The Test of Time

The month of December brings a lot of thought about time. We set resolutions that usually don’t make it through January. We think about getting things accomplished before the end of the year. We also set strategies about having a fast start and a good 2016. The thought for me ending this year has been “the test of time.”

Over the years I’ve seen a lot of fast starts and few, whether in business, church, or school that stand ”the test of time.” Many start with best of intentions but for whatever reason don’t follow through and complete what they start. For every Miguel Cabrera there are many, many baseball players who only have a one or two, or at best a few good years. For every Peyton Manning there are many quarterbacks that have short careers. The same is true in our day to day lives.

In the months surrounding the start of my insurance career half a dozen young agents were hired. We all took the same training from the same trainers but achieved far differing results. Most of them were more productive that I was in those early days. However, one- by-one they went on to other pursuits and eventually I was the only person of the group to end up with a long insurance career.

So then, the question becomes what are the attributes that yield results that stand “the test of time?” These attribute would be true whatever the area of endeavor. Certainly an important attribute would be that of focus. Knowing what we want to do. My manager Paul Hutsey often said that making the decision what we want was often more difficult than accomplishing the task.

My former partner Russ Larsen used to talk about the importance of “staying hitched” or staying with what we start. Life offers so many opportunities and some other venture often looks better (the grass always looks better on the other side of the fence). So the need is to re-focus and stay on the track. Success in any venture is accomplished by those who try and keep trying!

When we have focused and determined to stay with the course it becomes important to have a long term vision of where we want to go with our life or career choice. Often when things don’t go our way right away we lose our focus. So much of the time short term failure causes many to change their course. We avoid this by continuing growth towards our goals. Training, continuing education, and experiences move us towards greater proficiency and sustainability. Those who stand “the test of time” keep their eyes on the prize!

The Season of Thanks

As always happens the year is quickly winding down. The last weeks of a year are some of my favorite days. First we come to the most American of holidays--Thanksgiving. In the 21st century we aren’t a very thankful people. Our massive expectations get in the way o true thankfulness. We have become more and more demanding of everyone, including our government. Our attitude is one of entitlement rather than gratitude.

This Thanksgiving season will be a special one at our house. On the day before Thanksgiving, 1965 my wife and I were married. We’ll celebrate 50 years together just a couple of days before our 51st Thanksgiving. The years have gone fast, too fast, but life has been good. We have enjoyed good health, a great family, and meaningful work. It just doesn’t get much better.

We should thank God for life itself. As the old hymn says “Praise God from whom all blessings flow.” The New Testament writer James wrote, “Every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from the Father of lights…” My other holiday favorite is Christmas. Not the commercial event but the birth of the Savior of man. Christmas is actually the greatest day we should show our thanks.

Our next thanks should be to the troops around the world who are defending our way of life. They have sacrificed greatly in time, injury, and even loss of life. Included would be the police and firemen that daily protect us. They will be of even more importance as we face the continuing challenge of terrorism. Theirs is a tough and thankless job so we should encourage them whenever possible. I can’t imagine what life would be like without their efforts.

Our friends and families should also be thanked. Without their love and support, life would be very lonely and much less joyful. It has been said that a friend is someone who knows all about you and still remains a friend. Life doesn’t bring a lot of friends so we should treasure and thank them often. We also often take our families for granted and don’t show them the appreciation they deserve.

We could go on to several other things to be thankful for, but I’ll finish with just one more. We should be very thankful to be an American. We have freedom and privilege like no other people have ever had. We can freely choose our occupation, our home location, and those we associate with. Many don’t have this freedom. We take these all for granted. Another sign of our ingratitude.

So as we enjoy these events of the last weeks of 2015 with family and friends let’s take a moment to say thanks. And if we do develop a spirit of thanksgiving (and a true Christmas spirit) we can carry it with us all year.

Avoiding Micromanaging!

One of the current buzz words of management is micromanaging. In business micromanagement is a management style whereby a manager closely observes or controls the work of subordinates or employees. Often the employee feels smothered and inadequate to the task. Micromanaging can stifle productivity and creativity. Often the message of lack of confidence that is communicated causes absenteeism and ultimately turnover, both are extremely expensive. At the other end of the spectrum is allowing the employee to feel abandoned and without support. Neither is a healthy situation.

Overcoming the tendency to micromanage has no quick fix. Improving the quality of recruiting is a first step. Whether bringing in new employees at the entry level or choosing from among promotion candidates, leadership must be diligent in the recruitment process. Often due to the press of time decisions are made without proper care. When openings are high in quantity or duration panic sets in, poor hiring or promotion practices are employed. Disaster is the result and micromanaging abounds.

When we have selected recruits for our openings, proper training and education must follow. We must aid them in developing skills required for their position and at the same time communicate their role in the organization. Someone has said proper preparation prevents poor performance. When we give them what they need to perform, we won’t feel the need to constantly look over their shoulder. When they know what is expected of them and have the tools to perform, they can build higher confidence in their ability.

