Effective Leaders Don't Ping!

 

I’m going to assume that you’re familiar with the word “ping.” I suppose the next closest term to that is “freaking out.” Whichever term you prefer, Effective Leaders don’t do that.  A critical trait of an Effective Leader is the ability to remain calm, especially when all hell breaks loose. I’ll, again, assume that you know what THAT term means. If not, ask someone senior to you and count your blessings. An Effective Leader practices that meme that’s so familiar that starts with, “Stay calm,” and often describes an event that most of us don’t want to stay calm about. But how does one stay calm in the midst of assumed chaos? Here are some tips in the form of questions to ask yourself BEFORE you freak out. BEFORE is critical, by the way.

What do I know? We make decisions based on the information we have. Before making rash decisions or statements, assess what you know about the event. Ask trusted colleagues to tell you the truth. That may include your followers. They may know more than your fellow leaders. Leave emotion out of it. Just the facts, Ma’am. (Google that.)

What don’t I know? Once you’ve assessed what you know, what DON’T you know? Again, it will probably serve you to ask others. Expand your circle so that you don’t get the same information from the same people you asked the first question of. There’s often more than one perspective on the same event. Objectivity is key. You probably don’t want to ask someone who’s pinging what happened.

Who knows? Again, your fellow leaders or colleagues will probably have a different view from your followers or other bystanders. You want to make the best decision possible. You also want to know who did what. Don’t accept opinions. What was seen, not presumed.

What’s best? Having assessed as much information as you can gather, what’s best for the team, the organization, or others affected by your guidance or decision? Remember that there may be some who don’t agree with your decision, but they don’t have the information, nor gone through this process, like you just did. 

WRITE IT DOWN! Ok, you may not know how to write if you’re a young leader, no disrespect intended. Capture it on your iPhone so that you can go back and review all the data you have to make the best decision. You may have to go through the process a few times, depending on the severity of what happened.

Do stay calm. Be as objective as you can be. Do these things as quickly as you can, but no quicker. Back in the day, there was a deodorant commercial with the tag line, “Don’t ever let them see you sweat.” That’s good advice. Stay cool and calm. Be systematic about how you make decisions, and you’ll be able to control yourself from getting emotional and pinging. Don’t do it.

 

Until next time, be GREAT! You ARE! HEIRPOWER!

bob vásquez!

When Do We Quit?

 

I’ve been watering and nurturing three plants in my backyard since spring began here in Colorado. I can’t tell you when that began because the seasons in Colorado are haphazard at best. We’ve already had winter and autumn this summer. Like they say, If You Know, You Know.

 

It's September now, and the seasons are in the midst of changing again. Soon, it’ll be cold, and I won’t even think about watering those plants. I’ll probably get rid of them in a few weeks. They’ll have outlived their value. Maybe….

 

A few years ago, I nurtured a plant all summer long. It began humbly, but through my efforts and its perseverance, it eventually blossomed into a beautiful plant. Until fall. Fall usually hits Colorado abruptly. That year, it did. All of a sudden, my plant stopped growing and soon died. Not willing to surrender completely, I kept the plant in my garage all winter. A few months passed. One morning, when it had gotten almost warm, I noticed that plant in my garage. It was beginning to revive itself. I don’t know that I’ve ever been happy about a plant recovering, but I was this time. I immediately began re-nurturing it. And guess what? It came back with full force. Within a week or two, it’d regained its nature, and by spring it was beautiful again. I, of course, took credit for its health.

 

You may be wondering what this has to do with leading. It’s almost natural to give up on things once we’ve decided that they’ve outlived their value. Even people. But when do we truly know that that’s the case? As leaders, do we give up on our followers after they’ve reached a plateau, at least in our view? Do we throw them away and get new ones next season? I think that happens more than we realize. Joey had so much potential. I provided him with every resource that I could. He grew. He excelled. And then, one day, he just stopped improving. I replaced him with Dorothy, who, like Joey at first, was an unstoppable dynamo. 

 

Maybe we shouldn’t quit nurturing our followers. Maybe they, like all of Nature, reach a point where they need to revive themselves. Maybe we should accept that and keep nurturing them, not as hard, but hard enough to keep them alive through the revival period, so that they can come back in full force. 

 

When do we quit on our followers? I say, NEVER! You never know when that person, whom you hired because of their potential, has reached that potential. Keep nurturing them. They may be about to blossom. Don’t give up on them! Their best is yet to come!

 

Be GREAT! You ARE!

 

HEIRPOWER!

 

Chief bob vásquez!

The Need to Succeed

 

I hope you’ll make time to read a book by Viktor Frankl titled, Man’s Search for Meaning. It will open your eyes to many things you hadn’t thought about before.

In the introduction, Frankl writes that “success must not be pursued, it must ensue.” The word, ensue, if you’re not familiar with it, means that it is a result of something. When we pursue, we set our sights on that thing and if we’re “truly focused” that’s what we’re engulfed in doing. When something ensues, it’s almost a serendipitous conclusion that’s based on behaviors and actions that affect others more deeply than the conclusion itself.

