studentlinc

Leaders Admit Mistakes

This morning, Google experienced a glitch in their system that caused all search results to come back with a "This site may harm your computer" on each one. Basically, it made you think that the entire internet was corrupted.

The entire situation lasted for about 40 minutes. The Google blog explains what happened...

What happened? Very simply, human error. Google flags search results with the message "This site may harm your computer" if the site is known to install malicious software in the background or otherwise surreptitiously. We do this to protect our users against visiting sites that could harm their computers. We maintain a list of such sites through both manual and automated methods. We work with a non-profit called StopBadware.org to come up with criteria for maintaining this list, and to provide simple processes for webmasters to remove their site from the list.

We periodically update that list and released one such update to the site this morning. Unfortunately (and here's the human error), the URL of '/' was mistakenly checked in as a value to the file and '/' expands to all URLs. Fortunately, our on-call site reliability team found the problem quickly and reverted the file. Since we push these updates in a staggered and rolling fashion, the errors began appearing between 6:27 a.m. and 6:40 a.m. and began disappearing between 7:10 and 7:25 a.m., so the duration of the problem for any particular user was approximately 40 minutes.

Thanks to our team for their quick work in finding this. And again, our apologies to any of you who were inconvenienced this morning, and to site owners whose pages were incorrectly labelled. We will carefully investigate this incident and put more robust file checks in place to prevent it from happening again.

Way to go Google! There was a problem that was caused by a simple error, a mistake. And the world knew about it. It would have been easy for them to cast blame on someone else or to try and hide the error and point at someone or something else. But that's not what happened. They owned up to it.

And now I like Google even more. Because they were honest, forthright, and worked diligently to fix their error. While I wasn't effected by the error firsthand, I am effected by their response. It shows good leadership to step in and own up to a mistake...and then work really hard to fix it.

Do you remember a few weeks back with President George W. Bush stood in front of the country and shared with us a few of the mistakes he felt he made? It made him more human, more believable, and let us inside his head a little bit. Whatever you think of the man as President, there were numerous reports that showed people softening toward Bush because of the candid and forthright nature of his comments, even though they clearly disagreed with his policies. When he said he made mistakes, it showed us another side that we hadn't seen very much of. We might have appreciated him more or better understood his rationale if he'd shown that side a little sooner.

If you're a student leader you are going to make your fair share of mistakes. It's guaranteed. Because you're learning - and some of your most valuable lessons will be from your own failures. Don't try to hide from them. Don't try to blame others or find some excuse. Own up to them and work to resolve them. You'll be surprised how much more people will respect you when you admit you've done something wrong instead of trying to hide it and cover it up.

Character - The First Base A Leader Must Run To

NOTE: The following article is taken from my leadership ebook, Touching All Four - Living Leadership One Base At A Time. You can download the ebook for free by clicking here.

“Life is built on character, but character is built on decisions. The decisions you make, small or great, do to your life what the sculptor's chisel does to the block of marble. You are shaping your life by your thoughts, attitudes, and actions...”

-Warren Wiersbe

Once a leader has stepped up to the plate and is clear about the direction he is headed, then it's time to move toward first base (put on your arm floaties kids because the next statement is taking us to the deep end).

First base is called first base because it is the base we must run to first!

Pretty profound, huh? First base reminds the leader that he cannot lead others until he first leads himself. Character is an inside job (closely tied to the compass, yet distinct because it doesn't reveal where a person is going as much as it shows the kind of person he is). This is the base where a leader deals internally with such things as integrity, honesty, ethics, fairness, disposition, ego and justice. These character issues will come to the surface and reveal a person's true self in times of crisis and tension.

Character is formed through the day-to-day decisions, choices and actions of a leader. First base is the first true test of leadership. It is here the leaders asks, "Can I adequately lead myself?" Everything else a leader does flows out of and is flavored by the answer to that question. If your compass tells you where you are going, then your character tells you and those around you who you really are at this stage of the journey.

Without getting too far ahead of myself, what I am proposing, no, insisting upon is that a leader must “touch” all of the bases each day while keeping his eyes on home plate. In addition, one cannot be effective in touching the rest of the bases until one has touched the “character” base first. The bases are in the order they're in - called what they're called - for a reason.

