The King's Kitchen

Boardroom tricks of the trade accessible to a new generation.

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Follow the Leader 

I've spent this working week with Alfred. Alfred used to be the regional head of a large multinational electronics company. A big role in a big business. Alfred had been there for 15 years, he started in sales and rose the ranks. At the helm he won major contracts to distribute products into retailers that had previously been off-limits and had grown the company tenfold.

Semi-retired now and committed to a short project I was struck by Alfred's passion to solve and implement the solution to a problem. He was bold and ambitious, and fanatical about results. At the same time he was workmanlike and matter of fact. When pressed he spoke modestly about the process of winning the big contract in his previous role - it was all done over a sandwich on a park bench.

I compare Alfred to Neville who was applying for a role with the same company. He was at pains to point out his achievements in big roles and what he could achieve in this role. In a job seeking context that was to be expected but I felt uneasy. In describing his success he mentioned that "I don't have badges" but to me that's exactly what he was describing: badges marking personal success.

What occurred to me is that both Alfred and Neville were successful and both were ambitious, but what made them different was the nature of their ambition. Where Neville was ambitious for himself, Alfred's ambition was for the company. Alfred led from within not above. An ambition and passion for the cause, the project, the pursuit is what generates great and sustainable results - and a leadership style worth following.

This post, and each post this month, addresses Question 1 of Jim’s Twelve Questions, about leading greatness. See also the interviews with Berrick and Corey.

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Greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness is largely a matter of conscious choice and discipline.

Jim Collins, Good to Great.

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Corey Payne “displays a compelling modesty, is self-effacing and understated” - the very characteristics that Jim Collins identifies in leaders of great organisations. 

As founder of Future Direction Network an organisation that provides mentoring and scholarship opportunities for students of South West Sydney to attend University, Corey has created opportunities for others to help themselves. By offering support to candidates demonstrating resilience and humility, FDN stands to be a breeding ground for more and more greatness.

This post, and each post this month, addresses Question 1 of Jim’s Twelve Questions

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Good is the enemy of great. 

It's a punchy start to Jim Collins' “Good to Great”. In it Collins studies the performance of companies that have consistently outperformed the market and progressed from "good" to "great". These companies not only demonstrate superior performance, but have a distinctive impact on their community, and have endurance beyond the leader and or the idea (i.e. a real legacy).

 The characteristics of what these companies are not, is as compelling as their common features. For example, they are not headed by larger than life celebrity CEOs (and are more likely to be headed by leaders promoted from within). Good to great companies do not focus just on what to do but equally on what not to do and what to stop doing. Also they are not necessarily in attractive, high growth industries.

 What I've become interested in is how transferable are Collins' insights to a non business context. If to be great is to be considerably above average, to display some eminence or distinction, how applicable are these themes to other pursuits? I am confident that the Good to Great principles of disciplined people, disciplined thought and disciplined action, are also the hallmarks of greatness in botanists, architects, skiers, footballers and novelists.

So I've decided to share with you my own journey of learning and translating these concepts of greatness to our everyday and even non-corporate lives. Once asked for a blueprint to apply the Good to Great principles Collins suggested asking 12 questions, each with chapter references to his books and articles. I intend to cover each question one-by-one in The King's Kitchen. Some of these ideas I've explored before: the concept of "not doing" by employing a bit of Shiva the Destroyer and the idea of compelling humility and fierce resolved in leaders as expressed in his own way by Berrick Barnes.

A bit of chat in the back of car (we can even share the driving) makes the journey far more enjoyable so comments and questions on the posts and via Facebook are more welcomed than ever. Strap in!

Photo from the Nike Find Your Greatness campaign of July 2012

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Daily destruction I've found myself this last week with the urge to destroy. Not in bulldozer through the forest sort of way but summoning a bit of Shiva, one of three Hindu gods, the god of destruction. The Hindus believe that there's no creativity let alone growth (the other two gods, Brahman and Vishnu) without making room via some destruction. It's as natural as regrowth after a bushfire. For me this week it's been determining what to stop doing so that I have time to devote to some other more productive pursuits (revitalising The King's Kitchen for one!) For a CEO it could be a hard team decision such as firing another senior team member. For as long as that person is employed the business will be held back. That decision taken too slowly could see the whole vine withering, not just the bad fruit. Another CEO I know is so ruthless in his ability to destroy he does so pre-emptively, setting himself only three tasks to complete in a day.  So, put together the "To Stop Do(ing)" list and make some space for creativity. Stay tuned for what that means for The King's Kitchen.