I’m going to go out on a limb and state that all of us want to succeed. The important questions are at what and how? I recently saw a poster that read “Great leaders don’t set out to be a leader…they set out to make a difference. It’s never about the role - always about the goal.” I’m not sure who said it, but I think that’s what Frankl meant as well. The goal, or success, being making a difference.

Leading requires passion. Effective Leaders are passionate about helping others empower themselves to become who THEY can be, not what the “leader” wants them to be. Another great quote I recently came across says, “The first thing you should know about me is that I am not you. A lot more will make sense after that.” Again, an unknown author.

If your goal or your purpose, your measure of success, is how many people you’ve turned into you, or a semblance of you, that’s not success. Success in leading is when a person becomes who they were meant to be and you, somehow, helped them become so.  

My life’s purpose is to help others achieve theirs. Not mine. I know that my purpose may not be everyone’s. It took me decades to figure that out. I encourage you to consider that even if you don’t agree with someone else’s purpose or mission in life, it’s okay. As My Brother, Dave Campanale, taught me, get over it!

Whether you’re leading at work or at home, figure out what your followers dream of becoming, respect them for it, and help them out as best you can. The world needs all of our successes, not just the ones we consider right. As Pope Francis said, “Who am I to judge?”

Real success is making a difference. That difference is in helping others be themselves.

An Alternative to Feedback!

I’ve always admonished my followers to present an alternative, or ten, whenever they present a complaint. I’m not complaining. Okay, maybe, but not to you or anyone in particular, mostly to, or about, our culture. So, here it goes, but I have a solution….

     Feedback sucks! Yeah, I said it! And you’ve thought it. Even the word itself is demeaning. Think about it. Who do we feed? Those who can’t feed themselves. I can feed myself. I’m pretty sure you can, too. Don’t feed me. Especially, stupid thoughts or ideas that aren’t founded in truth. You know what I mean. And BACK! As in feed…back. I don’t want to go backward. I want to keep moving forward. Don’t you? Now, I’ll admit that looking at how you did things before and assessing how you can improve them now or in the future are valuable, but don’t dwell on the past. Learn from it, but keep striving forward. And I don’t know ANYONE who provides feedback appropriately. Most people, especially those who consider themselves leaders but aren’t, are afraid to be honest with their followers. That’s why they wait so long to tell you what you did wrong and how you can make it right. You know I’m telling you the truth. Alous Huxley said that “we shall know the truth, and it shall make us mad.”

 

    So, what’s my solution? I call it P.I.A. It stands for Personal (Professional) Improvement Advice. Before I break it down, let me give you an overall perspective. Isn’t the intent of what we call feedback really us giving or receiving Personal or Professional Improvement Advice? 

 

    I’m going to almost disagree with a teaching from one of my mentors, Don Miguel Ruiz. Don Miguel is the author of The Four Agreements, which, by the way, is a GREAT book. You should read it. His second agreement is Don’t Take Anything Personally. He’s referring to how we accept advice and feedback (ugly word). Not taking things personally is incredibly difficult for me, and maybe for some of you. Everything we do is personal. For years, one of the most popular buzzwords in our culture has been “ownership.” That’s personal. I almost appreciate the word “ownership.” I do appreciate the meaning. The gist of the meaning, I believe, is that we take responsibility and accountability for what we do and how we do it. Owning who we are by what we do produces our identity. We all have one. Is it what we want it to be? If we take ownership of it, we can create the right identity. Effective Leaders are consistently striving to improve themselves and their followers, which is the second part of PIA. 

 

    Isn’t the intent of feedback to help someone improve? It should be. It isn’t always. I’ve seen too many instances of a person giving someone feedback just to make the receiver feel bad, or to demean them, thinking that it will make the giver superior. It never does that. There’s huge value in helping someone improve. But that takes some mastery of what it is that should be improved. And it also takes some assessment of the reason the person isn’t better to begin with. Most of all, it takes empathy to understand the circumstances of the behavior or action needing improvement. It takes work. Do the work, and then you may provide advice. But you have to share it appropriately.  

 

    Key to providing or receiving advice so that it helps us improve is trust. Have you ever had someone you don’t trust give you advice? How effective was that? Probably not very. One of the characteristics of trust is purpose. As I just noted, if your purpose for sharing advice is to make you look better, it won’t work. If it’s to help that follower better themselves, there’s a better chance it will work. Since you probably haven’t attended my Building Trust seminar, let me tell you that people know pretty quickly whether or not they can trust you. It may take time to build a truly trusting relationship, but the first impression is often accurate. When providing advice to someone, keep in mind that your experience is not their experience. How many times have you heard someone say, or maybe you’ve even said it, “Been there. Done that.” The truth is that you’ve NEVER been there nor done that exactly as they have. NEVER! The world is constantly changing. What you both experienced is not the same. Practice empathy, then share advice if they want it.

