One More Thing.

Although I am done reading Habit 4 “Think Win/Win”. I would like to make an entry about an interesting topic that was being covered in the Linked2Leadership group on LinkedIn. The topic is “How can there be so much written about leadership yet so little understanding?”. This one really hit home since I am amidst of reading leadership books so I can grasp all the concepts and techniques. Why? In hopes that if someday, people are relying on me for genuine leadership – I’ll be well-informed. However, the more I read the more I realize: It really is all technique. Not that there is anything wrong with that – but once I started reading “The 7 Habits” I realized that there is more to it than technique. It has to start from within: the true desire to be self-disciplined, that self-mastery with a solid core. Be able to manage yourself first. Everything else will almost follow on its own. If anything, all of those techniques will make more “sense” once I have the proper foundation.

A great thing about joining groups on LinkedIn is that you see so many professional’s perspectives and how we may be aligned with such great topics and discussions that really make you think outside of the box. In addition to all this great thinking, you have the opportunity of connecting with great people with great experiences. I had the pleasure of connecting and speaking briefly with Dave Breslow (see his site here). He is a Personal and Professional Speaker, CEO of the Flowzone (http://www.theflowzone.net/) and Author of “Wired to Win: The Mental Keys to PlayYour Best Golf ”. While talking with David, It was great to confirm that I really do need to work on myself first before I try to help others. He had a great analogy: If my house where falling apart… studs were rotting, plumbing was rusted, electrical wires shorting--, etc. If I went ahead and gave the house a fresh coat of paint, would that take care of it? It would look great on the outside. Unfortunately, that’s what reading about leadership is – just taking care of the outside – technique. Once again, there is nothing wrong with that. Once you’ve taken care of all the internal structure and plumbing, the paint goes on, and the house is now great both on the outside and the inside.

How much can I take care of the inside on my own? Reading is good, but mentoring and coaching would also be great. I am looking to start some type of mentoring/leadership awareness program at my current company. I hope to benefit from it in hopes that I can mentor or coach others in the future. In addition, a hands-on workshop for developing skills, like Toastmasters International (http://www.toastmasters.org/) is something I would really like to have access to. I almost joined the one at the previous site I was working in. I attended several of their meetings as a guest, and even had the chance at their “Table Topics” and got an award. What is great about it, is that you are given the opportunity to “take down” some of those “mental barriers” we sometimes have. They are usually fears and lack of confidence that we’ve had since childhood. Unfortunately (I know from experience) these fears keep us from springing ahead and being the best we can be.

OK – so this is the “one more thing” I wanted to post before I would go ahead with Habit 4. I also took a peek at Habit 5 this week and it really is an eye-opener for me! I am someone who would always seek to be understood first… and know I see why it didn’t work most of the time. If you’ve seen the movie “Babel” (Ok, I sometimes see movies that are not Sci-Fi) or seen any of the ads or trailers for it, there was a great tagline that went with it: “If you want to be understood… Listen”. This is absolutely at the heart of Habit 5 – not just listening with your ears though: with your eyes and with your heart. Not to be used as technique – but to be genuine. Sounds like I got some serious re-wiring to do.