The final key in avoiding micromanaging is the building of trust. When the leader has trust we or she only steps in when asked or when it is apparent that the employee is on a course to disaster. We build trust by giving small assignments and building their confidence in getting things done and our confidence in them. The difficulty level of tasks then increases as successes are attained. Skills are added as level of the task is increased.

The trust stage is best accomplished with a high level of communication. As questions arise mentoring skills should be used. The trust we build towards them must also be built in them towards us. In this way the dialogue will allow them a comfort level to ask questions. As the questions come we share our experience and allow them to work their own method in accomplishing the task. Open communications allows the employee to get the information and feedback they need without feeling overwhelmed. The end result is a high level of trust flowing both ways.

Smelling the Coffee!

Over the years I’ve had several advise me to “Stop and smell the coffee!” When I was younger I thought there would always be another moment. Age helps us realize our time is limited and so are our opportunities. In our fast-paced world we often don’t take the time or make the time to enjoy life as it happens. I have found this to be true in at least three areas of life.

First, as we accomplish success at work we forge on to the next project or goal. Before we’ve had time to savor the moment we’re in the middle of a different task. We’re so intent on making things happen that we don’t really get to kick back and enjoy the moment. Later we look back and wish we could have paused and realized what was now past.

The second area we often rush by is those personal goals or our personal “bucket list” of items we plan on doing someday. In 2005 Sharon and I started our annual “Grandkid trips” when we took our four youngest to Orlando. In the hustle and bustle of making sure things were perfect and that we covered all the activities were completed we didn’t “smell the coffee” of that moment in time. This year we had to cancel the trip due to a health issue and realized how big a part the trips had played for ten years.

The third and most important area is that of personal relationships. When someone passes we often have regrets of the time we could have spent and didn’t. Our mothers are 87 and 91. We’ve had opportunity to enjoy the time with them. On the other hand our Dads were 62 and 65 when they passed. How we would have enjoyed more time, but did enjoy what time we had! Several friends have passed this year and I look back and am glad for the moments we had. When I think of them I smile and remember the good times.

In June my sister and a cousin in Wichita both had accidents where vehicles were totaled but injuries weren’t life threatening. I saw a picture of my niece’s car and was thankful for the results. It could have been worse, a lot worse. Once again the importance of “smelling the coffee” became obvious. We never know when an encounter will be our last.

Having a health issue brought future limitations into my mind for the first time. I’ve been blessed with 71 years of good health. My goal is to slow down and enjoy each moment, person, and event to the fullest. We are only here for a very short moment in time. Hopefully we can all learn the lesson of “Smelling the coffee!”

Commencement Revisited!!!

May has rolled around once more. Thoughts of Summer and all the activities abound. Before we are off on the adventures that lay ahead we should pause and think of one of our major traditions- commencement.
One of the rites of passage in Spring or really early Summer are commencement ceremonies. We have them for high school, college, grad school, and probably others I’m not even aware of. The word itself intrigued me because when I graduated I thought that was the end and yet one of the dictionary definitions of commencement is, “a beginning or start.”

After more thought I realized the title was a proper one no matter what the level of achievement. Graduation requirements represent the fulfillment of a set of requirements, while the services signal the start toward the next stage of life, the next set of learning activities. Everyone is required to commence or to ultimately stagnate at some level of attainment!

The high school grad has several potential avenues of commencement. They can go into the work world, go to trade school, or continue on to the collegiate level. Each has its own opportunities and possibilities. One is not better than another, just different. Trade schools offer great possibilities since skilled craftsmen are a much needed quantity in our society. Work offers income and a place to grow while deciding the course for “the rest of a life.” College is most beneficial for the person focused on what they want to pursue as a career.

The baccalaureate graduate also has some hard choices. The decision to enter the work world might be impeded by a scarce present supply of jobs in his or her chosen field. Grad school is another choice. I’ve often told my MBA candidates they differentiate themselves by spending that one more year on campus. Only about one third as many have an advanced degree as those with an undergraduate degree.

When the graduate students have their ceremony it can be a scary finality to it and yet it still a commencement. They must now enter the “real world” and put all those years of formal learning to work in a practical way. They must also learn that real learning has not ended but is just beginning. Their ability to apply their knowledge will determine long term success in their chosen field.

Even those of us who have long since stopped learning in a formal environment must always be open to changes and new ideas. I remember in 1986 when I bought my first computer, I thought it would be my last. Ten machines and many other devices later new knowledge and learning continue. As we get the chance to celebrate the commencements this year let’s remember we have only begun life.

Remembering Bill!