 

    I’m still fine-tuning my PIA concept. It’s always personal, even when it’s professional. We all seek to improve our lives in some way. Sincere advice intended to help someone empower themselves to develop their identity can be powerful. I’m convinced that the concept of Personal (Professional) Improvement Advice is a lot more effective than the F word.

    Until next time, 

                    Be GREAT! You ARE!

                                ¡HEIRPOWER!

                                        bob vásquez!

The Person in the Mirror....

It really is all about you! How do you see yourself? 

I recently read a quote about seeing yourself in the mirror. The idea, I guess, is that the mirror will show you who you really are. WAIT! The image in the mirror that I look into is backward! 

Have you ever read something or watched something on the news that really ticks you off? Are you unlike me, and can shrug it off quickly, or does it affect you, maybe even influence you for a while? I, too often, let things bother me for longer than I should, and I probably, okay, for sure I do, take it out on those I live with. So, TURN IT OFF! Don’t read crap! Don’t listen to the news! Get off of social media! There are a lot of good books and websites you can read that will lift you up to become your best self. I’m trying to practice what I preach by listening to some great sounds produced by truly creative people, usually called musicians. I’m trying to create positive energy by listening to and reading positive stuff as opposed to all the negative stuff that I’m bombarded with daily. I know that garbage in, garbage out! Or worse, garbage in, garbage stays! What you see daily is what you’ll eventually become.

Seek the good in the world. There’s a lot of it. I promise! Smell the roses! It’s empowering. Hang out with great people and, in turn, help others become greater than you are! 

Back to that mirror. I’m convinced that mine magnifies the truth. I’m really much thinner than it reflects. No, really! The mirror doesn’t really show you who you are; your actions do. And those actions are the product of your mind and heart working together to produce the real you. How do you see yourself? If you see yourself as a dirtbag, you will become one because you will manifest those traits in your behavior. If you see yourself as a Shining Star with the potential to accomplish whatever you undertake, you will do so, or come a lot closer than the former. Here’s the truth…the Creator set you on this earth to accomplish the things only you can achieve. You can choose to not be your best, I suppose, but what a waste! 

This is the day that you can accomplish more than you ever thought. But you have to envision yourself doing it. Don’t look in the mirror, look into your heart. What one thing can you do today that will fulfill your life’s purpose? DO IT!    

Until next time, Be GREAT! You ARE!

            ¡HEIRPOWER!

bob vásquez!

 

 

If At First You Don’t Succeed….

 

Do you remember the old saying, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again."? The meaning of that phrase was “Don’t quit. Keep trying.” Here’s the deal, though. We usually perceive that phrase to mean keep doing what you’re doing until it works. Well, sometimes it doesn’t. Stephen Covery taught me that “If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll keep getting what you’re getting.” If that’s working out for you, GREAT! Keep doing it, but if it’s not, don’t keep trying again. Don’t force it.

 

I was honored to serve as the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Commander of the 92^nd Air Refueling Wing in Spokane Washington, under the leadership of Brigadier General Gary Voellger. What a great leader! The wing was preparing for a major inspection. We did a lot of the right things, but there was this one process that we just couldn’t make work. As we often did in those days (probably hasn’t changed), when a process didn’t work, we did it faster and harder. Force it until it works. Get a bigger hammer! During a senior staff meeting, General Voellger asked about that process. All of the senior officers at the table related to the general why it wasn’t working, and that we’d tried and tried. He asked a simple question that changed everything: “Have you tried something else?” It’s like the heavens opened up. No, we hadn’t. We were going to work harder and faster instead, by God. That was the way.

 

Dr Covey taught that if at first you don’t succeed, find out why, develop a better process, then try again. 

 

Maybe things have changed in the past 40 years, and I’m not telling you anything new. But maybe this simple consideration will change everything. If it does, you’re welcome!

 

Be GREAT! You ARE! HEIRPOWER!

 

bob vásquez!

 

 

The Most Important Thing in the World!

In my Power of Values workshops, I ask participants if they have values. They always answer yes. I ask them to tell me what they are. Crickets…. Most people really don’t know what their values are. They don’t even know what the term “value” means. It means “what’s important.” I always get surprised looks when I share with them that my highest value is ME! OMG! That’s sacrilege! How selfish! GET OVER IT! We’ve been brainwashed into thinking that serving others is the most important thing we can do. NO, it’s NOT! Taking care of ourselves is the most important thing we can do. We cannot give what we do not have. If we don’t take care of ourselves, we’re no good to anyone!

 

I had a friend. I won’t tell you his name because Dave may not appreciate it. He was Deb and my bodyguard at our basketball games. He protected us from terrorists. Me, mostly from officials when I yelled at them. One season, Deb and I missed Dave after not seeing him at several consecutive games. We asked his sub if he was okay. She told us that he’d had a heart attack, but that he was recovering well. OH, CRAP! We hadn’t heard but were concerned for him. A few games later, he was back! Deb and I were grateful to see our friend again. He was smiling! That was good! After big glad-to-see-you’re-okay hugs, we got to talking about what had happened to him. He acknowledged that he’d had a heart attack. “I’m doing well now, though,” he told us. “I’m now on a diet and exercising regularly.” NOW? I didn’t say what I was thinking since it didn’t seem appropriate, but I was thinking, “Maybe you should have done that BEFORE you had a heart attack?!”

