Giving you those AHA! Moments....
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Friday, September 2, 2011
The next step...
Step One: Mutual Purpose.
On the football field, a team huddles before making a play. This is so everyone knows what the upcoming play is. This enables everyone to know what their job responsibility is for the next play. Some teams have a no huddle offense, but even with that, they find a way to communicate to everyone what the next play is. By knowing the play, this gives everyone a mutual purpose. I enjoyed being a football player, because it was one of the few places where you had 11 guys leaving a huddle, all facing one direction, knowing what they wanted to achieve and having a common goal. A great football team has wonderful communication of the upcoming play and everyone knows what their role is. Having this mutual purpose is the first step to team leadership.
It translates over just as well to business. Having a team that knows what their goals are is a great start to having a successful team. Does your team come in daily with a set of assignments that are known? Are there checks and balances where progress can be checked on your team’s progression to their goals? Do you and your team share the same daily, weekly, or monthly purpose? On a great team in the business environment, employees know what their daily tasks and goals are those daily tasks also lead to a weekly goal and those weekly goals link into a monthly goal. This system is repeated even with our long term goals like quarterly and yearly. This allows for focus on the mutual purpose in all levels of goals from daily to yearly.
The mutual purpose is also a key component in our personal lives. In his seminal work, “The Seven Habits of High Successful People”, Stephen Covey reveals the 2nd habit, Begin with the End in Mind. This habit stresses envisioning what the conclusion of your project, your week, or your day will be. Knowing your purpose for your day is vital for your own personal success. By making a reasonable daily list of duties, it focuses you on the overall purpose for the day.
Not having a mutual purpose will wreck you or your team just as fast as having one will aid it. In our football example, if the play is not communicated to the team, the player will be lost and not on the same page, severely lessening the chances for success. While working in the team environment, how many times have you come in to work with no idea what needed to be accomplished or how you were going to do it that day? Having a team that has no purpose will most likely result in the team straying in many directions and thus not accomplishing much. With our own minds, when we are not focused, we don’t get much accomplished. How many times have you dreamt through an entire day at work and then said, “Where did the day go”? That can be totally linked to a lack of purpose.
Find out how to attain this mutual purpose in my upcoming book, "Getting Through the Musical Interlude"
Oginga Carr
CEO Epiphany Consulting LLC
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Introduction to the 4 Steps to Leadership
Being that I come from an athletic background, the majority of times when I heard the term “teamwork”, I would think of all the old clichés like, “There’s no I in team!” or “Take one for the team!”. But it took me getting into the business world to really realize what true teamwork is. For instance, one of my youth basketball players remarked to me once when I said the “I in team” cliché, “But there is an M and an E”! I wanted to be angry, but when I thought about it, it was true. That is one of the fundamental issues with leading teams, most of the time we have no idea HOW to lead. Lots of people spout “Take one for the team!”, but few people actually know where the etymology of the phrase comes from. The phrase comes from baseball, where a batter allows a pitch to hit him and advance to first base instead of doing what is natural and moving out of the way of a speeding, hard baseball that’s heading towards him! Taking one for the team is the ultimate self sacrifice, doing something that could hurt you, for the betterment of the team. So next time you are tossing that cliché out to a teammate, take a moment to think of the original meaning, and see if that is what your expectations are.
Often as leaders, we throw out these empty phrases and expect action. Why? Many times, it is because that is what we have seen in leadership ourselves. Leadership of adults is not an easy task. When we are in the power position with children, many times our power is not impugned. But when dealing with adults, it is our actions that show our true intentions, which puts us in a tough situation. Sometimes, we have been thrown into a position of leadership, and we don’t know what to say. We have this new position of leadership, and everyone is looking at us, so we feel like we need to say SOMETHING. What often comes out is a mixture of clichés that we have heard throughout the years from many other leaders. If we are unprepared, our speeches can end up sounding like Eddie Murphy’s character in the movie, The Distinguished Gentleman, when after winning an election he gives this sterling speech with a mixture of many political catch phrases, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but for what you can do for your country. There is nothing to fear but fear itself. If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. Live free or die! And in conclusion, read my lips!" Now that is an example of saying a lot while not saying anything!
