The Surprising Path to the Future
The real problem with problems is they draw you into the past. Fixing problems is focusing on something that already happened.
The power of leadership is creating something new
not fixing something old.
On the other hand, preventing problems is a problem. Teams never win if defense is all they play. Organizational success is about doing not preventing.
Get real:
Fixing and preventing are necessary components of leadership. Sadly, fixing and preventing dominate organizations because it’s useful, measurable, and necessary.
Trajectory:
Leadership always has trajectory. You move forward or backward but never stay the same.
Standing still is a fantasy for those oblivious to decline.
Additionally, balance is a myth. Effective leaders always tip toward the future.
Positive trajectory:
Anger, fear, frustration, disappointment, even resentment are part of leadership. But the path to the future is paved with gratitude.
Gratitude frees you to create your future.
Gratitude energizes leaders and organizations to release the past and create the future.
“Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others,” Cicero.
The opposite:
The opposite of gratitude is arrogance, not ungratefulness. In addition, the companions of arrogance are anger, bitterness, and revenge.
I’ve walked the dingy path of ungratefulness that springs from arrogance. It’s a black-hole dragging you inward, downward, and backward.
Aggressive leadership:
Express gratitude aggressively. Benigni says, “It’s a sign of mediocrity when you demonstrate gratitude with moderation.”
What if you don’t feel grateful?
- Consider gratefulness a behavior more than a feeling.
- Look at life through the eyes of those contributing to the cause. Think of what they are contributing not what you wish they had contributed.
- Don’t worry, gratefulness fuels excellence it doesn’t block it.
- ???
Who can you thank, today?
How can leaders remain focused on the future in a world where they must deal with past mistakes and present urgencies?
Great post!
4. Start small. If you have trouble feeling gratitude for your biggest endeavors (maybe they aren’t on track), start with the tiny things in your life. The people you know, the food on your plate, your health. They’re easy to take for granted. But learn the value of your basic blessings and you’ll practice your way to gratitude in your career and beyond.
Thanks for a powerful addition. Sadly, the big often prevents the small.
Thanks Dan – I had never considered the relationship between arrogance and ungratitude. Arrogance is the ultimate entitlement mentality – arrogant people believe they are owed… (fill in the blank).
Thanks for stopping in Joe. Yup, entitlement ends gratitude. 🙂
Powerful post…fixing problems is focusing on the future. Great reminder thank you 🙂
Dear Dan,
I would like to discuss on fixing and preventing- Organizations where fixing is prevalent, make preventive rules afterwards. Such practices often create fear of not doing or avoiding actions. In such organizations , people from the bottom to top are rated, rewarded and promoted based on fixing. So, the one who has not been fixed get promotion and eventually highest position afterwards. And in the process people progresses but organizations suffer. Organizations suffer because do not want to do because of fear of being fixed. In good organizations, leaders and management have clear measure that can minimize error. It means preventive measure are integrated into policies.
And arrogance is perhaps integral part of such organizations. So, fixing and arrogance are ingrained components of sick or ineffective organizations. And preventive measures and gratitude are component of good and effective organizations. I think leaders should see past mistakes in two ways- What caused it to happen and what measures ensured its not repetition. If mistakes repeated often, then somewhere preventive measure is not effective. And this questions the leadership practices.
Thank you for sharing your insights Ajay. As I read, I thought about the how we get what we reward, recognize, and/or honor… Great
Dan –
This one did not connect with me, even after I re-read it. I believe strongly in CONTINUOUS continuous improvement and that the hands on workers offer the real power for improvement. We can engage them if we solve and help them solve workplace issues, which has very little downside other than the fact that it MIGHT have some limiting impacts on Big Innovation.
If you think about Apple, they came up with GREAT new products that reframed industries on a global basis. But those new products were not all that hot when in their first forms. It was the continuous improvement of the iPhone, the addition of apps to solve user problems or offer some small benefits, the changes in hardware and operating systems and all those more often small incremental changes that made the product great. Same with the Mac. I have had 10 different Apple computers and I keep (and will keep) upgrading because they keep improving and fixing things and updating and all that.
I think ANY behavior, overdone, creates problems. Is it good to be creative? Yes, absolutely, unless that continuous creativity prevents anything from being accomplished. Is it good to be detail-oriented? Sure, unless that becomes continuous nit-picking… Anything, taken to its excess, can become problematic.
