Play On

image: https://pixabay.com/photos/action-basketball-player-1869428/

How resilient are you? Would your team say the same thing?

So many times in life (and in leadership) I have been disappointed. Whether it was circumstances, scarcities, or troubling people, it felt easy to give up.

But even when the cards seem stacked against you -- even when defeat seems certain -- if you persist you will learn far more than you ever thought possible.

I remember a time long ago when as a high school coach for a middle school basketball team, drawing a bunch of inexperienced and un-developed players and doing my best to coach them beyond their perceived weaknesses into an enthusiastic team capable of embracing of who we were -- rank underdogs who were surrounded by supremely talented teams who always won more games than us until the playoffs came, the games mattered more, and somehow we managed to hustle our way to a trophy. It was fun, but just before it became fun it was a lot of hard and sometimes discouraging work.

When in your life do you remember overcoming the odds? When did you and your team rise to the challenge and find ways to prevail?

There will be many losses along the way. It is (although it shouldn't be) almost astounding how many defeats you must stack up to get to victory, and how fleeting that victory is. It can't be about winning and losing, because losing will win so often. It's got to be about how you play the game. It's got to be about giving yourself to a higher cause while also standing tall when that cause falls short.

Don't let defeat discourage you. Play on.

-- doug smith

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Roots of Their Own

What looks like the root cause of a problem may have roots of its own. Keep digging. The rush to solve may leave things unresolved. -- doug smith

Connect With Respect

It's the start of a better, deeper, more productive conversation. It's the small effort to make a big impression in establishing relationship. Connect with respect. You don't have to love the person you're interacting with (although, wouldn't that help?) but if you make the effort to demonstrate respect whatever you have to share will land with more credibility. It is a leadership strength. Connect with respect. Smile. Make eye contact. Listen. Honor customs, traditions, even organizational hierarchy. The choice of course is up to you. It's a very personal choice to connect with respect. If you make that choice, I think you will like the results. -- doug smith PS: I didn't expect to use a picture featuring a horse for this posting but when I saw it there was a deep feeling a respect showing. Action Step: Find a picture that represents respect for you and for a week, keep it close enough to look at it for a bit every day.

More Service Please

Would you agree that what we need is more service, not less? And yet, everywhere we look we see service slipping away, drifting into some lip-service pretending or worse yet, not even pretending. It is often a financial decision: you can have it nice or you can have it cheap. Over and over and over again people will choose cheap, even when that is not what they really want. We are better than that. You're better than that. I certainly hope that I'm better than that, too. If the level of service you provide depends on the payment you receive you are doing it wrong. Everyone deserves the very best service that you can possibly provide. -- doug smith

Angry Leaders Fall

It is scary to watch someone lose their temper. Yelling, screaming, slamming, isn't it all unnecessary? Calm it down. Breathe. Relax. If you burn too hot you burn out fast. - - doug smith

Enjoy The Outcomes

Every problem leads to an outcome. Some you want and some you definitely do not want. You're going to prefer the outcomes of the problems you solve. Don't you think so? -- doug smith

Instant Coach

Ask someone about their goals. You'll be doing them a favor. -- doug smith

A Sign to Learn

What's your reaction when you find yourself in conflict and yet you are absolutely sure that you're right? Do you dig in on your position? Do you redouble your efforts to convince everyone of your position? Or do you stay curious? Do you stay open to learning? The more certain I am that I'm right the greater the opportunity there is to learn. The next time you are absolutely sure that you're right try asking yourself -- what can I still learn here? It could change everything. -- Douglas Brent Smith

Healthy Leaders

How many eighty-hour work weeks do you put in? That's not meant to judge, but to ponder. I've put in plenty of eighty and more hour work weeks and while I don't regret any of them I know that they haven't all paid-off proportionately. It's possible to work so hard that you miss what's important. It's a frequent paradox that the longer one works the less productive they become. I've learned to tell myself: Take a break. Relax. Let it all come to you, flow thru you, and go on its merry way -- if only for a little while. Drink water, exercise, meditate, pray, and relax. Healthy leaders build healthy teams. Take care of yourself. -- doug smith

Get Started

Have you ever gotten resistance to a goal that you really wanted to achieve? Maybe someone told you that you weren't capable. Maybe someone told you that the goal was wrong for you, or unachievable. What do they know? Your goals are important no matter what anyone says. Get started when you're ready. -- doug smith

Who Defines Your Goals?

Maybe your goals are assigned to you from someone else. If you have a job, that's probably true about many of your goals. But in the end, isn't it really up to you? What you do, when you do it, how you do it, no matter how formalized the process you are still involved and deciding. You define your goals and you define when those goals are done. Finish what you started, or kiss that goal goodbye. -- doug smith

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