 

Hindsight is always twenty-twenty, you know. But we can attempt to practice FOREsight and maybe Insight, so-to-speak.

 

In staying with my admonition to take care of ourselves FIRST, the foundational area of our humanity is the physical. If we don’t take care of our bodies, nothing else matters. There’s a point in our lives where that becomes critical. Actually, it’s ALWAYS critical. We just don’t realize it or often neglect it. Now, let me tell you, I don’t always practice what I preach. But I try. 

 

I’m writing this before you wake up. Here, shortly, I’ll head downstairs to my home gym to work out. I work out six times a week for 80 minutes each time. My regular exercise program isn’t geared toward losing weight, although I wish I could, but more toward maintaining my fitness. I’m so grateful to my friend Dave because he’s often my inspiration to work out. I don’t want to have a heart attack before I start taking care of myself.

 

I’m no expert, but I’ve read plenty on physical fitness that encourages us to work out at least three times a week, twenty to thirty minutes per session. Here are a couple of suggestions if you have trouble getting going: Listening to music helps me INCREDIBLY! Sometimes, I get into the music and don’t even realize that I’m huffing and puffing. It’s more like dancing on that elliptical. I watch videos while I pedal away on that bike-that-goes-nowhere-fast. Again, I get into a zone that makes time go by quicker. Find a Workout Buddy if that helps. There’s an app for that. 

 

My overall point here, again, is that we have to take care of ourselves FIRST, and the first way is through physical fitness. That also includes diet, which I’m terrible at, as well as rest and sleep, which are different. Rest, for me, is solitude and meditation. I do it as often as my Apple Watch tells me to. I told you that there’s an app for that. Although many of my friends don’t believe I sleep, I do. Six hours. That works for me. And when I sleep, I sleep well. Deb would attest to that.

 

Do your best to stay physically fit. It’s the most important thing in the world! In your world. Don’t wait. Start now! I’m heading down to my gym. Gotta take care of myself so that I can take care of others, including you!

 

Until next time, Be GREAT! You ARE!

 

¡HEIRPOWER!

bob vásquez!

 

Happy Interdependence Day!

Independence Day! Fourth of July!  Words that conjure up visions of neighborhood barbecues, family reunions, hometown parades, afternoon concerts in the park, fireworks and…you get the picture!  Great ways to celebrate!  Celebrate what?  Independence?  Yes. Historically, Fourth of July celebrations commemorate the anniversary of U.S. independence, but few of us really think about that as we enjoy the day and the long weekend.  Do you?

 

What I think about on this most important day is celebrating interdependence!  When we use the term “United States,” we usually think of a country bordered by the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans on the east and west and by Canada and Mexico on the north and south.  Geographically, that is correct.  However, what’s really most important about the United States is its internal makeup.  People!  People of diverse backgrounds and cultures that somehow accept each other, for the most part, and interact, combine their efforts, and become one nation.  

 

Do you remember the concept of the melting pot?  It was the idea that someday all of the different cultures represented in the U.S. would combine into one.  I refer to that idea in the past tense because I’m not sure anyone subscribes to it anymore.  Not too many years ago, another concept evolved using the illustration of the salad bowl.  The idea of the salad bowl is that it takes many different individual ingredients to make up a healthy dish.  Each of which is important to the whole.  You can have a salad without some of the ingredients, but it won’t taste the same, nor will it maintain its health value.  Such is the culture of the United States.  People who call themselves African Americans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, Italian Americans, Irish Americans, and the list goes on, each have their own individual histories, traditions, and cultures that, together, make us one people. We call ourselves, and each other, Americans.

 

There is nothing that any of us can do on a daily basis that isn’t somehow dependent on someone else to do their part.  What’s made the United States a great nation is that we’ve accepted each other’s differences and have built on them.  As Dr Stephen Covey said, “Unity is not sameness, it’s complementariness.”  He went on to challenge us to “celebrate the differences!”

 

As we celebrate Independence Day, and the freedom that comes with it, consider that the greatest freedom is the opportunity to appreciate the many different contributions our neighbors and coworkers have made to helping us enjoy the life we lead. Be grateful for that.  We’re all different, but we’re all the same.  We’re free because of what we do for each other.  Think of this day, the Fourth of July, as Interdependence Day! 

 

Isn’t this a GREAT day to be an American?!

Power!

 

Clench your fists. Go ahead, I’ll wait. Look at them. THAT is what many “leaders” think power is. Having control. Being able to tell people what to do. Being the “leader.” Let me ask you…how much can you give with clenched fists? Don’t you clench your fists when you’re about to FIGHT someone? Is that how a leader leads? By fighting? Doubtful.

