As I said in my previous post, I still had more to share from my time with Two Star Major General (retired) Dana Pittard. Allow me today to share two thoughts and a shift Dana went through.
Thought 1
“Positive optimism is a combat multiplier.”
When in a difficult situation maintaining your positive mindset with a choice to maintain optimistic is critical. Whether leading in a military situation, on a sports field, or in the board room there are times leaders get worn down by the battle. That battle is the fight for the vision.
I have heard it said that “vision leaks.” This occurs most often in those without complete buy-in to the vision. The leaking creates combat for the leader because of the challenge to continually share a vision that sticks. If the vision brings hope and others can see themselves in it, buy-in is stronger. This starts with the leader maintaining his or her appropriately optimistic perspective.
A Shift
While talking, Dana mentioned how early in his career he made a shift from focusing on position promotion to understanding the most important thing was leading people. He described leadership from two opposing perspectives:
Lead to get – this is a sprint mentality.
As a leader you are seeking to get as much as you can for yourself. Though outwardly the focus may be on the mission and others in reality you see the position as a stepping stone to something else you want to get.
Lead to lead – this he said is a marathon mentality.
As a leader you are focused on long term results. For example, you are building other leaders so when you are gone what you built lasts. You are building into and valuing people because they matter most.
Thought 2
During our discussion Pittard said:
“In order to have great growth you have to take great risks.”
After making this statement we discussed the difference between a risk and a gamble.
Risk – something we can recover from.
We evaluate the option and determine the possible loss and gain and ask if we can bounce back from it. Businesses do this constantly as they launch new products. They have researched and see a potential need, invest, launch . . . and at times fail, but it does not destroy the business.
Gamble – something we cannot recover from.
If you go to a casino and put half your savings down on red eight on the roulette wheel and lose . . . you lost. The casino is not going to feel bad for you and give you money back. If as a leader you make a decision that can lose it all, you are gambling and better make sure all the key stakeholders are on board and aware of what could be lost.
Whether a gamble or a risk, Pittard emphasized the importance of getting the right people on the team and having everybody on the team on the same page. Together you can work through risks and prevent gambling.
All three of these ideas have a common theme: mindset. Having a positive mindset, embracing risk, and maintaining the long view help us lead at a higher level. Do you get stuck in your mindset? How can you get unstuck? Would you benefit from someone helping you think into what has got you stuck? Contact me for a thirty-minute thinking partner session at no cost so I can help you think into your results. In the meantime, Lead Well.
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