There are no easy shortcuts to effective leadership. It is an intentional process that requires people of good character. A person with good character doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll be a good leader. But a good leader must definitely be a person with good character.

Too many scandals have erupted. Too many leaders have fallen. Too many people have been left stranded in the vacuum of broken leaders. The reason? Leaders who failed to touch first base every day. Leaders who thought they could take a shortcut "just this once," and ended up taking an entire company down with them. Leaders who forgot that it's impossible to be an effective leader of others without first leading themselves.

In a word, character.

One example of a company bouncing back from a corporate, character meltdown at the top is Tyco. When Tyco's CEO was removed because of criminal actions, the company quickly looked to re-establish the ethical core of it's leadership and its organization. Tyco hired Eric Pillmore for the newly created position of Vice President of Corporate Governance. Through the following months, Eric worked with leaders around the company to create Tyco's Guide to Ethical Conduct. Tyco learned the hard way that who you are will speak more loudly than what you say. People are listening. Your followers are watching. The kind of life you live will make more of an impact than a speech at a stockholder's meeting.

To learn what each of the bases represents, please read Touching All Four - Living Leadership One Base At A Time.

Who You Are Speaks Louder Than What You Do

You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who [he thinks] can do nothing for him."
- Goethe

Time for a quick, personal story:

I remember when my company was looking to hire a new CEO. The hiring group brought in an individual for an interview and some question-and-answer time with us. Following that, some of us went out to eat for a more informal conversation. One of the first things I noticed about this individual was how he interacted with our server at the restaurant.

At first we thought he was just trying to be funny. But he only ended up coming across as pompous and rude. He had a demeaning tone as he spoke to her. What was interesting to me as I watched him was that he seemed to be oblivious to how he was coming across, both to the server and to us. He kept trying to be humorous, but at the expense of the one who was working so hard to take care of us at the table.

By the end of the meal it was clear - this guy wouldn't work in our organization. While he had such things as experience, skills, and a substantial resume, he didn't have the one thing that meant the most: character.

We cannot lead by simply stating what we can do and refuse to acknowledge who we are.

Leadership: You Know It When You See It

There are numerous examples of courageous leadership that took place before, during, and after the plane crash of US Airways flight 1549 into the Hudson River. Without detracting from any of the valiant efforts of hundreds of people, I want to point out the leadership of the plane's pilot - Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger.

As we find ourselves moving further away from the event and reflecting on all that occurred, we can see that this tremendous pilot was just "doing his job." But he did it in such a way that it drew the admiration, praise, and attention of millions. Not to mention the extremely grateful passengers and crew who were under his care at the time.

One of the newer voices on the internet in the area of leadership is Nina Simosko. I have started reading her articles on a regular basis. She writes about this tragic-turned-heroic event in one of her posts. What I really enjoy about her writing is her personal and practical summaries at the end of each post. In regards to this event, she writes:

Captain Sullenberger demonstrated astounding leadership qualities during this mid-air crisis.  He showed how a leader can keep an otherwise turbulent [no pun intended] situation where chaos might be expected, calm and orderly.  His calm, authoritative poise under intense stress with 155 people’s lives in his hands, created an atmosphere in which he was able to accomplish something never done before.  We should all emulate his behavior to lead with steadiness and ensure the well-being of those we are responsible for.

I spend a lot of time writing about what leadership is, why it's necessary, and how to improve in it. Ultimately, one can only write so much. It is in the personal examples - those who live it out in real time and real life - that teach us the most.

If someone asks you what a leader looks like, you can point to a man by the name of "Sully" who did what was required, found courage in the face of adversity, and was prepared for the challenge that he faced. Because of his leadership, people lived.

I'm also thinking of another "real life" example today. Martin Luther King, Jr. embodied all of the principles he spoke about. He was a man who took an idea and moved it into the realm of possibility. Because of his example and effort and LIFE, we live in a better world. Some of us have yet to realize how much the memory and mission of the Martin Luther King, Jr impacts the historic moments that we will witness tomorrow on the steps of our nation's Capitol. The two are linked: the leadership of one is tied to the leadership of another.

