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Three Envelopes April 20, 2009

Posted by Chuck Musciano in Leadership.
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10 comments

According to the apocryphal story, a person is hired to replace someone who was fired for poor performance.  Excited about his new job, he arrives in the recently vacated office to find the desk empty except for three envelopes left there by the now-departed predecessor.  Numbered 1, 2, and 3, a short note explains that they are to be opened only when the owner has really messed things up at work.  Our new hire sticks them in a drawer and forgets about them.

That is, until six months later, when he really messes things up.  Facing a tough situation, he remembers the envelopes.  He tears open envelope #1 to find a slip of paper that reads, “Blame your predecessor.”  Perfect!  He concocts a story that pins the problems on the previous employee and deftly sidesteps blame for the issue.

Another six months go by, and again our friend is in trouble.  This time, the envelopes are fresh in his mind, so he opens #2.  “Blame your coworkers,” it advises.  He does, and once again avoids taking the fall for a problem he caused.

It should come as no surprise that six months later, he’s in trouble again.  Fortunately, there is still another envelope.  He opens number 3, to find one last bit of advice: “Prepare three envelopes.”

A person’s character can be neatly judged when we see how they handle mistakes.  We are all human; we all fail.  When confronted with that failure, our next move paints a picture of how we handle responsibility and blame.  Do you step up and own the problem, or do you reach for an envelope?

Good people step up.  They acknowledge the problem, accept the blame, and work doubly hard to correct the problem.  It is a sad commentary on our world today that most people are pleasantly surprised when you do this.  While you may not be able to completely rectify the problem, you will earn some measure of respect by taking ownership of the issue.  The problem may not be fixed, but your character is intact.

Bad people step away.  They look to blame anyone except themselves, and will sacrifice anyone to protect themselves.  Blaming predecessors and coworkers will work for a while, but you will eventually run out of envelopes.  The problems remain, but you will not.  And your character will be irreparably tarnished.

We all have three envelopes available to us, every day.  We’ll all make mistakes at some point.  When that happens, don’t reach for an envelope.  Own it, fix it, and move on.

Your Next 10,000 April 17, 2009

Posted by Chuck Musciano in Leadership.
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2 comments

In his book Outliers, Malcom Gladwell explores why people are really successful.  I’ve included the book on my reading list, but can save you the full read by cutting to the chase: Luck and timing.

OK, to be honest, there are a few other factors that make the book worth reading.  One of them is the magic of 10,000 hours.  Gladwell found that, regardless of the field, it takes about 10,000 hours to get good at something.  Violin, hockey, computer programming: whatever the skill, the very best put in 10,000 solid hours of practice before achieving real success in their field.

This holds true for leadership as well.  For years, I’ve noticed that job postings for management positions often require a minimum of five years management experience.  Hmmm.  Five years is equal to 10,000 hours of management experience.  While not explicitly stating it, people have intuitively recognized the 10,000-hour rule for a long time.

Getting your 10,000 hours takes commitment, no matter what your field of expertise.  My concern is not with the 10,000 hours you’ve managed to amass at this point, but with the 10,000 you’ll need to get to the next stage of your career.

Are you content with your current position?  Do you aspire to take on more responsibility and to accomplish more things?  Most people, no matter how happy they may be, desire to do more and contribute more.  Among those with such aspirations, some actually have a plan to get there.  But I fear that even among those with a plan, few have realized that they need to amass 10,000 hours to be really good when they get there.

If you are a technical contributor who aspires to be a manager, how are you accumulating 10,000 hours of management experience?  If you are a team leader who hopes to lead larger groups, how are you getting your 10,000 hours of managing other managers?  If you are a CIO who hopes to take on other operational responsibilities, how are you getting 10,000 hours of finance or operations experience?

10,000 hours is a lot of time, especially when your current job occupies 2,000 hours of time each year.  How do you make this happen?  Even if you put in an extra 4 hours a day, it could take 10 years to get those hours!

First the good news: you probably don’t need the full 10,000 hours to make a career transition.  But you do need some experience, probably on the order of 2-4,000 hours, to make a successful change that will let you get the remaining 6-8,000 at a faster pace.  Even so, 2-4,000 hours is a big investment of time.  How do you do it?