 

Now, spread your arms wide, hands open, palms facing up. I know, it’s freaking out folks around you. Keep them wondering…! NOW, how much can you give? All you have, right? Isn’t that more powerful? As one of my mentors, Don Miguel Ruiz says, “You cannot give what you do not have.” And you certainly can’t give with closed fists! But with open arms and hands, you can give what’s most important for a leader to share…Don Miguel would tell you that it’s love!

 

I’ve suggested several times that the most important thing a leader does is care. That’s the truth! And caring is the manifestation of love. Ask Don Miguel!

 

I’ve read books and heard speakers talk about how to manage people. You already know that there’s a HUGE difference between managing and leading. Managers manage things and processes. Leaders empower people to lead themselves! Control is required to make a process work. Caring is required to help people grow! You can’t use management techniques to lead and expect them to follow. Ain’t gonna happen!

 

I served in the United States Air Force for 50 years. Although it’s a bit different in the civilian world, I’m convinced that the measure of a military leader’s ability to lead is based on whether or not her followers are willing to die for her. Maybe it’s NOT that different in the civilian world. Will your followers do ANYTHING they can to protect you? If so, it’s not because you fought with them. It’s because you cared for them.

 

Tony Robbins says that power is the capacity to act effectively. It’s the next level of what dictionary.com says. Who has the capacity to act effectively? Who has power? EVERYONE! If you claim, or aspire, to be a leader, you have to help others empower themselves so that, together, you can accomplish things beyond your separate dreams. As Stephen Covey taught me, 1+1=3 or more.

 

Open your arms! Welcome others and their diverse thoughts! Embrace them! Physically and spiritually! And celebrate their differences. Every one of us is different! But we all want the same things. As Simon Sinek says, we all want to be valued and valuable. Pick the way to do that…with clenched fists or open arms. Only one way will work. Your choice…! 

 

Until next time, Be GREAT! You ARE!

 

                       ¡HEIRPOWER!

bob vásquez!

 

We Don’t Understand the Struggle!

 

My Princess Number One, our first granddaughter, Nieves, and I were visiting my parents in New Mexico, as was our annual tradition. We stayed with Mom and Dad. They were Old School Types. In other words, they had no internet in the house. Nieves was about twelve at the time. Not having internet was driving her nuts! She couldn’t communicate with her friends back home. She had a phone, but no internet! How unAmerican! I was almost okay without it, but not quite. I decided to help calm Nieves down by taking her to breakfast at McDonald’s, where they DID have internet. As we walked into the restaurant, I was giving Nieves a hard time about her need for online connection. She shut me down quickly when she said, “Opa, you don’t understand the struggle.” I had no reply to her statement. She was right! I didn’t.

 

I’m not sure when it happens, but it does. We all evolve to a point where we think, usually say, “Been there. Done that.” But that’s not so. We’ve NEVER been here, nor done this. Life evolves constantly and, nowadays, faster than ever. 

            

We NEVER understand their struggle…our followers’ struggle. We barely understand OUR struggle. We don’t know what someone else has been through, or is going through, even if we’ve raised them. How many times have you wondered where “that” came from when your child surprises you with a “crazy” thought or behavior? Or one of your followers whom you had finally figured out. Yeah, RIGHT!

            

We don’t understand their struggle, whoever we’re trying to understand, or worse, control. The best we can do is practice empathy. Try to understand that they feel as they do. Don’t judge. You’re not worthy of that. Remember that their struggle is a lot different than yours, especially past struggles. The world changes constantly. To be an effective leader, you have to change, too. Seek to understand them before expecting them to understand you!

 

Until next time, Be GREAT! You ARE!

 

¡HEIRPOWER!

 

bob vásquez!

Discipline vs Punishment

 

There’s a difference between discipline and punishment! If you’re striving to be a leader, know the difference and strive for discipline.

 

We wonder why we have leadership problems in our culture, yet our perspective on developing followers is mostly based on forcing people to do what we want them to do. How’s that working for you?

 

When we strive to develop discipline, we tend to be more effective as leaders. Effectiveness, by the way, is simply getting what you want continuously. We want our followers to be great and do what they should do, even when we’re not around. That’s the sign of a good leader. The root of the word discipline is disciple. Now, I’m not proselytizing here, I’m just telling you the truth. A disciple is a follower. One who follows a leader to the degree of doing what the leader expects without being told. Now, discipleship doesn’t just happen. There has to be a reason followers follow a leader. The most powerful reason is that the leader cares. It may start with the leader saying he/she cares, but the power is in SHOWING you care! How do you show you care? The more you practice caring, the more your followers will follow you. Eventually, they’ll become your disciples. I, myself, am a disciple of several leaders, each of whom has, and many still do, shown me that they care. In MY language, which includes actions! 

 

One of the ways we “discipline” our followers is by making sure everyone pays for the indiscretions of a few, often, one. And, man, does that ever work! NOT! That’s PUNISHMENT! When that happens, and it does, the intent is that everyone will understand that we’re a team and that the actions of one affect everyone. We have to ensure that everyone does what’s right. You’d think we’d know better! Punishing everyone for the actions of one has never worked and never will. Sorry, but that’s the truth!

