To my clients, colleagues, and friends, old and new ~
Thank you for your business, your friendship and your goodwill.
May health, happiness and prosperity
Be yours in the coming year.

Happy Holidays!

PEACE AT WORK

We all want Peace on Earth, and the place to start is with what’s closest to us: ourselves, our families, and our places of work, where we spend 60% of our time. The workplace is a great place to practice compassion, kindness, understanding, and patience. We can teach ourselves to minimize making assumptions, hasty judgments, gossip and blaming. If trends and fads can “go viral,” how about peace?

WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER ABOUT YOUR HOMETOWN?

For most of us, that question brings to mind some special places, and usually includes a few businesses that we remember fondly. Most likely, several were small, locally-owned businesses. Some of my most vivid memories are of time spent with high-school friends at McCord’s Candy Shop in Lafayette, Indiana.

THINK LOCAL SHOP LOCAL BUY LOCAL

FOR EVERY DOLLAR SPENT AT A LOCAL BUSINESS, 45 CENTS IS REINVESTED LOCALLY. For every dollar spent at a corporate chain, only 15 cents is reinvested locally. Focusing our economic activity locally creates local jobs and contributes to the health of our own community. Shopping locally and doing business with locally owned companies is a very important act of economic responsibility. It’s something we can do. Our own friends, neighbors and families benefit, and we can play a valuable role in supporting this wonderful place we are fortunate to call home. For more information about local companies and organizations, how you can support local businesses, and the difference it makes, visit the website of GoLocal Sonoma County.

A term originally used in horse racing has been extended into general usage – “the home stretch” – and I like the mental image it conjures up. This time of year lends itself nicely to the metaphor: the heightened temperature and pace of activities during the holidays, the year end of business, frequently also the fiscal year end and target date for completion of projects, the turning of the calendar to begin all over again. All of these coincide to create a “race to the finish” feeling in these last few weeks of 2011.

Food for Thought ~

I would like to suggest that a good way to approach this final stretch is to remove ourselves from the racetrack mindset. Step off the track, revisit your values and priorities and then choose your activities accordingly. Oftentimes, we have beliefs, expectations, and habits that it’s time to let go of, to lighten our load so that we can move more easily and effectively though our lives and our work responsibilities. One of the roles of a leader is to continually model your values, especially under stressful conditions, as this time of year can be. Make your 2011 home stretch as healthy and positive as possible, for yourself and those within your sphere of influence.

Question of the day ~

How do you approach this time of year? Is it a frenzy of activity or do you pace yourself according to your values? What example are you setting for your organization?

Your responses to my survey are pouring in – thank you! The more the better! Many people have told me they have it on their “to do” list, so here’s the survey link again. It’s a very brief set of questions that will take just a few minutes, I promise! Your answers will be tremendously valuable in helping me plan for 2012. Thanks very much for your cooperation!

As a marketing advisor, I often encourage my clients to ask their customers’ opinions. There’s a wealth of information available if we ask! So, I’m practicing what I preach and asking you, my readers, for your opinions about my Tuesday Minute With Mary. January, 2012 marks my second anniversary of writing this weekly series. That’s 104 consecutive weeks of mini-essays, “rain or shine.” Although the essays take only a minute or so to read, I dedicate several hours (and usually more) to writing and publishing each one. (Was it Mark Twain who said it takes a lot longer to write a short letter than a long one?)

My statistics from Constant Contact are very good – my readership rates are twice my industry average! The comments and replies I receive each week are very positive indeed. Yet I want to take this opportunity to conduct a somewhat more systematic assessment of your preferences so that I can determine what, if any, changes might be desirable. New technologies offer new options, and my readers’ needs and preferences evolve as well.

I have created a very short mini-survey with just a few salient questions. I would truly appreciate your taking a few minutes to complete the survey. Here’s the link.

Thank you very much in advance for responding to this request. Your answers will help me plan my time and shape my communications in the ways that matter most to you.

The “Mark” in this case is Mark Twain. Tomorrow is his birthday, and I wanted to pay homage to one of our country’s great writers. Perhaps my special affection for Twain comes from the fact that like Twain, I was born in Missouri. I still recall a family vacation, visiting his boyhood home in Hannibal on the Mississippi River. Just for the record, Mark Twain was Samuel Langhorne Clemens’ pen name.

Food for Thought ~

The Mark Twain quote that I chose for you is representative of his wisdom and his love of water-related themes. I appreciate it for its universal applicability and most assuredly, how it relates to leadership. I hope you enjoy it.

“Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Question of the day ~

In what ways might you explore more, dream more and discover more?

For those of you who also love stamps, one of the current commemorative stamps features Mark Twain. It’s a beauty! And because I can’t resist sharing another Twain quote… “Always do right. That will gratify some of the people and astonish the rest.”

One of the things I am grateful for is my work. I make my living doing something I love – helping good people be successful. I work with business owners and leaders, and when they are effective, their companies grow and thrive. In turn, these successful companies provide jobs, generate economic activity, produce important products and services, and share their talents and resources with the community. This is my mission.

I was curious about the origins of the Thanksgiving holiday, so I did a little research. Included below is a very abbreviated version of the story of the first Thanksgiving, plus a short history of the evolution of this national holiday. I hope you find them of interest and enjoy sharing the stories with your family and friends.

This season of Thanksgiving is the perfect time to express my appreciation for your business, your referrals, and your trust in me and my work. May your holidays be warm and wonderful and the coming year be bountiful.