With that being said, let’s talk about the Four Steps to Phenomenal team leadership. I love sports, so I am going to give you a football analogy to prove each part, but it applies to all organizations, whether they be sports teams, businesses, or community groups. You can look at any organization that is failing, and I would be willing to bet that they are missing one or more of these necessary steps. The four steps are Mutual Purpose, Empowered People, Proper Change Communication, and Visionary Leadership.
Often as leaders, we throw out these empty phrases and expect action. Why? Many times, it is because that is what we have seen in leadership ourselves. Leadership of adults is not an easy task. When we are in the power position with children, many times our power is not impugned. But when dealing with adults, it is our actions that show our true intentions, which puts us in a tough situation. Sometimes, we have been thrown into a position of leadership, and we don’t know what to say. We have this new position of leadership, and everyone is looking at us, so we feel like we need to say SOMETHING. What often comes out is a mixture of clichés that we have heard throughout the years from many other leaders. If we are unprepared, our speeches can end up sounding like Eddie Murphy’s character in the movie, The Distinguished Gentleman, when after winning an election he gives this sterling speech with a mixture of many political catch phrases, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but for what you can do for your country. There is nothing to fear but fear itself. If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. Live free or die! And in conclusion, read my lips!" Now that is an example of saying a lot while not saying anything!
With that being said, let’s talk about the Four Steps to Phenomenal team leadership. I love sports, so I am going to give you a football analogy to prove each part, but it applies to all organizations, whether they be sports teams, businesses, or community groups. You can look at any organization that is failing, and I would be willing to bet that they are missing one or more of these necessary steps. The four steps are Mutual Purpose, Empowered People, Proper Change Communication, and Visionary Leadership.
Stay Tuned for a breakdown of each one of the steps...
Oginga Carr
CEO Epiphany Consulting LLC
Saturday, August 27, 2011
The Classroom Analogy
I come from an educational family. Both my mom and sister are nationally acclaimed, award winning teachers. As we have just started back to school, an analogy that my mom used to tell me popped into my head, and I couldn’t help but think about how it relates to our work in teams as well as how we motivated ourselves. Being in the classroom for over 30 years, my mom made this observation, “If you have 30 kids in a classroom, they average out this way. Five of your kids will do their work no matter what. You could have all the distractions in the world, but they will still turn their work in. Five of your students will try to act up no matter what. The battle is for the 20 kids in the middle.”
You see, successful teachers that perform well find ways to commend that positive behavior by the model five that are doing their work, while giving the proper incentives to the middle, and handling the mischievous five. Teachers that struggle haven’t found a way to handle the mischievous five and haven’t motivated the middle. The model five is still doing their work, but now these teachers are dealing with distractions from 25 students and lost control. How does this relate to our situations in teamwork as well as with us?
If you have a team of 10 people, it’s a sure bet that you have one in the ten that are at work extra early, ready to go. This is the model member. Then it is just as likely that you have someone who gets to work somewhere between 2 minutes before the clock on a good day, to 20 minutes after the clock on a bad day. This is the mischievous member. If being prompt to work is important with your team, and you keep letting the mischievous member come in as they like, the middle of your team will start to lean in that direction, thus giving you a bigger headache.
Inside of you, the model and mischievous side also exist. When we are faced with a decision in our lives, we are immediately bombarded with two thoughts; the best and worst case scenarios. Neither direction is absolute for us, but it is our decision making that allows us to lean in either direction.
So what do we do? How do we prepare ourselves like the successful teacher, and coach our “classrooms” well? In the situation with a team, the key is a combination of incentives and corrective actions. If we address the mischievous behavior in an open way, we will correct not only the wayward member, but make an example to the team that this behavior will not be tolerated. Also, if we find ways to add incentives to the positive behavior, (i.e. early release from work) it will create an environment for your middle to lean in that direction. While in teams, mastering the mischievous and model behavior is the key. To battle our own mental demons, facts are the key to move our “classroom”. When facing these decisions, we must consider the facts of the situation to move us into the most positive action. It’s easy to pick out negative speak within our thoughts. We use victim speak like “always” or “never”. There are very few things in life that happen in absolutes, so when we use “always” or “never”, they are very rarely true. By concentrating on the facts of a situation, we can find the most reasonable path and move our classrooms in the most positive direction.