"Now, I say to you today my friends, even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: - 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.'"

- Martin Luther King Jr., Speech at Civil Rights March on Washington, August 28, 1963

In Leadership: Character Counts #5

As a student leader (or any type of leader), your character is the foundation of your leadership.

#5 - KEEP YOUR PROMISE.
Being trustworthy is a key component of good character. If a student leader makes a promise to someone - keep it, fulfill it, and follow through on it. Don't make a promise in the moment that can't be fulfilled in the future. It would be better to not have promised anything in the first place. Trust can be broken in an instant. It will take a long time to build it back up.

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Taken from the Studentlinc Core Leadership Training (SCLT) Lesson on Character. You can download the complete lesson here. To find out more about the SCLT, click here.

In Leadership: Character Counts #4

As a student leader (or any type of leader), your character is the foundation of your leadership.

#4 - DON'T SHY AWAY FROM HARD WORK.
Leaders must be willing to get their hands dirty. Hard work, especially the sweat-blisters-manual-labor kind, shows that a student leader is not "above" the most menial tasks. Hard work is an opportunity to get in and get it done with those whom a leader works with. It will inspire others to work hard. It lets people know that he will do what everyone else needs to do to accomplish the group's goals.

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Taken from the Studentlinc Core Leadership Training (SCLT) Lesson on Character. You can download the complete lesson here. To find out more about the SCLT, click here.

In Leadership: Character Counts #3

As a student leader (or any type of leader), your character is the foundation of your leadership.

#3 - YOUR WORDS AND ACTIONS NEED TO AGREE.
People in leadership will often joke, "Do as I say, not as I do." This one relates to #1 but comes at it from a different angle. If a student leader instructs her followers to do their work with excellence, to be honest, to live in loyalty to the vision and cause of the organization, she must be willing to model that for them in her own life. A sermon is most effective when it's displayed in the life of the one giving it.

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Taken from the Studentlinc Core Leadership Training (SCLT) Lesson on Character. You can download the complete lesson here. To find out more about the SCLT, click here.

Tony Dungy - Role Model Leaves Winning Legacy

If we're going to talk about leadership on this blog, then we have to talk about Tony Dungy.

Tony Dungy recently retired as the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts. He steps down having achieved a great deal in his illustrious football career. In reflecting upon his timing for stepping down, Dungy was quoted in USA Today saying:

"I won't look back and think that I could have done anything more, that if I'd put more time in, maybe we'd have won one more game. I think I did all that I could do. I think our coaches and players did all that we could do. The Lord blessed us with one (Super Bowl win), and that's one more than a lot of people win."

I love this quote. As Dungy steps down from his leadership position, he doesn't have any regrets. And you know what else? He doesn't stop being a leader either (you don't need a position to be a leader).

As you consider what's left of your student leadership year, are you preparing to step away with no regrets? When the time comes to leave (and everyone leaves) will you look back and say that you did everything you could do?

Perhaps one of the greatest measurements of success is the feeling that occurs when everything is over and you know that you gave it your all and left everything out on the field.

In Leadership: Character Counts #2

As a student leader (or any type of leader), your character is the foundation of your leadership.

#2 - BE THE SAME PERSON IN PRIVATE THAT YOU ARE IN PUBLIC.
Leaders are often tempted to put on a public "face" - to appear a certain way to their followers that's different than who they really are. This is called being "two-faced." The best way to overcome this temptation is by being authentic. People want a leader who is REAL - one who is consistent in both public and private settings.

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Taken from the Studentlinc Core Leadership Training (SCLT) Lesson on Character. You can download the complete lesson here. To find out more about the SCLT, click here.

Studentlinc Lands On AllTop!

Studentlinc was recently awarded a spot on the premiere site, Alltop.

Alltop is described as an online magazine rack for popular topics. Studentlinc was selected for their leadership page. Alltop will provide readers with the links to my last 5 posts. The leadership page contains links to numerous high profile leadership blogs and websites. I am honored to reside alongside such prestigious company.

You can visit the Alltop Leadership page by clicking here.