 

Now, I’m not advocating anarchy! What I AM advocating is that leaders, YOU, consider developing your followers into people who follow you for the right reasons, and do the right things even when you’re not around. That’s discipline. And that’s leading!

 

 

            Until next time, Be GREAT! You ARE!

 

¡HEIRPOWER!

 

bob vásquez!

 

Managing People is Puzzling!

 

I recently read an article titled, “Managing people is puzzling.” Two key terms in that statement: “managing” and “puzzling,” especially as it pertains to “people,” which is the third key term. I’m not very good at math. First of all, you can’t manage people. You can try, but you’ll fail. Managers manage and control things. People are not things. What’s puzzling is why anyone would see a group of persons, or people, as things. And you can’t use management techniques trying to lead people, which is what we say leaders do. The puzzling reference is puzzling if you have a Puzzle Mentality. Managers practice a Puzzle Mentality. Leaders create a Mosaic Mentality. Keep reading. I’ll get you to that soon.

 

            By function, a Puzzle Mentality requires that we, persons, fit a preconceived mold, a picture, a perception, or a vision based on someone else’s perspective of who we should be or what we should do, even how we should do it. That’s restrictive. It’s bounded by external perspectives and influences. It doesn’t allow for creativity or innovation unless it’s creating that preconceived vision.

 

            If you’ve ever done a jigsaw puzzle, you’ve probably used the box, the picture of what the puzzle is supposed to look like, so that it will guide you. The completion of that puzzle is limited to that picture. It’s restrictive. With that mentality, followers can only go so far. They can’t go beyond the boundaries someone else has set. It creates a “where do I fit in mentality.” What if you’re so creative, which is what we’re looking for in our followers, that you DON’T fit in? “Then, I’m out! I’ll find somewhere else to be me.”

 

            With the Mosaic Mentality, which starts at the center and works its way out, there is no mold. There’s a purpose, and each part, each person, creates their own part of the picture by applying what they have to offer to the big picture. There’s no preconceived picture, it grows continuously. It creates a “how do I fit in” mentality that becomes art, and that’s creative and empowering. It’s boundless. Each person creates the picture by applying their best part of themselves. That’s what most of your followers want. They want to be them, not you.

 

            The fourth and final key term in the statement that I shared with you at the beginning of this thought is “is.” I know that you’ve heard someone say that “It is what it is.” Well, actually, NO, It’s NOT!! It is what we make it. Managing people IS puzzling. DON’T! It doesn’t work! That’s what makes it puzzling and exhausting. Discard your Puzzle Mentality and develop a Mosaic Mentality that invites continuous growth. Every person on your team will appreciate you and will give you more…because they’re giving you themselves.

 

Until next time, be GREAT! You ARE! 

HEIRPOWER!

 

bob vásquez!

 

 

 

Winning!

 

Winning is great! But there’s something even better!

Several years ago, I was nominated for the title of Civilian Employee of the Year. Even though being nominated is a pretty cool thing, winning is better. But there’s something even better than that! 

One of the other nominees was one of my proteges. I was competing with someone I’d brought up and respected highly. He was one of my prize students, one of my Shining Stars. We talked before the winner was announced and offered each other congratulations and best wishes. We were both humbled and proud of each other’s accomplishments that year. 

Finally, the announcement was made. He won! You may not believe it, but I was truly elated! Yeah, I was still a competitive kind of guy, but not that much. In a way, we BOTH won. Immediately after accepting his award, he came over to me and thanked me and told me how the award was ours. “No,” I told him, ‘it’s YOURS and it’s well deserved. I was just there to support you in becoming your best self.”

There’s a scene in the movie Rudy where Rudy is carried off the field by his teammates at the end of the game. That happened to me. In a different way. And it was GREAT! In the middle of that scene, there’s a very short shot of Rudy’s mentor, the stadium janitor, Fortune, played by Charles S Dutton, where he’s beaming for Rudy’s accomplishments. That scene is the perfect depiction of how I felt seeing my protégé win.

It’s great to win. But what’s better is when someone you’ve helped empower themselves to be even better than you wins. There’s something magical about having helped someone reach their potential. That’s the ultimate purpose of being a leader. Not so much leading, but helping one of your followers get to where they succeed. I hope you feel that way someday, if you haven’t already. When it happens, you’ll understand. I call it HEIRPOWER!

Until next time, Be GREAT! You ARE!

¡HEIRPOWER!

bob vásquez!

Best If Used By!

 

I was hungry, so I asked Deb if she’d bought microwave popcorn the last time that she went grocery shopping. She replied that she hadn’t because there was still a rather large supply in the cupboard. As I moved toward the cupboard, she warned me to “check the date.”  She was referring to the “best if used by” date. The date on the particular bag I picked up was July 2023. This being April 2023, that gave the popcorn a little more than 90 days for it to be “best by.”

