The Executive's New Years' Resolutions #2 & #3

Yesterday we looked at what our general leadership direction might be for 2009, given the economic chaos we've experienced with the closing of 2008. The premise was that we should not be inhibited by the unprecedented business failures, but rather take firm control of our leadership responsibilities. Today, let us take a look at building upon that with 2 more thoughts.

Resolution # 2: Let us be "Thoughtfully Fearless"

Our first reaction might be, "...isn't "thoughtfully" in congruent with "fearless"? Well, I vote no. To me, anyone who is blindly fearless, not wary of anything, and moves too quickly without knowledge, is foolish. Many of you who follow my blogs will recall that I play poker, and have been in the Main Event in the World Series. If I haven't learned it in business, I've learned it at the tables: aggressiveness can serve one well, but without knowledge, history, and analysis, it can mean a quick end.

So let's construe "thoughtfully fearless" to be one who does her homework, and also has the courage to take "calculated" risks when the upside exceeds the downside. We realistically look at things as they are (not as we wish them to be), gather & analyze the data, and then "pull the trigger". We do not fear the outcome, but rather, passionately anticipate the outcome & treat it as a learning experience. One of my favorite quotes is: "I need to teach my people to fail faster."

Resolution # 3: Admit Wrong Turns & Make Course Corrections

Having made a big issue of moving forward with courage, why should mistakes be brought up? Well, simply because I believe it takes MORE courage to admit when one is wrong than it does to make the decision in the first place. Our human nature is often the culprit. If we are in fact "thoughtfully fearless", we have put in a great deal of time and energy, not to mention expense & credibility, to convince ourselves and other to take a certain path. It is natural to defend a decision, and therefore want to stick with it.

What we must do instead is, take a step back, get sound inputs from others, and factually evaluate the outcome and new data as it presents itself. If we see clear evidence that the result is not what we anticipated, we may need to face the facts, and lead the effort to modify the program. Admitting mistakes is not a weakness unless we do not become better for the attempt. A confident, but realistically humble, leader is the one most likely to have the most loyal following.

This is my last posting before 2009; may God bless your New Year!