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The Third Space

What the player does between points as is important as the performance in the point. Dr Adam Fraser’s research shows that those who were able to transition rapidly by first reflecting on the previous point (then putting it behind them), then resting (relaxing deeply), and then resetting (focusing on being at their best for the next point), performed better. He calls this transition period “The Third Space” and argues that utilising this time well is the key to surviving and thriving in our busy lives (not just on the tennis court!). What a cracker concept, I love it.

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Individuals lift their performance in winning teams. But what if yours is an individual pursuit and you don’t have a team? Simple, build one.

Australian champion downhill skier Lavinia Chrystal, has done just that. She competes solo, against the clock, but when it comes to her conditioning training she’s in the gym with the Sydney University rugby team and athletes from other sports. Likewise, the best photographers seek input from creatives in related fields, authors refine their works at writers’ retreats, entrepreneurs test their ideas in shared workspaces.

Great individual champions create their own high performance teams.

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Forget the waterball

Teeing up on a short par 3 today my mate said, “I’m going to hit a waterball”. I’m new to golf so had to ask what he meant. “It’s water all the way to the green and I don’t want to waste one of my good balls. I save old ones for holes like this – a waterball”.

I scratched my head. He has no problem landing it on the green 100m away. Why would he even entertain the possibility of not doing so? There seems to be only one place a waterball will end up.

It made me think of another time this week I saw someone reach for a waterball. I hear each month this particular Regional Manager report how difficult the retail environment is as a prelude to his sales forecast. He knows and articulates so clearly all the reasons why his sales will end up in the water this month and consistently they do!

Forget the waterball, it has only one destination. Why not tee up a ‘1 metre from the hole’ ball?

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Never mistake motion for action

Ernest Hemingway

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Stand up Cicero!

In a tricky negotiation this week, I watched the tide turn as man was betrayed by his voice. Like a poker player overplaying his hand, it became apparent that this participant’s ‘tell’ was a change in his voice. He had a slight choking and swallowing at the points in discussion where he was less confident in the position. It became clear that as he began to ask too much his voice let him down.

Training your voice for situations like this is not new. Indeed a young Cicero is said to have practiced his speeches walking along a pebbly beach. As he found a way to project his voice across the roar of the waves breaking on the rocky shore, he knew that he’d have no problem being heard over a sea of heckling senators in the Roman Forum. 

The best advice I’ve been given, for potentially difficult phone calls at least, is to stand up. When it’s voice vs voice you give yourself your best chance by having the whole diaphragm and speaking apparatus unfolded and aligned. With any luck your voice of conviction will be accompanied by a good set of words to deliver the message – choke free.

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Top Ten TEDs

I recently commented on a friend’s post of Brene Brown’s TED speech on vulnerability that the speech was in my Top Ten TEDs. To which she challenged, ‘what are your other 9’ leaving me with a perfect opportunity to embrace my own vulnerability and list them here.

I’m continually fascinated by the extent to which many a TED speaker can create a whole reputation and career around a single concept. Surely there’s a limit to how far you can push a single idea? Apparently not, which I suppose adds to the allure of the TED series – an insight into a vast array of themes, with enough depth to draw the viewer into the full monty of any given topic: the lecture, the book, the articles, the training programs!

Some of my favourites are the field experts (Julian Treasure on losing our listening), some the inspirers (Benjamin Zander encouraging us to engage with ‘shining eyes’), the ‘single message makers’ (Derek Sivers on followers having the real courage and keeping your goals to yourself), or the ‘slow reveal 20 minute revellers’ (I’m a fan of Sir Ken and his challenge to the 21st century educators to not kill creativity and Dan Pink questioning what really motivates us).

I like all these, but have been taken recently by the message and format of Stephen Johnson here. An idea worth spreading but in a different format.

The astute may have noticed that’s only 8. Would love your help in building the list. What’s your favourite TED?

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Airtime

Images of Jordan in full flight had even cricket loving Aussie kids in the 80s prepared to give basketball a go. When he took off, something big was about to happen. Jordan rarely wasted his airtime.

For me, Jordan's use of airtime is a good analogy for a participant's contribution in a conversation or a meeting. The strongest contributors choose their moments to speak and then clearly articulate their points. The waffler, sermon-maker and rambler display little awareness of the meeting flow and abuse their airtime in the process by taking too long and not being clear or relevant.

An interesting exercise is to consider in a meeting what percentage of airtime each person used. Was the split appropriate? (Often the person most worth listening to does not speak the most.) Who was the most effective when they did speak? Some argue that in the early stages of a pitch or sales meeting, the seller should only occupy 20% of the airtime to ensure they hear exactly the needs of the client.

I witnessed an airtime master this week achieve a big return on his airtime. Right at the end, with the major business covered, everyone disarmed and conversation drifting towards "what are your plans for the weekend?" he casually heralded his question with, "just before you go" and then asked, "what’s the main reason clients choose Competitor A over you?”