It’s not difficult for me to remember the first time I met Bill Medley. It was the Spring of 1981 and I had just been elected to the USD 465 Board of Education. Jim Reed called and said I was to participate in interviewing candidates for Superintendent. At the district office and later at a local restaurant I met and had my first conversation with Bill and Maxine Medley. We had several good candidates and the decision came down to as Joan Kaufman put it, “When you have a close decision you go with the known quantity.” What a great nine years I had working with Bill, first as colleagues, the he became a mentor, and finally a valued friend.
The next paragraph is an excerpt from one of my earlier columns:
Bill Medley was a high school principal and superintendent in USD 465 for nearly 30 years. Bill became USD 465’s Superintendent the same day I became a new board member in 1981. Several lessons were learned during his tenure, but I will focus on two that I clearly recall. Bill’s goal was to always find them “doing something good.” He included students, teachers, staff, administration, and any other employee. The other lesson was his ability to start the seed of an idea, throw it out to an audience, and watch it come back in developed form. Bill was an example of Emerson’s old quote, “there is no limit to what can be accomplished if it doesn’t matter who gets the credit.” Bill was a master at giving credit and conversely, taking the blame.
It is also not difficult to remember my last two conversations with Bill. I was working in my yard last Fall and he stopped and we visited. He told me how his son Forrest made copies of one of my writings about him and handed them out to employees. We made a plan for me to have coffee with him the next week. At out meeting we reminisced about some of the accomplishments of our time together. Each idea that worked he recalled how I had developed it with him at a board meeting or a trip to Topeka. My recollection was that mostly they were Bill’s ideas that the board and administrators helped develop. That was Bill.
At his celebration service Brilla Scott mentioned his many of his accomplishments and ended saying she thought his proudest was returning to the community he loved as superintendent. I would agree with that and further say that being on the board that brought him back is also one of my proudest moments also. Our thoughts and prayers are with Maxine, Forrest, Jennifer, and the rest of the family. He will be missed!

The Pursuit of Money

Throughout history and in every society there has been an enduring question about the importance of money. In reality the place of money and the priority of accumulating “things” is an issue that each of us must settle for ourselves.

The apostle Paul gave advice to his young protégé Timothy “For the love of money is the root of all evil” (I Timothy 6:10). So then it is the LOVE of the money not the money itself that is the root of all evil. Like so many things in life it is when we are out of balance about money and seeking for it that we get into trouble.

The love of money has manifested itself in many ways. Wars have been fought, people have been murdered, people have been cheated all for money and often for paltry sums. In another context families have been torn apart when inordinate of time has been spent by a parent or parents grubbing for the almighty dollar. The prsuit of money in an unbalanced way has many potentially negative outcomes.

I remember in the late Steven Covey’ great book “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” the comment that “no man when he comes to the end of his life regrets not spending more time at the office.” Work and money are important in this life but the really important things in life- love, family, good health.- cannot be bought. So then what is the purpose of money in our lives?

According to best-selling author John Maxwell money has only two purposes, it gives us options and it allows us the resources to help others. We have the options of where we live, the home we purchase, how we educate ourselves and our children, and even the social groups we develop relationships with. Money cannot buy us happiness, but wise gathering and use of money can allow us to live the life we choose to live. Many don’t and will never have those choices.

The second purpose, having the ability to help others, is really the essence of what life is or at least should be about. A student of mine once completed a class project surveying seventeen religions. She was trying to find what ethical positions they had in common. The dominant principle she found was several variations of the Golden Rule, to do unto others as we would have them do unto us. Having resources allows us to help those less fortunate than us.

My church has a program of supporting our missionaries worldwide. The program takes large amounts of money. Another program, Manna Worldwide helps feed and clothe children in several countries. There are many, many good programs for us to fulfill that second purpose, helping others. It is up to each of us to discover where we want to place our support.

Common or Committed?

I do not choose to be a common man.
It is my right to be uncommon … if I can.

Those words were penned by Thomas Paine in 1776 and are true today. They reveal one of the truths about us rising above the mundane and committing our lives- it is a choice! We make those choices throughout our business or personal lives. We can follow the crowd and take the easy way or dare to try excellence as our goal. In the end it is up to each of us to choose to be common or committed!

Another truth about leaving the common and being committed is the place of failure in our lives. I know of no great success achieved without some if not great failure along the path, Disney failed as did President Lincoln. Richard Nixon lost the presidency, went home and lost the California Governor’s race, and later was elected in one of the greatest landslide elections in our history as a country. Ronald Reagan became president on his third attempt. As W. Clement Stone once wrote “Success is achieved by those who try and keep trying (being committed).

Fear of failure might be the single greatest reason well fall short of what we might become and thus never really commit to any task, goal or life pursuit. Teddy Roosevelt had it right when he wrote “Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checked by failure...than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.” We must step out of our comfort zone if we are ever truly going to be committed.

The first two years of my insurance career were tarnished by spotty production and a willingness to go along with the crowd. Given great training I had a desire to excel but a commitment to the easy path. During a twenty-five week business insurance class I learned much and saw examples of people choosing to be committed and the lessons changed my path forever.

At the end of his great poem “The Road Not Taken” Robert Frost wrote “I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.” That is the third truth about leaving the common and moving to the committed. The road will not be crowded. Others will try and divert us and get us to travel the easy path. Obstacles and diversions will try and sidetrack us as we travel life’s journey. We must forge ahead to reach being the uncommon and to remain committed to our future!