Good to have banking regulations? Yeah, or we get “Countrywide and BofA and Lehman Brothers” kinds of behaviors that cause global financial system meltdowns. I fear this “austerity” thing will cause real problems when it comes to me getting my next driver’s license. I read that South Carolina is Number Two for a “business climate” and worry that it means no more funding for higher education (we are Number One for cutting aid to the colleges) and its impacts on minimum wage. Heck, if we got everyone to work for $6 an hour, we would be Number One for attracting new companies to our state.
(Nikki Haley, our governor, wants to bring more jobs to SC so that everyone here can have both of the jobs they need to support their families – heck, there is a push to eliminate child labor laws in many states…)
Anyway, I digressed a bit. But I think that it is about balance. My read of this post is that the baby is in the bathwater, still.
You comment is one of the reasons I enjoy blogging. Thank you.
We’ll have to disagree on this one. I think leadership always tips toward creating the new.
Having said that, it doesn’t take long searching LF to find a post about the power of better. 🙂
Thanks for sharing your insights.
Looks like we need to create an exception or update the addage “everything in moderation” to “everything in moderation except gratitude.” Great Post Dan.
I’m very thankful for your comment. 🙂
Number 4. Imagine what is possible if you build on strengths rather than focus on problems.
Your first thought, that the future is built on our strengths not our problems, is very powerful. As managers, we are expected to solve problems. As leaders, we have to see a better future. Solving our problems helps us build capacity to move ahead. Leadership helps us see what is possible, understand the strengths we have to get there, takes the steps to start the journey, and support those making the journey.
I like that you mentioned balance. Our challenge is to balance management and leadership. Management helps us anticipate and solve the inevitable problems that come up. Leadership ensures that we don’t make our teams feel like they are the problem. Problems get solved because we recognize and leverage our strengths. We can express gratitude for that. Then we lead to move strengths from problems to progress. So, we are balancing pushing ahead with patching up problems that come from pushing ahead.
As you say, tipping toward the future is the goal. That comes from recognizing and growing our strengths so we have more capacity to move ahead than we have to expend to solve problems. If we solve problems in a way that builds strength by showing gratitude for and encouraging strengths, then we tip toward the future.
Thanks, as always, for helping me go deeper into what can go right.
Important addition here… I notice you bring managing into the conversation and I agree. Problem solving is more managing than leading. Of course one could say solving problems is the way managers lead. 🙂 Great add here…thanks
Standing still is a fantasy for those oblivious to decline. Nice. The other keys, Dan, are gratitude, which you speak so well of and humility. I find that humility can provide the earth and nutrients for gratitude to grow.
Good stuff! Thanks, Dan. I’m thanking YOU today!
I’m a big fan of humility, even if it is misunderstood and hard to talk about…thank you
“Standing still is a fantasy for those oblivious to decline. ” so true–we must keep moving and keep moving forward otherwise we slip backwards without realizing it
When the idea that there is no standing still gets a grip on someone it powerfully changes them… it changed me.
I love to teach people to think creatively! if more people used the creative force together a lot of things would be so much easier!!!
Here is a part of what I wrote about creativity a while ago! It’s almost like a poem….
Creativity matters
Creativity is free
Creativity is the solutions to loads of problems that we are struggling with every day
Creativity is not a talent we are born with, but a skill that can be learnt
Creativity is strengthening people natural abilities, which is good for productivity, teamwork and your profit
Being creative is to see what is possible in situations when others see problems
Read more: http://www.sofiesandell.com/creativity-training/creativity-matters/
I’m wondering what connection your comment has with today’s post?
One of those great concepts that can be applied to all aspects of your life. Thank – a timely reminder to thank those in my personal and professional life.
I love that leadership concepts apply in our personal and family life.
Try to maintain one position, stand still in skree and you will literally start sliding backwards unintentionally, hence the sound, ‘skrreeee’
Maintaining one position is status quo=stagnation in the long term and sometimes the short term, dependent on your time-space continuum.
Loved your ‘dingy path of ungratefulness’ very visual Dan!
Past mistakes and present urgencies are in in the eye of the beholder…this too shall pass. Learn and move on…
Skreeeee… hmmm, that’s a new one for me Doc… I looked up skree on the urban dictionary and believe me, you don’t want to know the third definition…LOL!
Thank you for the good word and best wishes.
My bad, misspelled… scree, was climbing South Sister mountain in Central Oregon and spent far too much time sliding down the volcanic scree trying to maintain my position, for naught… 😉
Love it! 🙂 although the other skree has some interesting possibilities… Thanks for the new word. Cheeers