Lessons from Ballroom Dancing

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I was required to view Strictly Ballroom for a class I took awhile back. You've got to watch this movie! I would NEVER have picked up this film at my local video store! First, I don’t like ballroom dancing. Second, I normally wouldn't gravitate toward low budget, Australian films that are tagged “romantic comedies.” However, I really enjoyed this flick. Baz Luhrmann did a fantastic job of portraying real issues we have (or will) deal with, utilizing characters I’ve known personally for years! Here's a taste of Luhrmann’s message using three statements from the film:

• “IT WAS THE DANCING THAT MATTERED!” (Scott’s father, Doug Hastings)

Scott has spent his life preparing to win the Pan-Pacific Ballroom Championship. My question for Scott during the first part of the film would be, “Who are you dancing for?” In leadership, we need to ask ourselves, “Why do we do what we do?” Are we dancing/leading to GET something? If that’s our motivation, we’ll be sorely disappointed once we GET what we think we want. GETTING anything will never fill our heart. Doug was telling Scott, “Follow your heart.”

• “I CAN’T GIVE ALL THAT UP FOR A DREAM!” (Mrs. Hastings)

Scott’s mother had herself painted into a corner. She couldn’t live her dream with Doug and dance with him as they followed their hearts. They had to consider their future and dance the right steps. In the mid-1980’s, I sold a company I owned to a large corporation and managed it for them as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the parent firm. The attorney for one of my clients became a good friend. I’ll never forget the day he described the planning retreat he and all the other partners of his large law firm participated in. They all discussed where they saw the firm in 10 years. Then, they shared where they saw themselves personally in 10 years. Not one of the partners saw themselves remaining at the firm! As they took their turns sharing, they all said in one form or another, “I don’t want to be practicing law. I WANT TO DO SOMETHING THAT MAKES A DIFFERENCE!” Some wanted to teach, others wanted to volunteer their time and skills at a community agency. Sadly, though they all had a dream they wanted to follow, none of them felt they could step out. They explained they had mortgages, car payments, children headed for college, and their families had grown accustomed to the standard of living their salaries guaranteed. They were trapped and couldn’t live their dreams!

• “WE LIVED OUR LIVES IN FEAR!” (Several characters in the film)

Don’t we all want to live lives of SIGNIFICANCE? I think we all want to MAKE A DIFFERENCE! I believe we’re wired to accomplish great things. So why do we struggle? Why do so many of us allow ourselves to get trapped on a hamster wheel, pedaling furiously, but going nowhere? We feel trapped because we are AFRAID to do something different! We are afraid of taking a risk because we might lose. I’d like us to ask ourselves, “What do I lose if I never RISK?” What great accomplishment in our future do we lose if we never step toward it? If the organizations we lead are afraid to risk, we’ll never learn the lessons that only come with trials and challenges. As somebody has pointed out, look at the technological advances our society made as a result of placing a man on the moon. In 1960 when President Kennedy said we’d do it within the decade, it was a huge RISK!


AFTER YOU WATCH THE FILM: So how did Baz Lurhmann’s film strike you? What did you learn as you watched the Hasting's struggle with following their heart versus “dancing the right steps?” As we seek to make application in our lives, is it ever right to lead in a specific direction simply because some expect it from us? How do we strike a balance between exercising sound judgment and taking a risk? How can we determine our motivation for leading? Are we leading to GET, or are we motivated to serve others as we lead? How can we tell the difference? Sorry to be so lengthy, but like I said, I LIKED THE MOVIE!

Leadership & Life Lessons (and GOLF!)

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Our first ever LeadersHeart golf event was a great time! It was different than any charity golf event we'd ever done. First, it wasn't a fundraiser (although thanks to generous friends we were able to cover our costs while subsidizing the entry fee for younger participants!). Our intent was to put on an event that was centered on quality golf while bringing together seasoned leaders with younger, emerging leaders.