            

That got me thinking…do we humans have a “best if used by” date invisibly stamped to us on some part of our bodies? What if I only have 90 days to be my best? What would I have to do to achieve that?

            

My good friend, and mentor, Dr Dave Levy, makes me feel great every time I’m with him because, after sharing all of my goals with him, which I do every time we’re together, he always brightens up and proclaims that I don’t just say things, I make them happen! Well, I’m not as industrious as he makes me sound, but I do try to do all I can with the limited time that I have.

            

I happened to be cleaning out an external hard drive for my computer this weekend when I came across something that I hadn’t seen in a while. It was my obituary. Okay, that’s freaky, so let me tell you the entire story.

            

I was sitting at my desk at the office one evening when another friend and mentor, Lieutenant Colonel (now retired) A J Scott appeared at my door. As I stood up to greet him, he gave me the once-over, looking at me from head to toe. It seemed odd for him to do that, so I asked him what was up. “Chief,” he said. “I just got a call from a friend who told me he’d read in the local paper that Bob Vásquez had died. I immediately came down the hall to make sure you’re not dead.”

            

Evidently, someone with my name had died, not me (although I’ve been in front of some audiences when I was obviously dying). Anyway, I went across to the library to find the newspaper to see what my obituary looked like. Interestingly, the Bob Vásquez who had died was my age, had two daughters, and other similarities. I scanned that obit and I still have it.

            

You probably know that the purpose of that “best if used by” date is, according to the USDA (I Googled it!) is “to ensure that quality products are being served.” I, for one, am glad the USDA is looking out for me. Really.

            

That leads me back to my original question. Do humans have a date by which the quality of our service will expire? You know, we’re all on the same road. Every day we get closer to that “best if used by” date. Doesn’t it make sense that we do our best every day? Just in case!

 

I don’t procrastinate, I just plan everything for the last minute. But what if my “best if used by” date comes due sooner than I think, or want? As hard as it may seem some days, I’m making a commitment, right now, to give all I have every day, to be my best on a daily basis. Remember that saying, “You can’t take it with you?” We usually refer to money when we say that. Maybe we should refer to our best instead? 

            

I’m going to make myself a T-shirt that says, “Best if used by today!”

            

 

Until next time, be GREAT! You ARE! HEIRPOWER!

            

Chief bob vásquez!

 

Don’t try to change the world!

 

Changing the world is near impossible, but changing worlds is in your hands. 

 

I don’t want to scare you, but I do want to alert you to the fact that as a leader, others’ lives are in your hands. You have the power to affect how others live by the decisions you make daily. 

 

Now, back to my opening statement. The world is huge. And you’re not big enough to change it. Oh, you may change a tiny sliver of it, but that’s being optimistic. What you CAN change, or at least affect, is your followers’ worlds.

 

We all live in our very own world. Really. Think deeply for a moment. Each of us has our very own perspective of what the world looks like. And that world is different for each of us. We live within that perspective 24/7. Good or not so good. Maybe the reason that we love watching television and movies, maybe even reading, is because we can envision ourselves in another world for a moment. But at the end of the book, at the end of the movie, we have to return to reality. OUR world. Now, that can be good if we make good decisions. And it can be great if we make great decisions.

 

Your decisions as a leader will affect the lives, the worlds, of your followers. You may have a follower who lives in a negative world. A victim-centered world. Through inspiring, helping them empower themselves, you have the power to help that follower change his world, his life. That can be scary. Keep in mind that you can’t change them or their world. The best you can do is affect that follower’s environment so that he or she can change it themselves.

 

Let me correct myself. Maybe you CAN change the world by helping others change theirs. Maybe, by helping others realize their own potential, you WILL change the world. Maybe it IS possible. One of my favorite thoughts is “Think big. Start small.” If you aspire to change the world, begin by changing worlds. One at a time.

 

Until next time, be GREAT! You ARE! HEIRPOWER!

 

Chief bob vásquez!

They don't care!

 

It’s 30 March 1985. I’m on the golf course with a few friends. I’m actually playing fairly well. I’d only found three lakes this morning. I suddenly feel my chest hurting and my heart palpitating. It’s almost funny how something like that scares us into thinking even worse than what’s happening. Now, I’m the Acting First Sergeant for my unit. I gotta be tough! You know, the First Sergeant is the toughest guy or gal on the team. Let that seem as it may, I’m hurting. Almost panicking. But I hold my emotions close to my chest. (Yeah, pun intended.) We finish the round and we each head home. I don’t remember what score I got, but I do remember how I felt about what I was going through. You may be able to relate.

 

I have to get through the weekend before I can get to Sick Call. I ain’t going to the ER! No WAY! So, come Monday morning, I go to Sick Call and get seen by a doctor who runs some tests. Actually, a bunch of tests. I’d never been probed like that before. But I’d never had these symptoms either, which are pretty serious, evidently. Eventually, one of the last doctors I see tells me that it’s stress, or stress-related. I’m not sure how he came up with that diagnosis, but it’s what he says. What stress? I kick butt and take names daily! I’m not stressed! By what? By whom? I end up going to all sorts of therapy, usually falling asleep during those sessions. Didn’t help much….