First, simply recognizing that you need it is a good first step.  Armed with that daunting realization, you can develop a formal plan to put in your time.  While some people have jobs that allow them to take on additional responsibilities independent of their main commitment, most of us do not.  In that case, you need to seek out opportunities to combine your current job with your desired job.  The technical contributor should look for project management opportunities, while the team lead could seek out ways to lead their peers.  C-level executives can look for cross-organization openings, and CIOs in particular can often find ways to get deep exposure to other parts of the company. And anyone can volunteer in a local charitable organization; that’s a whole different kind of leadership experience that would serve anyone well.

It won’t be easy, but success never is.  That’s the other side effect of the 10,000-hour rule: only those who really want it badly enough will get the hours.  Everyone else will fall by the wayside.  And that is one of the other big lessons of Outliers: success comes to those who work really hard for a long time.  Are you up to it?  Are you an outlier?

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Bad Salesman! April 15, 2009

Posted by Chuck Musciano in Leadership.
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9 comments

I get a lot of cold sales calls.  I can only take a few, and most get either redirected or ignored.  I know that sounds harsh, but that is the reality. My people get a lot of sales calls.  They can only take a few, and most get ignored.  I know that sounds harsh, but that is the reality.

If you are a salesperson, and you are cold-calling me or my team, and we do not return your call, you have your answer.  That may not be the most polite way of conveying the answer, but please, move on.  We’re busy and you’re busy.  Spend your time with a more lucrative customer.

I have tremendous respect for salespeople and how hard their job is.  I really appreciate the great salespeople that partner with me and make me successful.  I get really frustrated when a bad salesperson makes the rest of them look bad.  Like the other day, for example.

Out of the blue, I get blind-copied on an email sent to my systems manager from some salesperson.  In it, the salesperson is complaining about how my manager won’t make time for him, and how we could be saving so much money if only he would return the salesperson’s call.  The inference, of course, is that my manager is negligent and that I need to step in and do something about it.

In reality, I am pleased to see that my manager has been ignoring an incompetent salesperson.  He scores brownie points, and the salesperson (and their company) is banished from consideration by me for the rest of my career.

What kind of salesperson actually believes that this is an effective sales technique?  Are they sitting back in their office, confident that this will break things loose on our end and result in a big sale?  If so, they are sadly mistaken.  When faced with a choice between some anonymous outside party and a member of my hardworking team, who do they think I am going to pick?

What kind of leader would take action based on this email?  Clearly, someone must have at some point, to give all these bad salespeople some hope that this tactic would work.  Let’s put it this way: those leaders are not making smart choices.  Imagine how demoralizing it is for an employee to be taken to task by his boss based on an anonymous outside comment by a salesperson!

Salespeople who resort to this kind of tactic give all the good salespeople a bad name.  Leaders who respond to it make the rest of the leaders look bad as well.  Let all make good choices, no matter which side of the sales process you are on.

My Mentor: Dr. Evil April 6, 2009

Posted by Chuck Musciano in Leadership.
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2 comments

It is often said that if you want to succeed in any position, find a mentor that will provide crucial advice and valuable feedback.  Choose wisely, and you get a significant advantage in finding success, no matter what your goal.

As leaders we need to find mentors.  Learning by example makes sense for leaders, so it helps to find leaders we admire.  My top choice for a leader that offers tremendous learning opportunities: Dr. Evil.

You may snicker, but the arch-nemesis from the trilogy of Austin Powers movies is a textbook case study for all leaders.  Consider:

  • Dr. Evil has a strong second in command.  His lieutenant, Number Two, quietly provides advice and guidance when needed.  He also keeps things running in Dr. Evil’s absence, keeping the Evil franchise successful even when Dr. Evil is cryogenically frozen for decades.  The lesson? Every leader needs trusted team members to ensure that the day-to-day tactical work gets done.
  • Unfortunately, Number Two is so effective he winds up making more money through legitimate enterprises than Dr. Evil ever would through evil, their core business.  As you would expect, this kind of deviation from the strategic plan angers Dr. Evil.  The lesson? Stay true to your vision, and don’t be distracted by lesser achievements.
  • Dr. Evil thinks big.  He has huge plans to rule the world, and repeatedly sets in place grandiose schemes to accomplish his goal.  Unfortunately, he often does a poor job of conveying his vision to his minions, yielding mixed results and some level of disrespect from his team.  His lack of direct knowledge of market conditions as it relates to appropriate world ransom amounts is a continual frustration.  The lesson? Develop a clear vision and communicate it effectively and repeatedly.  Ensure your vision is aligned with external events as they develop and change over time.
  • Even with a clear vision, leaders must sometimes compromise.  Dr. Evil is no exception. Although his plan to destroy Austin Powers using sharks with “lasers” affixed to their heads is stymied by the sharks being considered an endangered species, Dr. Evil is willing to settle for intemperate mutant sea bass.  The results should be the same, although with less dramatic flair.  The lesson? Know when to compromise so that your ultimate goal is still achieved.
  • Dr. Evil has a difficult relationship with his teenage son, Scott.  Dr. Evil’s lifelong dedication to world domination has left little time for effective parenting, and it shows in his day-to-day interaction with Scott.  The lesson? Although good leaders put in long hours to be successful, always make time for your family.  As rewarding as our jobs may be, the joys of family are priceless.
  • Dr. Evil knows that great success only comes with tremendous willpower and perseverance.   He never gives up, no matter what the setback. In spite of demoralizing events early in his life and later failure at the hands of Austin Powers, Dr. Evil stays focused on the evil tasks at hand.  Often, he is the only one who believes that he will succeed, keeping his head when those around him are losing theirs. The lesson? Never give up, and provide a calming influence to those around you during tough times.
  • As befitting a villain of his stature, Dr. Evil has a series of enviable lairs, including a volcano, a moon base, and a submarine shaped like himself.  While most leaders today do not enjoy such swank surroundings, we can still create an environment that suits our needs.  The lesson? Create a work space that enhances your vision and supports your team, allowing them to be more successful.

Tongue in cheek? A little. Valuable lessons?  You bet.  When you are confronted with your next leadership challenge, ask yourself, “What would Dr. Evil do?”  The answer may be more useful than you think.

Big Stretches April 1, 2009

Posted by Chuck Musciano in Leadership.
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2 comments

Early in my management career, I ran the Unix portion of a large corporate data center.  There were close to one hundred people there, managing all the things you need to run a big, multi-vendor environment.  It was fun, challenging, and educational, in more ways than I expected.

It came to pass that one of the senior managers had a new opportunity and would be moving on to a different part of the company.  As was the tradition, there was a send-off event at work, which was always structured as a roast of the honoree.  I had never been to one before, as I was still relatively new to the group.

Imagine my surprise when the Director of Operations pulled me aside and told me that I would be one of the speakers!  I was expected to get up and speak for three or four minutes, telling jokes and entertaining the crowd.  Refusing was not an option, so I started putting together a routine of sorts.

People who know me know that I can speak to large groups at the drop of a hat.  I’ll get up and speak even if you don’t have a hat.  For me, “staff meeting” is just corporate-speak for “captive audience.”  However, “speaking” and “entertaining” are two very different concepts.  I enjoy the former; the latter is in the ear of the listener.  Coupled with being the new kid on the block, this seemed to be an overwhelming challenge. In short, I was terrified.

But I did it.  I got up, started talking, and they actually laughed!  No one was more surprised than I was.  And the benefits of the experience extended beyond overcoming extreme stage fright.  I became accepted into the group, developed more relationships, and became a more effective employee.

Later, I asked my director why he asked me to speak.  After all, he didn’t know me very well, and he was taking a bit of a risk.  He told me he thought I could step up to the challenge and that I would do a good job.

For me, it was a big stretch that had a big payoff.  Because my boss had faith in me, I showed I could succeed in a difficult assignment.  That success translated into other opportunities that helped me and the organization.

When is the last time you gave one of your people such a stretch opportunity?  When did you roll the dice and let someone really go beyond their comfort zone?  This is incredibly hard to do.  A few posts back, I talked about letting people solve their own problems; that is hard enough for some leaders.  Now we’re talking about letting people take on big, public challenges with a high-risk/high-reward payoff.

Can you do it?  Do you have people ready for that challenge?  Are you mature enough as a leader to let them try and support them if they fail?  It’s a test of their mettle to see if they can hit that stretch goal; it’s a test of your leadership skills to make it possible.