Oginga Carr
CEO Epiphany Consulting
You see, successful teachers that perform well find ways to commend that positive behavior by the model five that are doing their work, while giving the proper incentives to the middle, and handling the mischievous five. Teachers that struggle haven’t found a way to handle the mischievous five and haven’t motivated the middle. The model five is still doing their work, but now these teachers are dealing with distractions from 25 students and lost control. How does this relate to our situations in teamwork as well as with us?
If you have a team of 10 people, it’s a sure bet that you have one in the ten that are at work extra early, ready to go. This is the model member. Then it is just as likely that you have someone who gets to work somewhere between 2 minutes before the clock on a good day, to 20 minutes after the clock on a bad day. This is the mischievous member. If being prompt to work is important with your team, and you keep letting the mischievous member come in as they like, the middle of your team will start to lean in that direction, thus giving you a bigger headache.
Inside of you, the model and mischievous side also exist. When we are faced with a decision in our lives, we are immediately bombarded with two thoughts; the best and worst case scenarios. Neither direction is absolute for us, but it is our decision making that allows us to lean in either direction.
So what do we do? How do we prepare ourselves like the successful teacher, and coach our “classrooms” well? In the situation with a team, the key is a combination of incentives and corrective actions. If we address the mischievous behavior in an open way, we will correct not only the wayward member, but make an example to the team that this behavior will not be tolerated. Also, if we find ways to add incentives to the positive behavior, (i.e. early release from work) it will create an environment for your middle to lean in that direction. While in teams, mastering the mischievous and model behavior is the key. To battle our own mental demons, facts are the key to move our “classroom”. When facing these decisions, we must consider the facts of the situation to move us into the most positive action. It’s easy to pick out negative speak within our thoughts. We use victim speak like “always” or “never”. There are very few things in life that happen in absolutes, so when we use “always” or “never”, they are very rarely true. By concentrating on the facts of a situation, we can find the most reasonable path and move our classrooms in the most positive direction.
Oginga Carr
CEO Epiphany Consulting
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Raising Teenagers-It's All Worth It
I have the joy of raising my 4th teen, 6th if you want to count my neice and nephew while living in the house with them before I got married. I declare that my mother didn't have the issues out of me that mine have put me through. Well, maybe I did, because I remember hearing her say, "I hope your kids put you through what you're putting me through, and worst!" I didn't think I was such a bad kid. I was just being a kid.
I have 2 sons and 2 daughters. All with very different personalities. From very quite to very verbose! From an attitude of, "Whatever.", to "Why????", and everything in between. But through it all, it has helped me be able to deal with all types of personalities and I'm loving it all the way. As I blogged on yesterday, Love is in the Air, it really is. People love to love and to be loved. People love reaching out and sharing what's naturally in them. Even though they may not share it with everybody the same, they love to share it with someone. My in-between child, which is my 16 year old baby daughter, surprised me to all heavens. She has the personality that says "whatever and why" all in the same breath. Don't ask me, I'm just as confused as you are. Holidays are always just about her. "What did you get me? Nothing? O Ok. I didn't get you nothing either." But yesterday 2/14/11, Valentine's Day, was altogether different. She didn't ask me what did I get her, she gave me the surprise of my life.
I went out yesterday morning before she got up and when I return home, she was awake looking at television. Much to her surprise, so that we could spend some time together, I just went and started watching this "girly" show with her. She was so pleased and shocked that I was actually not texting or on my phone that she just staired at me hoping I didn't see her stairing. I was geniunely watching it and it was a pretty cool show. I sat through the program for 1 solid hour, told her I had to go into my office to work and she said, "OK." Without even a grumble. Much to my surprise, on my keyboard was a Valentine's Day card from her that read, "A DAD is...Trusted, Adored, Admired, Respected, Loved, Teasured, Appreciated. For longer than I can remember, you've lifted me up and made me feel secure. You've taught me so many life lessons, loved me unconditionally, and believed in me endlessly...no wonder you were my first Valentine! Happy Valentine's Day with all my love. Olivia-2011. But wait, that's not all. It had MONEY IN IT TOO!!! Raising Teenages-It's All Worth It!