 

What DID help was a five-minute conversation with my supervisor/friend/golfing partner, Dave Griffith. He was a Chief. Rightfully so. The conversation started with, “Sit down and listen….” He was such a quiet guy that starting the conversation like that threw me for a loop. But I complied. He shared his thoughts regarding the diagnosis, which I’d shared with him, and ended with what I found profound and I share with you if you’re in this same situation. What he said was, “They don’t care!” He suggested that maybe I didn’t THINK I was stressed out, but WAS. “What do you think about most of the time, Bob?” he asked me. “The troops!” was my obvious answer. He, again, reiterated, “They don’t care!” That may seem harsh to say, but he went on to explain that while I was investing my time and life thinking about them and how to help them, the thought of how I was doing didn’t even enter their minds. They had their own lives to live and got through them the best they could. They might even take advantage of my caring so much. Now, they may not realize that they were doing that, but they were. 

 

After listening to the Chief and getting my head and heart (yeah, another pun) around what he said, I realized that he was right. I didn’t stop caring less, but I trained myself to not care 24/7 and to do what I could without feeling guilty about what I could not do for my people. 

 

I say this often…if you expect to be an Effective Leader, learn to lead just a few folks at a time. I always suggest four. It’s a sacred number in my culture. If you can lead four who lead four who lead four, your effectiveness will grow exponentially. 

 

It’s not that they don’t care. They will when you have a heart attack. Don’t let yourself go there. Learn to control yourself. You can’t do everything for everyone. Do what you can. And take care of yourself, FIRST!

 

Until next time, be GREAT! You ARE! 

 

HEIRPOWER!

 

Chief bob vásquez!

 

Where’s the melody?

 

I’m a musician by training. I led many bands during my time as such. It really doesn’t take a musician to understand the importance of the melody of a song though. It’s what makes the song a song. It’s what you whistle while you work.

 

Whenever I rehearsed the bands that I led I tried to emphasize the importance of the melody vice the supporting elements like harmony, rhythm, and other parts of a piece of music. Notice that I used the term “supporting” for the other elements of a song. If the “supporting” parts of a song overpower the melody, you may not even recognize the song. 

 

Similarly, in order to have a cohesive, successful team, team members have to understand their place on the team at the time. Most of the members are supporting members and there’s one singing the melody, the leader. That may be you! Or someone else. You’ve heard it, even if you didn’t notice it, when all the members of a singing group are singing at the top of their lungs. They’re all trying to be the star. That never works. 

 

As the leader, especially as an Effective Leader, it’s imperative that you train your people to be supporting members. We usually call them followers. If you noticed, I mentioned that people have to understand their place “at the time.” At. The. Time. An effective team will be made up of people who know when to follow and when to lead, and to play that role as needed. 

 

I love hearing a singing group where the melody is right up front, and the harmony is barely there. The harmony and other supporting parts are important, but what’s critical is the melody. Where’s the melody?

 

Until next time, be GREAT! You ARE!

 

HEIRPOWER!

 

Chief bob vásquez!

 

Beginner's Luck

My friend, Wendy LugoSantiago, recently posted a very powerful thought on Linkedin: “Don’t be afraid to be a beginner.” There are two concepts that I think are important here. The first is “powerful.” We usually regard effective leaders as powerful. We assume that they have, even own, power. Sure…. Power is the capacity to be effective. We believe that leaders have power. Well, maybe. Maybe not! Who really has power? Who has the capacity to be effective? Everyone! Especially followers! The only real power leaders have is the ability to inspire their followers to follow. That’s powerful!

 

The other concept is “beginner.” We often think that great leaders know everything. NOT! The truly great leaders know that they don’t know. They know that they don’t know what they don’t know. They know how to lead with a beginner’s mind. They’re willing to learn and to inspire those under their charge who DO know, to lead. As THEY lead, the leader becomes the follower, which is even more powerful. Yeah. It’s a paradox. But life is a paradox.

 

Here’s the bottom line. Actually, it’s the TOP line. (Another paradox.) If you aspire to be an Effective Leader, be a beginner. Develop and practice continuous learning. There’s no way in the world that you can know everything. Someone knows something that you don’t. We usually call them our followers. And if it’s something that will make you and your team more effective, learn from them, and step back and let them lead.  

 

I titled this lesson based on another concept, “beginner’s luck.” If you’re already a leader, or you eventually become one, realize that there’s no such thing as luck when it comes to leading, especially others. It takes work. Sometimes, a LOT of work. But that’s what makes it fun. Especially when things work out. Thomas Jefferson said, "I am a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.” 

 

You want to be a PowerPact Leader? Inspire your followers to empower themselves. Don’t fear being a beginner. And work on creating the luck you’ll need to succeed.

 

Until next time, be GREAT! You ARE!

                        

                        ¡HEIRPOWER!

                                                                                      

Chief bob vásquez!