year my father was born. Clearly, some of the current worries are not new worries.

Tags:

Attitude: Creating Positive Attitude | Beyond Business | Thought Tweets | Wisdom: Surviving the Test of Time

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Thought Tweet #391

by Rick Baker
On Jan 16, 2012
Thought Tweet #391 "A person can only perform from strength." Peter Drucker
 
The Thinking Behind the Sales Tweet
Regarding peak performance, excellent performance, & all other types of superlative performance - Spirited Leaders agrees 100%! Build on your STRENGTHS. Here's a link.

Tags:

STRENGTHS: People-Focused for Success | Thought Tweets

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Some Questions about DELIVERS

by Rick Baker
On Jan 13, 2012

The most-successful leaders take regular time outs to ask themselves tough questions.

The main reason they ask themselves questions is to better understand how well they are performing as leaders.

And the  most-successful leaders write out the answers to these questions so they do not have to rely 100% on their memories when they perform periodic reviews of their leadership performance.

What sorts of questions do the most-successful leaders ask themselves?

Answer: here is a sampling of...

Some Questions about DELIVERS

Are my people making better choices than the choices my competitors are making? [Discipline]

Are my people expending their energies in constructive ways? [Energy]

Are my people learning from their mistakes? [Learning]

Do I really know what motivates my people? [Intention]

During a typical workday, what percentage of the time are my people focusing on business? [Vigilance]

Do I understand what my people are trying to communicate to me? [Empathy]

Do my people believe they will achieve their business goals? [Resolve]

How often do my people deliver near-perfect performance? [Strengths]

Tags:

Communication: Improving Communication | Entrepreneur Thinking | Questions?: The Art of Asking Good Questions | STRENGTHS: People-Focused for Success

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Copyright © 2012. W.F.C (Rick) Baker. All Rights Reserved.