You never know what you're depositing into a child when you tell them they're special even when others tell them they are not and they don't believe it themselves. Our job is to make deposits into them and expect a huge withdrawal from them, when you least expect it. Keep planting the seeds of hope and you'll produce a field of your dreams.
Daryl K. Dandredge, VP
Epiphany Consulting, LLC
PO Box 22473
Little Rock, AR 72211
I have 2 sons and 2 daughters. All with very different personalities. From very quite to very verbose! From an attitude of, "Whatever.", to "Why????", and everything in between. But through it all, it has helped me be able to deal with all types of personalities and I'm loving it all the way. As I blogged on yesterday, Love is in the Air, it really is. People love to love and to be loved. People love reaching out and sharing what's naturally in them. Even though they may not share it with everybody the same, they love to share it with someone. My in-between child, which is my 16 year old baby daughter, surprised me to all heavens. She has the personality that says "whatever and why" all in the same breath. Don't ask me, I'm just as confused as you are. Holidays are always just about her. "What did you get me? Nothing? O Ok. I didn't get you nothing either." But yesterday 2/14/11, Valentine's Day, was altogether different. She didn't ask me what did I get her, she gave me the surprise of my life.
I went out yesterday morning before she got up and when I return home, she was awake looking at television. Much to her surprise, so that we could spend some time together, I just went and started watching this "girly" show with her. She was so pleased and shocked that I was actually not texting or on my phone that she just staired at me hoping I didn't see her stairing. I was geniunely watching it and it was a pretty cool show. I sat through the program for 1 solid hour, told her I had to go into my office to work and she said, "OK." Without even a grumble. Much to my surprise, on my keyboard was a Valentine's Day card from her that read, "A DAD is...Trusted, Adored, Admired, Respected, Loved, Teasured, Appreciated. For longer than I can remember, you've lifted me up and made me feel secure. You've taught me so many life lessons, loved me unconditionally, and believed in me endlessly...no wonder you were my first Valentine! Happy Valentine's Day with all my love. Olivia-2011. But wait, that's not all. It had MONEY IN IT TOO!!! Raising Teenages-It's All Worth It!
You never know what you're depositing into a child when you tell them they're special even when others tell them they are not and they don't believe it themselves. Our job is to make deposits into them and expect a huge withdrawal from them, when you least expect it. Keep planting the seeds of hope and you'll produce a field of your dreams.
Daryl K. Dandredge, VP
Epiphany Consulting, LLC
PO Box 22473
Little Rock, AR 72211
Monday, February 14, 2011
Road Warrior Vol I
As I have traveled America over the past 6 months, going everywhere from Palm Desert, CA to Portland, ME, experiencing everything from 110 degree desert heat to -20 degree highs, I have come to some revelations.
First of all, All cities look the same from the air as you land at the airport. You have different landmarks that greet you in some cities like the Strip in Vegas, but for the most part, you land at an Airport with some skyline in the distance... it always freaks me out how much cities look alike.
My new theme song is Billionaire by Travie Mccoy ft Bruno Mars. Not for the obvious want of being a Billionaire, but my business partner and mentor Daryl Dandredge pointed out a lyric that describes my life right now..."A different City every night".... I still haven't adjusted to that portion of my life... Sleeping in a different bed 4 or 5 nights a week... That has been different, but I consider it part of the business to be able to touch so many people's lived and have so many people have an effect on mine.
But beyond the trivial interests, there is one nugget that I want to share with you that I have picked up on the road.... The personal things that happen to you in life are not PERSONAL. I have learned that there is no one that gets up in the morning just to mess up my day. Frankly no one cares that much. People are so busy scrambling and trying to survive their own personal situations that sometimes you just get caught in the wake of that struggle and your personalities just rub wrongly. If I could really just remember this advice in my life, It would be so helpful to me...