Killer questions are very situation specific, but this one extracted an insight like a gammy tooth, and moved the interaction into a whole new realm. Slam dunk.

(Photo from Huckberry)

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Epic motivation

Justin Hancock is part of a four person crew on a mission to travel 30 counties from Tasmania to Norway using only waste oil, grease, and animal fat to power his vehicle.

Epic adventures require epic motivation. As Justin puts it, the motivation and subsequent enjoyment has come from the freedom to make and own decisions, (what Dan Pink in his study on motivation refers to as ‘Autonomy’), doing something he believes in (Pink’s ‘Purpose’), and ‘Mastering’ some skills – we're going to have to tune into the National Geographic Adventure Channel from Jan 15 to find out exactly what’s been mastered, but it’s clear that having fun (something Pink left out) with a group of mates (‘affiliation’ has to rate highly on the motivation card too) makes a difference.

Check out The Green Way Up facebook page for more information on the journey.

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At a function, don't be the mongoose

In the flurry of pre-Christmas functions I can think of two very different conversations I’ve had that set the bookends for good networking and bad.

In the first, Cameron* was looking over my shoulder for his next conversation while still shaking my hand. He popped his head up like a mongoose, eyes dancing around the room, and offered nothing to keep the pace of chat. Every gesture communicated that he was like an impatient summer holiday driver passing through a non-descript country town, not even interested in stopping for a coffee.

Bruce on the other hand was the master. He turned slightly away from the group and deftly engaged me with, “I’ve heard about you Angus, what’s your link here tonight?” Whatever I answered he took and made several other quick connections, asked me for a card, shook my hand, and turned effortlessly back to his previous conversation. In those few minutes he addressed and listened to me as if I were the reason he came to the function.

Making an impact with someone can be simple – the person you’re chatting with has to feel good. Whether you pass a compliment, make a connection (“Are you any relation to Frank?”), remember a name or just lock in and listen, your new acquaintance will more likely welcome your follow up than if you had just blazed through town looking for the highway.

I’d rather be a Bruce than a mongoose.

(*fictional name: A mongoose by any other name is still a mongoose.)

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Unleashing and harnessing

When I first met Ehon Chan several months ago I was struck by his passion and conviction. Within minutes I had a notepad full of ideas for The King's Kitchen.

Today Ehon was listed in Melbourne’s top 100 most influential, inspirational, provocative and creative people for 2011. A big area of impact was his online campaign to encourage young men in tough times to speak to someone, Soften the Fck Up. 

His question for leaders, “How are you unleashing and harnessing the full capacity of individuals that you work with?”

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We want to hear what is in our leaders’ heads

If it’s difficult I’ll do it now; If it’s impossible I’ll do it presently.

DG Bradman, 10 December 1928

I saw these words hanging in the home dressing sheds at the Sydney Cricket Ground the other week (I was pumped to attend a corporate team event there hosted by the Waratahs). Thinking about the Don, who wrote these words in an autograph book after his first test, I was inspired but also taken aback by the brazen confidence of the young man.

  As I’ve considered this quote more, two points make sense:

First, champions have a strong inner voice of determination and self belief.

Second, a leader knows what words to keep in his head, and what to say out aloud.

This week I watched a CEO address his team at a Christmas function and sadly he gave nothing of his inner drive. I know from behind the scenes that he has strong self-belief and purpose, but on this occasion his team saw none of it. What a missed opportunity.

 There is always the risk of saying too much, but by not verbalising a little bit of the inner dialogue, the bigger risk is that a leader gives his followers nothing to work with, and nothing by which to be inspired. We want to be lead, we want to be inspired: We want to hear what is in our leaders’ heads.

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People like being with people

I was reminded this week by an aging founder of a large family real estate business, that a business is ultimately a collection of people. 

He said, “I come into the office once or twice a week and actively disturb and annoy the younger staff. They’re so occupied by reports that they sometimes forget that customers are people, and people like being with people. I remind them that it’s their business and that they need to get out with customers and understand what to change for the business to last until they’re my age!”

At the heart of this comment is an inherent trust in the people of the business, especially the young. I like this quote below from Robert F. Kennedy (pictured) that takes the idea a step further. To him, young people must take the lead. It’s interesting to consider that this address below is to young baby boomers in 1966 who today are at the top of their fields or leaving the workforce. It seems that the most visionary leaders, like the aging founder this week, are just as inspired by these words today as when they heard them with young ears:

This world demands the qualities of youth: not a time of life but a state of mind, a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over the love of ease. It is a revolutionary world we live in, and thus, it is young people who must take the lead.