One of the fallacies that too many people believe is that one must have positional authority to lead. I have heard it too often when speaking to protégés, “What do I need to do to set myself up for a leadership opportunity?” When asking that question, nearly all are quick […]
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Experimenting with 360 Degree Feedback
Life is an adventure and WE have every opportunity to both succeed and fail as WE try new things, experiment with new ideas and create opportunities to both improve ourselves and those around us. Life is easier if WE stay inside our comfort zone, do the things WE are told […]
Little League Baseball – The Second Time Around
Over the last month, I have been reintroduced to Little League Baseball. My observations of the very same situations from the perspective of a parent, as opposed to that of a child, are so very different! I have no reason to believe (and recent conversations with my father confirm) that […]
Implementation: We’re Getting Better
Though spending a few days in Orlando (to include “The Happiest Place on Earth”) celebrating my son’s birthday was clearly the highlight of the week, the most surprising was the two hours I spent on Monday before the drive attending Navy Tier 2 Training regarding Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT) […]
Heirarchy of Needs
In the wake of a recent post about Loving What You Do, I have enjoyed a few off-line discussions on the topic. What I found interesting about those who chose to engage me in conversation on this particular subject was that each of them did, in fact, love what they […]
A Second Grader’s Vantage Point
Though I spend a good portion of my days with a second grader, I don’t find myself in a room full of them very often. Over the last two weeks, I have had two opportunities to do just that. Earlier today, I was one of a handful of chaperones for […]
Football Fans and Product Loyalty
The Super Bowl will soon be over and with it the beginning of far more productive weekends for me. Admittedly, I spend more time watching football than I should. I consider myself a college football fan and fantasy football has given me reason to pay at least some attention to […]
True Vacation Requires Delegation
I write this as we fly from Sacramento back to Pensacola after a wonderful time spent with Family and Friends. It was a special adventure for many reasons and the greatest was that it was a true vacation, far more than “Taking Leave” or “Visiting Family”. One of my many […]
Please Don’t Focus on the Retention Rate
Earlier this month, I had the privilege of re-enlisting another valued member of our team. In this case, the venue was just as unique as the Sailor…we were on the roof of our building. As unique as the venue was, this Sailor’s willingness to repeatedly ask “Why?” and live his […]
Respect and Gratitude
Undoubtedly, the best part of my job is interacting, sharing ideas and learning with fellow members of the NIOC Pensacola Team. One of many mechanisms to ensure we get the opportunity to exchange ideas, perceptions and experiences is by requiring everyone who joins or leaves our team to individually converse […]
The Delete Button
Last Friday, a great time was had by all at our Command Holiday Party. Our Holiday Party Committee did a great job creating an opportunity for all of us to have some good fun with some great people! It was especially gratifying to be able to meet so many of […]
Giving Ourselves Permission
I grew up the son of a (now retired) police officer and, as you might imagine, he and my Mom created a rather specific environment in which to nurture my brother and me. As children, my brother and I would often times contrast the specific rules under which we lived […]
Pace Matters
Two weeks ago, I enjoyed a nice telephone conversation with a colleague where I pitched him on how we (OUR Command) were going to create additional value for our existing customers and at the same time posture ourselves to significantly grow our customer base. He and I had a constructive […]
The Means is the End
Like so many others, I have spent too much time in my life chasing what I interpreted to be the end goal. It might have been a sports trophy, a diploma or a specific qualification. No matter what it was, my eyes were fixated on the prize and view along […]
Focus on Shortcomings and Watch Strengths Atrophy
Two weeks ago I had the pleasure of attending my second-grade son’s parent-teacher conference. When considering the standards of measure our school has chosen, I left the hour-long session feeling very good about the school, the teacher and my son’s performance. I use the preceding caveat because I recognize that […]
The Diversity Box
Earlier this week a colleague was kind enough to share some very insightful feedback on a selection process in which few have meaningful visibility. Within his feedback, I was struck by a statement regarding the role of diversity in the selection process. Though he was very careful to clarify diversity […]
Mentorship, Sponsorship and Favoritism
Mentorship – A personal developmental relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps a less experienced or less knowledgeable person. The focus of mentorship is on the personal and professional development of the individual, and just about anything that helps that individual to improve is time well […]
Teams Failing Leaders?
As I look forward to witnessing another good friend realize the career milestone that is Command, I am reminded that it has been less than two weeks since the Navy relieved our 13th Commanding Officer (CO) this year. It stings whenever any CO gives the Navy reason to fire him/her, […]
The “C” Word
Just like every other Weekly Operations Brief at NIOC Pensacola, I witnessed something new. The difference last week was that my observations had little to do with the subject matter and everything to do with the words chosen to communicate the progress since our last brief. For the first time […]
Commuting Dilemma: Fun Trumps Work (For Once)
As mentioned in an earlier post, my family very much enjoys the nomadic lifestyle. Once we are notified of an imminent move, we begin picturing life in our new home with new friends and enjoying new adventures. (That is not to minimize the adventures, friends, and memories we created in […]