Alright its 1:25 AM February 15, 2011 and I am slated to inspire an audience in less than 8 hours... I suppose I better get some sleep. Good night all until next time on the road!
Oginga Carr
Epiphany Consulting LLC
First of all, All cities look the same from the air as you land at the airport. You have different landmarks that greet you in some cities like the Strip in Vegas, but for the most part, you land at an Airport with some skyline in the distance... it always freaks me out how much cities look alike.
My new theme song is Billionaire by Travie Mccoy ft Bruno Mars. Not for the obvious want of being a Billionaire, but my business partner and mentor Daryl Dandredge pointed out a lyric that describes my life right now..."A different City every night".... I still haven't adjusted to that portion of my life... Sleeping in a different bed 4 or 5 nights a week... That has been different, but I consider it part of the business to be able to touch so many people's lived and have so many people have an effect on mine.
But beyond the trivial interests, there is one nugget that I want to share with you that I have picked up on the road.... The personal things that happen to you in life are not PERSONAL. I have learned that there is no one that gets up in the morning just to mess up my day. Frankly no one cares that much. People are so busy scrambling and trying to survive their own personal situations that sometimes you just get caught in the wake of that struggle and your personalities just rub wrongly. If I could really just remember this advice in my life, It would be so helpful to me...
Alright its 1:25 AM February 15, 2011 and I am slated to inspire an audience in less than 8 hours... I suppose I better get some sleep. Good night all until next time on the road!
Oginga Carr
Epiphany Consulting LLC
Love Is In The Air
In this day and time we see what appears to be the opposite of Love. How can you say Love is in the air? Suicides are up amongst teens and women. In all of history we've never seen this much suicide amongst these groups, and yet you say Love is in the air? Joblessness is the highest it's been in more than 20 years and you say that Love is in the air? Yes! Love is in the air!
I know that Love is in the air on this Valentine's Day because we see more and more people reaching out to youth groups to help them have a different perspective on life as they know it. Love is in the air because women's groups are being formed to offer help and solutions to young unwed mothers and wives who have gotten fed up with the struggles that they are bombarded with on a daily basis. Love is in the air! More and more job fairs and technological workshops are being established to encourage people not to give up hope because jobs will return, however, maybe in a different structure from what you knew, but training for the future is available now.
Where is this Love coming from? It's coming from PEOPLE! Robots will never replace the affection that kind hearted human beings were made with. This Love comes from God the Father because this is His greatest characteristic-LOVE.
My word to you today is, don't give up on Love and don't give up on people. Reach out to someone else who appears to be worse off than you and let them be reminded that Love is still alive and well and it flows out of the hearts of human beings, just like them.
Love Is In The Air,
Daryl K. Dandredge, VP
Epiphany Consulting, LLC
P.O Box 22743
Little Rock, AR 72211
www.epiphanyconsulting.biz
I know that Love is in the air on this Valentine's Day because we see more and more people reaching out to youth groups to help them have a different perspective on life as they know it. Love is in the air because women's groups are being formed to offer help and solutions to young unwed mothers and wives who have gotten fed up with the struggles that they are bombarded with on a daily basis. Love is in the air! More and more job fairs and technological workshops are being established to encourage people not to give up hope because jobs will return, however, maybe in a different structure from what you knew, but training for the future is available now.
Where is this Love coming from? It's coming from PEOPLE! Robots will never replace the affection that kind hearted human beings were made with. This Love comes from God the Father because this is His greatest characteristic-LOVE.
My word to you today is, don't give up on Love and don't give up on people. Reach out to someone else who appears to be worse off than you and let them be reminded that Love is still alive and well and it flows out of the hearts of human beings, just like them.
Love Is In The Air,
Daryl K. Dandredge, VP
Epiphany Consulting, LLC
P.O Box 22743
Little Rock, AR 72211
www.epiphanyconsulting.biz
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