Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

The Latin definition for emeritus is “veteran soldier”. Today, we associate it primarily with a professor who wants to stay affiliated with the institution they left in good standing. An education honorable discharge, if you will.

Retired is a word less used today as anything from health to quality of life span to social security benefits to level of desired engagement has changed dramatically in the past few decades. People don’t feel as worn out and realize the best end to life is to give back as much as possible.

A quick Google search of modern description of retirement yielded a couple of salient points worth repeating:

•Modern retirement is evolving beyond a simple end to a career, encompassing a wider range of experiences and activities. It’s becoming less about a complete exit from work and more about a flexible, adaptable, and purposeful way of living, often including continued work, volunteerism, or pursuing new interests. This shift reflects a desire for more active, engaged, and meaningful retirement years. 

•In essence, modern retirement is about creating a fulfilling and meaningful life after work, one that is tailored to individual preferences and goals, rather than a fixed point of departure.

There are veteran soldiers in every walk of life who have fought (and continue to fight) battles every day. Some soldiers take their skills to multiple theaters and continue to fight … for improvement, accountability, education, exposing truth and delivering results.  In my experience, they are often misunderstood during times of change due to lack of ability to share total perspective, but a good soldier is willing to fight anyway…helping people, businesses and institutions to reach their full potential.

I do take umbrage with the portion of the general definition calling out “in good standing” for a variety of reasons. For one, If you’ve spent productive time somewhere and had significant, positive impact, the contributions last beyond your time there. Not all exits are graceful but often cause a lot of head scratching (think Thibideau, Knicks coach or a pile of accomplished, excellent government officials) because they seldom make good sense to the majority. Catalysts don’t always expect graceful exits but do prefer to be regarded for the value they bring.

Emeritus are we all. 

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

Memorial Day is over but summer has just started and we likely have aspirations of taking some time off. Well deserved, I’m certain. While you have your family at the lake or you and your significant are on a road trip or it’s just you in the wilderness with your dog and your thoughts, I propose you leverage some drift time and be deliberate about what you do when you reengage. This is magical time. The most intellectual of our time carved it into their calendar. Why wouldn’t you? Then leverage it for a better future.

I believe the human condition thrives with a clear goal, so find your mountain!

Plan the ascent … and the descent.

Prepare your mind, body and soul.

Take notes before, during and after.

Visualize the end state and begin your climb!

Do you want to lead people?

Create incredible value?

Solve a wicked hard problem?

Find your purpose, your calling, your mountain and start climbing.

If this comes across like a platitude, reconsider.

I’ve had noble intent since before I knew what that meant; do the right thing, obey your father and mother, etc. 

When not deliberate about what you want to do, you will encounter challenges but they may not have specific purpose. The first challenge might be a practice run but why would you want to continue to climb someone else’s mountain? There is a good chance you are right now.

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

I think everyone asks this question one way or the other. Whether on the surface or deeper down, we all want to have purpose, add value, and make a difference. We also want to know how our efforts are perceived by others, especially those we work for and those our efforts are intended to benefit.

Performance reviews have traditionally been a once a year event, but we now know five minutes a day or half an hour every other week is much more effective. If you relate this to your significant other, if you only told them once a year that you loved them, how do you think your relationship would be going?

As leaders, we hope that our efforts to influence, grow and … lead people, business units or companies will make a significant difference. Not just to pay the bills but to enrich the soul.

A few weeks back, I received some feedback from a leader who I worked with fifteen years ago. She said “You taught me some great life lessons early on in my career.” I’ll take feedback, constructive or otherwise, and whenever it comes. This was humbling and validating. It came from a time when we were in the throes of a corporate turn around. You hope you are doing the right thing but you never really know until you close the feedback loop. The numbers reflected the business performance and the company in question made the transition and is thriving today! The people are what really matter. Investing in them so they can pay it forward is the real reward.

What’s the takeaway? Provide feedback to your people. Regular feedback. It shouldn’t feel like you are complying with an HR mandate. It should be conversational but professional and leave them feeling like you care…because you do.

Have a blessed Memorial Day weekend!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

I read an article recently from Todd Gagne titled “Scaling Like Alexander the Great: When systems Break Empires”

The money line-

“When modern companies encounter scaling obstacles, they blame their tools or teams. But the math suggests a more fundamental problem: some limits can’t be engineered around.”

The mathematical laws-

“The math holds true today: Double your speed, quadruple your costs. Triple your distance, multiply your resources by nine. These aren’t management problems…”

Think about Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the number of data centers being built by tech- based companies today. They all require power, lots of power. The electric grid is aging and requires significant maintenance, hardening due to extreme weather and upgrades due to load growth. This won’t happen overnight. It’s been in the works for decades and will require hundreds of billions of dollars each year just to keep pace with maintenance and the energy transition without adding 25% load growth due to super high, concentrated loads in congested areas. 

