What a week it was last week..
On Tuesday I came back to the office and turned on the TV to watch a great run in the Melbourne Cup. Green Moon’s run and the jockeys exuberance after the race were inspirational.
Here’s an exercise..
LESSONS FROM GREEN MOON’S WIN
Let’s deconstruct what the winning jockey Brett Prebble said after the race..
“It’s a lifelong dream. I was very confident at the mile, then at the 1200m I thought the only thing that could get him beaten was his stamina if he didn’t stay the trip, but the feeling he was giving me at the 1200 was the sort of feeling you only get from very good horses. I’ve been very fortunate to ride some champions and he’s up there in the top 10.”
Where are the clues to leadership, winning and success in here?
Let me give you my thoughts.
- ‘It’s a lifelong dream‘ – The importance of a dream, goals, vision, what are we shooting for? What fires us up? What gets us excited about where we are heading? A powerful picture and movie of a bright future.
- ‘I was very confident at the mile’… The power and importance of confidence and a sense of certainty. The lack of doubt. Focusing on what needs to be done, not the problems. Seeing the road, not fearing the pot holes.
- ‘But the feeling he was giving me….’ – listening to, tuning into and magnifying positive feelings (especially in the middle of the race, the game itself. Using feelings as messages but not letting negative feelings overcome, overwhelm or overpower you in the middle of the race or match or sales meeting or presentation or interview or whatever you are doing ‘in the moment.’)
- ‘I’ve been very fortunate to ride some champions..’ – A sense of being fortunate, lucky, grateful for what has happened in your life. How, if you believe in the Laws of Attraction or Karma, a sense of good fortune leads to more good fortune. Feeling fortunate will lead to more good fortune.
But this isn’t even what I wanted to really write about this morning.
LESSONS FROM BARACK OBAMA’S WIN
It was lunch on Wednesday when I came back to the office, switched on the TV and watched Mitt Romney giving his concession speech.
Then, as I was chomping on my re-heated pasta, watching Barack Obama give his acceptance speech.
If you haven’t seen it here is the link CLICK HERE
Here is how it started..
OBAMA: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much.
Tonight, more than 200 years after a former colony won the right to determine its own destiny, the task of perfecting our union moves forward.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: It moves forward because of you. It moves forward because you reaffirmed the spirit that has triumphed over war and depression, the spirit that has lifted this country from the depths of despair to the great heights of hope, the belief that while each of us will pursue our own individual dreams, we are an American family and we rise or fall together as one nation and as one people.
Here is the link if you want to read the full transcript…
It was absolutely stunning..
LEADERSHIP — THIS IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE
It was probably one of , if not the, greatest speech I have ever heard….
It was vision..
It was togetherness..
It was pride in history..
It was build our bridges..
It was ‘roll up your sleeves – it’s going to require hard work…’
It was ‘together we can do it..’
It was humour..
It was tears of joy..
It was people..
It was heart..
It was family..
It was hope..
It was what anyone in a leadership position needs to do..
Bring vision… bring hope… bring togetherness… bring ‘roll up your sleeves…
Sure the cynics can say ‘they’re nice words but can he deliver?’
But, all plans start with intentions.
And the plans won’t work unless people are engaged, enrolled and inspired to be part of the plan.
Leadership is not just a title, it is a function.
It is the key determining function to how well a group of human beings combine and perform.
We often say ‘LEADERSHIP IS EVERYTHING….’
‘THE SPEED OF THE GROUP IS DETERMINED BY THE SPEED OF THE LEADER….’
‘THE FISH STINKS FROM THE HEAD FIRST…’
IT’S WAY MORE THAN THE BUSINESS CARD
Whether you’re thinking Steve Jobs or Bill Gates, Obama, Reagan, Blair, Roos, Goodes, Malthouse, Churchill, Ghandi, Lincoln, Patton, Barassi, Glendinning, Talbot, Cerutty, Hawke, Keating or Rudd, Guillard or Abbott, the group harmony, function or dysfunction, alignment, performance, focus, energy and results, are to a large extent, maybe even 80, 90 or 99%, determined by the leader.
If you are in a leadership position, you need to live up to the honor and the obligations of that position.
If people are looking to you for direction, inspiration, ideas, hope, positivity; then make sure you are giving it to them.
You can’t just have the position, you also have to live up to it.
Leaders lead by example.
Leaders are there first and leave last.
Leaders embrace, empower and at times look people in the eyes and hold them accountable.
Accountable to what?
Accountable to the standards and the code we have all agreed on upholding.
Sure, at times leaders slip.
We see that even great leaders have fallibilities.
But with great leaders we forgive them.
We forgive Churchill staying in bed all day and drinking whiskey a little too much.
We forgive Bob Hawke and Bill Clinton for their wandering eyes.
We forgive Steve Jobs for his yelling and his tantrums.
Why, because overall, they wanted great things for their people and their customers.
So what are the lessons in this for you?
You decide.
Let me know what you’ve got from this..
I’m off to lead my team in our Sunday morning water polo comp.
See you soon.
Have a great week.
