Delegation & Leadership

The key to successful delegation is to focus on the end result utilizing a team approach that doesn't mandate how tasks are done. It starts with a clear picture of the desired result, a team built schedule to achieve it and an understanding of the business goals to be met. In some instances it's a team of two -- leader and contributor. Schedules should always consist of measurable elements and for longer team efforts group milestones. No schedule is perfect but can still be successful if slips are identified early so adjustments can be made. It's most important that the expectations for the result are managed. In a well thought out plan some tasks take longer and other are done faster allowing adjustments to meet the original delivery date. There are times when meeting a schedule can be accomplished by adjusting expectations while still creating a positive result that can still meet the goals of the project. All projects should have milestones and agreed upon due dates.

Micromanagement is the ultimate no no. There may be many ways to accomplish some task but only a few are flat wrong. Any contributor will zero in on one of those ways based on experience and personal preference -- it works well for them. The big beginner obstacle in team leadership is not to impose the way that is your preference. With few exceptions any method that achieves the desired result should be accepted. Some global constraints need to be applied to all for a quality result in a team effort to insure for example a consistent user interface. Agreement on these team project rules should be negotiated up front in the development process. Contributor buy in and task ownership yield the best results.

How does one become American

1. Be proud of and swear allegiance to American
2. Attitude that embraces equality with unity -- not superiority or inferiority
3. Embracing those things which are common -- knowledge, beliefs, profession, patriotism
4. Respecting America's laws, society and values while accepting the benefits of America
5. On occasion sharing our culture with an openness to others' cultures so that we may learn to embrace and celebrate our differences -- everybody's Irish on St. Patrick's day (green is the color of the day but there are no Irish flags)

How to fail

1. Disrespecting American law and sovereignty -- embracing groups focused on hate and anti-Americanism
2. Segregating one's self with language whether it be not learning English or adopting terminology that other races aren't allowed to use -- the N-word
3. Inventing or adopting culture to exaggerate and create differences -- gangsta' lifestyle
4. Demanding entitlements and preferences based on events that occurred long before either of us was alive -- defining one's self as victim -- abandoning personal responsibility
5. Demanding respect without giving it -- one is only respected after first respecting others

Freedom isn't mine -- it's ours

The prevalent self centered definition of freedom misses the value of freedom as the glue that unites us as a nation. Freedom is the ability to say and do as I please but, with the responsibility to consider the impact of my actions on others. The gimme gimme of entitlement is a divider perverted by the false mantra of victim hood as a substitute for personal responsibility. Gimme gimme isn't freedom -- it's greed.

An Expert is:

All to often in business, an expert is the person assigned and a guru is someone that did it once. I judge as professional someone that has:

• A confident positive attitude devoid of cockiness and arrogance.
• High ethical standards.
• Time to fully understand the clients needs.
• Regular communication and status reporting.

And perhaps most important of all will:

• Deliver a quality product on schedule and budget that meets or exceeds client's expectations.

Question for the day

Why doesn't Congress understand democracy isn't a government of, by and for the politicians?

American

Racism is a comfortable place for those without the desire or confidence to take charge of their lives. It's easier to blame others than to make something of yourself. There will always be people that are negative, ignorant, lazy, racist or perhaps evil. When one decides they aren't equal, they never will be. They facilitate racist stupidity with stupidity of their own. To be equal you need to be an American above all. Equality is a blending of people measured by their individual contributions and attitude. Equality is more a function of attitude than law. When someone calls themselves a hyphenated-American they draw attention to physical attributes or genealogy which have nothing to do with the person they are. Does the hyphen say you're more or less American? I'm inclined to think less. I have to question the motives of anyone who places their race before allegiance to their country.

While on this subject I thought about physical things that uniquely identify me as American. First there's my passport that verifies my citizenship and second my prized military dog tags. Granted it's possible for a non-citizen to enlist in the military but you can't be more American than being willing to die for this country. My Greek ethnic origin doesn't appear in either. They both cry out in unhyphenated terms American.

For those not familiar with dog tags, they have your name and serial number to identify you if you die in battle. They also have your blood type to save your life if you're wounded and your religion to save your soul with the last rights. Ethnic origin and sexual preference are conspicuously missing -- American is what matters. Despite some history prior to our times, this band of brothers are all equals -- Americans all.

Marketing -- When I finally got it

Early on I thought a feature list was marketing. "My dog is bigger than your dog" never really sells anything. Communicating tasks performed is a leg up but still very "me too." Self anointed fuzzy words like "new, improved or innovative" are overused and without substance. If I hear anybody from Microsoft talk about "innovation" again I'll barf. How can a product be innovative if it doesn't even work? What's missing here? The answer is "emotional essence" that speaks to an inner desire.

I remember vividly the day I finally got it. In a speech Paul Revson gave, think Revlon, he said "I don't sell cosmetics, I sell hope." Talk about understanding why someone buys your products -- Wow. Your sales proposition doesn't have to be product capability based. It should deal with need or desire. Every time I develop a marketing campaign or have any public communication that piece of wisdom jumps forward in my mind. If I haven't achieved that level of insight I'm just not done yet -- grade incomplete. It's not always easy to reach that insight. Like chess you need to think a number of moves ahead. In this case moves your customer will or wants to take. Clients frequently describe a problem not by what the problem is but instead what they think is a solution. It's hard to get at the real issues but it's well worth the effort. Finally we must think like our client's customers to find the "emotional essence" that cinches the sale.

Change

I love the adventure of change and the learning opportunity it provides. Always I move forward -- changing to rather than changing from. That is why I find the politics of change very questionable. Nothing is 100%. How can people accept that everything from one party is evil and from the other is good. Vote for me because the other guy is all bad just isn't logical. Change for changes sake is rarely a good thing. If an argument to change is based pure negativity we instantly know the argument is faulty. There is always room for change but not when the need for it is manufactured with misinformation and victimology.