The First Thanksgiving

Life was hard in the New World for the Pilgrims. Out of the 103 who emigrated from England in 1620 and crossed the Atlantic in the Mayflower, just 51 people survived the first winter. After the critical first harvest, Governor William Bradford declared a day of thanksgiving and prayer. The gathering took place outdoors in the Autumn of 1621. It was a 3-day event. Along with the Pilgrims, there were 90 Wampanoag Indians who had helped the colonists get settled. The Indians brought 5 deer to the celebration and along with the venison, they all feasted on roast duck, roast goose, wild turkey, cornbread, squash, berries, maple sugar, wild plums and pumpkins.

A Short History of the Holiday

In 1789, President George Washington issued a proclamation naming November 26 a day of national thanksgiving. For many years, there was no national holiday, although some states observed a yearly Thanksgiving holiday. In 1863, President Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday in November as a day of thanksgiving, a tradition that was followed by presidents every year for 74 years. In 1939, President Franklin Roosevelt moved the date up one week earlier to help business by extending the shopping period before Christmas. In 1941, Congress ruled that the fourth Thursday in November would be a legal federal holiday. Thus, we have Thanksgiving, the holiday.

What activity do we all engage in that most profoundly affects the rest of our activities? It’s thinking. You might be interested to know that the most effective and creative problem solvers are people who engage in the process of meta-thinking, or “thinking about the thinking.”

Food for Thought ~

Meta-thinking means being aware of how we are thinking while we are doing the thinking. In other words, it’s consciously observing and evaluating our continual inner dialogue and then testing, challenging and re-directing our thoughts as needed. We all carry on a fairly constant stream of internal thoughts, and this concept reminds us that we are not passive bystanders in that process. We can actively choose our thoughts and assess the quality of our thinking. It’s likely that from time to time we’ll find we need a mental tune-up to upgrade the quality of our thinking.

Question of the day ~

Do you pay attention to how you are thinking or just to what you are thinking?

The readership for my current article continues to be strong, which delights me because it’s based on a brilliant definition of leadership by John Quincy Adams, our country’s sixth president. In nineteen words, he sums up the essence of leadership! If you haven’t already done so, click here to read his definition, and the article.

There’s a popular piece on YouTube called “Dancing Shirtless Guy” that has also become a lesson about leadership. Actually, in the end, the narrator makes the assertion that leadership happens when the “First Follower” joins the leader, thereby validating what the leader is doing. If it weren’t for the First Follower, who then inspires other Followers, the identified Leader would be, in this case, just a shirtless guy dancing by himself.

Food for Thought ~

I would say it takes two parts and a proviso to make this equation. A leader has to be willing to be the lone voice/dancer/initiator, to be different, to march to a different drummer. Were it not for the leader’s willingness to take a risk and step out from the crowd, there would be no one for the First Follower to emulate. A First Follower is then, by definition, dependent on there being an identifiable Leader. Furthermore, the proviso is that the Leader must be doing something that others care about and admire. Otherwise, indeed, he would be just a shirtless guy dancing by himself.

Question of the day ~

What’s your take on the relationship between leadership and followership?

I am particularly fond of my current column in the North Bay Business Journal because it’s based on a truly brilliant definition of leadership by John Quincy Adams, our country’s sixth president. In nineteen words, he sums up the essence of leadership! Click here to read his definition, and the article.

My previous two posts featured an insightful analysis of the distinction between excellence and perfection. In a poetic sort of irony, I made a mistake in last week’s piece, and not on purpose! A particular point of interest here is that I actually woke up in the night thinking about it, before the email was to be sent early the next morning, and talked myself out of believing I had made an error. I knew the fact in question, and persuaded myself that I would not have made such a silly mistake. Surprise! This background story serves as an opportunity to remind myself, and you as well, to listen to our intuition. No doubt the inconvenience of getting up in the proverbial middle of the night colored my receptivity to the inner alarm that woke me up.

Food for Thought ~

I have increasingly learned over the years to trust my intuition. This example aside, I usually do. We all have an inner knowing and inner wisdom that can’t necessarily be explained, but is usually accurate. At the very least, it is a useful resource to be respected and cultivated.

Question of the day ~

Do you listen to your intuition? Has it been a valuable resource in your life and work as a leader?

Oh, in case you’re wondering about the mistake, it was in the description of my new column in the North Bay Business Journal, based on a brilliant definition of leadership by John Quincy Adams, our country’s sixth (not second) president. His father, John Adams, was our country’s second president. Click here to read the article.

Last Tuesday introduced the first half of an insightful analysis of the distinction between excellence and perfection. Here’s the balance of the essay. I hope it will help you understand the difference between these two concepts and to more often choose the goal of excellence as your guide.

Food for Thought ~

Perfection is judgment. Excellence is accepting.
Perfection is taking. Excellence is giving.
Perfection is doubt. Excellence is confidence.
Perfection is pressure. Excellence is natural.
Perfection is the destination. Excellence is the journey.

Question of the day ~

How can you apply these guidelines for excellence in your life and in your leadership?

My new column in the North Bay Business Journal is based on a brilliant definition of leadership by John Quincy Adams, our country’s second president. Click here to read the article.

One of the most important things I’ve learned over the years is to pursue excellence, not perfection. I like to think of myself as a “reformed perfectionist.” Excellence is much more meaningful and useful. Perfection is necessary in certain circumstances, but not as a guideline for daily living or leading. Here is the first part of an essay I came across many years ago. It makes a very helpful distinction between these two concepts. The author is unknown. Part two next week.

Food for Thought ~

Perfection is being right. Excellence is willing to be wrong.
Perfection is fear. Excellence is taking risk.
Perfection is anger and frustration. Excellence is powerful.
Perfection is control. Excellence is spontaneous.

Question of the day ~

How would you describe yourself? Do you strive for perfection or excellence?

People are still reading my recent article on managing change and transition,so here’s the link: please click here.