We have limitations to be aware, both in our electric grid and our personal lives. Pushing harder or cracking the whip is not always the answer. Understanding limitations and the math behind it should help with optimization; working smarter, not just harder.

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric

Good morning Team! It’s Friday!

I was reading an article this morning about the dead internet and all of the bots that make up fake influencers and impact ratings on products and services that unassuming people put their faith in.

Last night, at a playoff basketball game, the fans behind us were especially obnoxious spouting expletives every other word, roasting opposing team fans sitting close and babbling the entire time loud enough for me to know they were clueless on a number of fronts.

Anne and I watch national news four nights out of seven (on average) and local news maybe three out of seven. In general, the focus on bad behavior, negativity, disasters, corruption and the like would leave you to believe that we are all on a fast track to hell. Just a spinning ball of garbage. Ugh.

Today, you have to make hard choices when it comes to what you’ll listen to and what you won’t. Not in a selective hearing kind of way as much as deliberate filtering of information that you feed your brain. If your ears had lint-trap-like devices where you could stop the spin, clean the trap and go about your business, this would be a little easier. But that’s not a thing.

Turn off the TV sooner. Put down the phone more often. Be selective with your sources. Do not succumb to the overwhelm of bullshit. Pause before you react. Breathe. Things are never as bad as you allow yourself to believe.

Have a blessed weekend and Mother’s Day!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

I read a short story yesterday about Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. Ford worked for Edison and had invented an internal combustion driven automobile. Edison was planning on inventing an electric car but saw what Ford did and encouraged him to pursue. We know how that turned out for Ford. Those two went on to be lifelong friends.

What did I take away from the story?

•Work is hard enough as it is and there is no place for jealousy, envy or repression of effort.

•You can’t anticipate how things will turn out, so assuming noble intent is the best approach. 

{Edison’s factory burned down years later and insurance wouldn’t cover the loss. Ford gave Edison the money to rebuild…a lot of money, with the promise of more if that wasn’t enough. That would not have happened if Edison had treated Ford differently to begin with.}

•There is always room for civility. Don’t let your ego get in the way of doing the right thing.

It is possible to be competitive, work hard, and build success without detracting from others. We are not crabs in a bucket.

As an old pastor used to close each service with,

“As you go out into the world now, remember, everyone is fighting a battle of some kind, so be gentle.”

Have a blessed weekend and the week to come!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

On my watch could be,

•Like the ER doctor who refuses to let the patient die on his operating table even if they were pronounced DOA

•Like the policeman who works tirelessly to keep the streets safe despite rampant crime and permissive laws

•Like the mother who will protect her child from all harm and will put herself between the two if and when necessary 

Is it passion? Instinct? A calling? Commitment? Or simply tenacity…?

Some people are prone to go further than most to be successful at their craft. These extremists usually make enormous sacrifice to accomplish their remarkable goals.  Those sacrifices are usually not obvious … but they will appear and will wreak havoc eventually because my belief is that balance is rewarded with a peaceful existence and extreme efforts often demand an equally extreme reaction. 

Historically, I have been drawn to difficult situations, complex problems, wounded cultures, hard-nosed authorities and bruised organizations. Said differently, I don’t shy away from a challenge. Rather, I am curious, intensely focused on finding root cause and taking quick action*. This approach has been misdiagnosed as ready-fire-aim, cruel or selfish. I think the situation dictates many of the steps required to be successful. Doing the same thing with the same people and expecting different results is insanity according to Einstein.

*Jack Welch, GE’s famed leader was asked to reflect on his career and if he would have done things differently. His response was that he would have moved faster. My experience in moving faster, challenging status quo and helping certain low-performers to be successful elsewhere … is that communicating is the greatest challenge. 

Why? Maybe it’s because:

•People don’t like surprises

•People are generally curious and want to know details that aren’t important for them to know, regardless how the culture might react to the absence of information (see last weeks post with Frank Luntz quote).

•Incumbents in a difficult situation may not be open to different views, ideas or approaches 

We have heard the phrase “not on my watch” which refers to the things we might not allow while being employed and/or engaged in whatever role we are in at the time. I prefer to focus on things I will do rather than simply what I won’t tolerate, and suggest a proactive route is the only sustainable path.

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Good Friday!

I’ve seen a significant amount of change in a variety of settings over my career. People come and go, styles change, cultures resist and so it goes. Usually, the best solution for the business and the environment emerges.

What happens during the change process is interesting to me. Often times, too much drama is associated with change and I wonder why?