It was so satisfying to watch it all take place! We enjoyed a great continental breakfast and gathered to introduce our four leadership priorities. Thanks to some tremendous local pros (hats off to Dan Meinert, Dave Hoce, and Mike Broderick!) we started the day with three great sessions covering putting, short game, and full swing. They did an amazing job of providing quality golf instruction AND tying it all in to our leadership priorities! After lunch together, we played 18 holes using a unique format that made for some excellent golf while walking through some great leadership exercises. Everybody had an excellent time. Here's a note I just received from one of the participants:

"The Leadersheart golf event was fantastic! Set on a beautiful course in St. Augustine, FL we learned key leadership principles in between golf clinics that beginners to seasoned golfers learned from. Learning how to lead from the heart with relationships and vision for others was stressed as vital components to successful leadership. Being able to connect with other leaders with a transparency and willingness to learn and teach is a rare opportunity. I can’t wait for the next event!"

We'll be conducting more quality Leadership events in the future -- stay tuned for more info!

Management Leaders Turn Attention to Followers

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The Wall Street Journal's online version has a great section called, Lessons in Leadership. There are some good articles and videos on a variety of leadership related topics. I'd encourage you to check it out.

I was recently scanning the section and ran across an archived article from December, 2007. The article, "Management Leaders Turn Attention to Followers," is especially interesting in light of current events. For example, Iran's government rigs an election and then tightens the censorship screws to prevent the truth from flowing in or out of the country. Innovative citizens AND foreigners smash the controls with a tidal wave of information via several social media outlets!

Here's a great quote from the Journal article:

"...companies should look for passionate employees, keep them informed and give them room to carry out useful projects."

Isn't that great? REAMS of information have been developed on the topic of leadership. From my perspective, we're at the point where very little can be said that hasn't already been said. However, most of the leadership teaching has been aimed exclusively at the people in the top layer of organizational charts. Very little attention has been focused on the rest of our team members. Even the Journal article I reference above calls the rest of the team, "followers." I believe that term has an extremely negative connotation. This approach assumes the top tier of the organizational chart is made up of "leaders" and the rest of the chart is comprised of "followers." The tidal wave in Iran should clearly show by now that EVERYONE has the capacity to lead.

How are you being called to exert greater leadership today?

Forgiveness is Healthy

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Image via Wikipedia

Here's a couple quotes from an article entitled, "Forgiveness is Healthy:"

Hard science can back up the religious tenet of forgiveness, even in the most extreme settings. "Forgiveness is not just a state of mind," Jina Moore writes for Search magazine, “it’s a physiological reality. And, scientifically speaking, it’s good for us.” Researchers have found that grief, anger, and anxiety can all be mitigated through forgiveness, and can the act lead to better health for both the forgiver and the forgiven.

“Forgiveness and reconciliation are work,” writes Moore. The person forgiving needs to both empathize and decide—consciously or unconsciously—that the person asking for pardon is deserving of forgiveness. In fact, in terms of the health benefits , Moore writes the science shows “it is as important why you forgive as that you forgive at all.”

I'm so glad that God didn't wait for me to be "deserving" before DECIDING to forgive me! This truth is one of the foundational principles of Christianity. He forgave because He loves me -- not because I was deserving.

Also, don't you love it when science arrives at a conclusion that Scripture pointed us to thousands of years ago? Secular science has determined it's healthy to forgive! Remember the words of the prayer our Lord taught us: "Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us."

So what's that got to do with leadership? Leaders set the tone for organizations. Leaders who forgive with no reservation help create healthy individuals AND healthy organizations. Let's also clarify: to forgive completely doesn't mean I put someone in a position of responsibility that has betrayed trust and/or abused their authority. However, I can forgive and set people free from the chains that bind them to their past failures. Many times people who have tried and failed turn out to be strong team members when I help them move forward with the valuable insight they gain from hard knocks.

The Apostle Peter denied he even knew Christ! After Jesus restored Peter on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, Peter became the foundation Christ built his church on. Jesus turned Peter from a failure into an apostle with 1) a question, 2) Peter's answer, and 3) Christ's command:

1. "Peter, do you love me?"
2. "Lord, you know I love you."
3. "Then, feed my sheep!"