A few thoughts might include:

•People fear change…or do they fear loss?

•People prefer stability and security, or at least perceived security, and get anxious if that appears to be disrupted.

•People do not like being kept in the dark so they seek answers and if those answers don’t come timely and in the form of well thought out, well articulated and easy to digest communication, well, people make shit up.

In the words of Frank Luntz, author of Words that work; it’s not what you say, it’s what people hear, 

“In the absence of information, the void is often filled with poison, drivel and misrepresentation”

I agree.

How disappointing. How disruptive. How wasteful of valuable time and effort trying to pursue improvements.

It also emphasizes the criticality of a good communication plan. You can do all the right things, make all the right moves, but if you don’t bring the right people along at the right time, you can fall prey to hearsay, rumor and innuendo and best laid plans might still fail or at least be much less effective than they could have been. 

Be the person who doesn’t perpetuate hearsay. Rather, look for facts, ask good questions, be mindful of the words you choose and conscious of the perceived intent behind them.

Have a blessed Easter weekend!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!!

Last week, I wrote about some of the things I’m focusing on with my health; sleep, nutrition and exercise.* I’m a scant few days into my journey, I’ve selected an on-site trainer, an Oura ring, a calorie tracker and a new mindset. Now I need to build a habit that takes, on average, 30 days to make a reality. I’ve already strained a hamstring making my hip feel like someone is poking it with an ice pick so I took a step back to stretching until I get over that hump. Not exciting, but a reality check and a test of my commitment. I love a good test!

*I left one out…stress.

Here is how ChatGPT describes stress in 200 words or less-

——————————————————————-

Overview:

Stress is a natural response to challenges and demands. While short-term stress can be beneficial, chronic stress poses significant risks to both physical and mental health.

Physical Health Impacts:

• Cardiovascular Issues: Chronic stress is linked to high blood pressure, heart disease, and increased risk of stroke.  

• Immune System Suppression: Prolonged stress can weaken the immune system, making the body more susceptible to infections.  

• Digestive Problems: Stress can cause or exacerbate conditions like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and ulcers. 

• Sleep Disturbances: Stress often leads to insomnia or poor-quality sleep, further impacting overall health.  

Mental Health Impacts:

• Anxiety and Depression: There is a strong correlation between chronic stress and the development of anxiety disorders and depression.

• Cognitive Impairments: Stress can impair concentration, decision-making, and memory.  

• Emotional Exhaustion: Persistent stress contributes to burnout, characterized by emotional fatigue and reduced performance.  

Behavioral Consequences:

• Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms: Individuals may resort to substance abuse, overeating, or social withdrawal as coping strategies.

• Decreased Productivity: Stress can lead to decreased motivation and efficiency in both personal and professional settings.

Conclusion:

Chronic stress has multifaceted negative effects on an individual’s health and well-being. Addressing stress through effective management strategies is crucial for maintaining overall health.

———————————————————————

My preferred definition, 25 words or so, first seen in a doctor’s office 40 some years ago:

“Stress: The confusion created when one’s mind overrides the body’s basic desire to choke the living shit out of some asshole who desperately deserves it.”

Regardless of the definition you prefer, healthier includes managing stress well. That might include avoiding unhealthy situations, no matter how difficult it is to walk away.

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric

Good morning, Team! It’s Friday!

As a leader, you can’t help others if you’re not on solid ground yourself. Because of the time in a plane, I’ve heard and repeated multiple times “secure your own mask before helping others”. So what does that look like?

Let’s look at your physical health for a moment;

•Are you getting enough sleep? 8 is good but did you know you should be aiming for 90 minutes of deep sleep per night?

•Are you eating the right foods? Monitoring the macronutrient breakdown of protein, carbs and fats and doing an assessment of where you are today and where you want to be…nutritional science, wearable technology and tracker applications are abundant today. No excuse not to find one you like and use it. 

•Finally, exercise! What are you doing? How do you feel? What makes sense for you? Do you need a partner or a trainer or do you watch videos to follow along with. So many solutions at your disposal right now. Get a toe hold and start getting some traction.

If this is all old news to you, congratulations! If you’re looking for inspiration or a reason to jump in…

We received an email this past week from a family member with three words, “more bad news”. Health related concerns that make parents cry, spouses cringe and the patients worry. Were they preventable? Too soon to tell. Did they create a need for reflection? Yup. Nothing will adjust your priorities faster than a loved one in need.

Don’t wait for an email to reprioritize. Take action today to secure your mask. Invest in your future with improved sleep, increased awareness of what you eat and how it impacts you and get out and move! Stretch, walk, lift some weights, ride a bike and smile while you’re moving.

Have a blessed weekend!

Eric