If You're Green You'll Grow, If You're Ripe You'll Rot...

View fullsize

We all have experiences that affect us in many different ways. Some very good, and others very challenging, but both have their place and both have an impact that we can learn from. I wanted to share an interaction I experienced earlier this summer that left me with a very deep and positive impression that there are still so many good people in the world. And hopefully, it will influence you to do something nice for someone else!

It was a Saturday morning, my son and I were at Tim Hortons in line for coffee and some breakfast. My son Nathan is autistic and he loves his coffee and breakfast sandwiches from Timmies! He has limited speech and usually repeats what others say and when he knows coffee and breakfast is on the way he is super excited! Ahead of us were two ladies waiting in line, one turned around and said to Nathan, "what's your name" and Nathan repeated, "what's your name", with a big smile and a laugh. I mentioned to the lady about Nathan being autistic and how he loves his coffee and that started the conversation flowing. The line ahead was big, and the wait was long, so this was a perfect time for us to chat and get to know one another.

When the time came for the two ladies to place their orders, the one lady turned around and said, “You and Nathan go ahead of us and I would like to buy. No limit, you let Nathan get whatever he desires”. I was dumbfounded, I had just met this person in line, and we had chatted for a short time period. Of course, I said no we couldn't accept this, and we truly appreciated the offer.

Then she said words I will never forget, "I can tell that you are a loving father and a great person and Nathan is a very special boy who has brought so much joy into your life. I really want to do this, so please let me". I was speechless, and emotional, and graciously accepted the offer.

This experience made me think about people who care and still see the importance of being grateful and doing nice things for others. But it also made me realize that you get back in return what you give out.

First impressions, building relationships, taking the time to have a meaningful conversation with strangers all play such an important part in this chaotic, crazy world we live in. I hope this inspires you to do something nice for someone else. I also hope it makes you think about the energy you give out every day and if that energy is leaving behind a positive impact on others. It's your choice on the impression you choose to leave.

If you’re green you'll grow, if you're ripe you'll rot. Never ever stop learning, growing or giving. Oh yeah, the breakfast order came to a whopping $26.00! Nathan fully understood the lady when she said, “No limit, you let Nathan get whatever he desires".

Who's your Runner?

View fullsize

Ask yourself this question. If you were to line up every leader that reported to you, would everyone of them measure up the same? Basically repeating the same routine day after day, following the same path and conforming to what they have been instructed to do. If you answered yes, then it's time to find and develop "your runner"!

The runner will be the leader who stands out from all the others. This leader is passionate and motivated to challenge the status quo, they think differently. This leader knows the value of healthy conflict. They know without tension you have no friction and without friction you have no movement. The runner is the one who is out-front of all the other leaders. This leader has drive and commitment always striving to make things better! Once you find your runner your job is to promote and grow the great things this leader has to offer.

People are all different and that's what makes our world so interesting. Your runners will also be different as they will vary in personalities and offer different skill sets. This is what any good leader wants. The one thing that all runners have in common, is their attitude! They have a passion and willingness to partner with their teams and make your organization a better place.

Some key things to look for in a runner. They present themselves as optimistic while understanding the importance of being realistic, they promote vision and clarity. They embrace healthy conflict, they know good decisions come from respectful debate. Their energy is always positive, people want to be around this person because it feels good. They respectfully push people to fail faster, knowing that failure is an opportunity to learn and improve and recognize that fault finding is easy and promotes negativity.

Don't wait, start looking for your runner today. And when you find this person don't get in their way, support and unleash them! And watch the others try to catch them!

Victor or Victim...the Choice is Yours

Every one of us has a choice to make when we wake up in the morning and start our day. This choice is simple, it’s yours, and you are in complete control of it. Granted some people may face bigger challenges than others, however life will always have ups and downs and that is something that will not change. What you can change is your outlook and how you overcome those challenges. The choice we can all make every day is choosing our attitude.

Think about if for a second, when you wake up and the weather is bad, does that lead to negative thoughts, that then become negative conversations with others? Maybe you had to get up earlier than you normally would, and this turns into complaining to others about how tired you are. Or do you look on the bright side, start to think about all the great things that could happen that day and the days to come? This is what I call the Victim/Victor attitude and it truly is a choice that is made by you and only you.

What fascinates me is the number of people who truly have no clue that they portray a victim mentality. There are varying degrees of this, where some really stand out and others may not. When I facilitate workshops and train to this material it quickly becomes evident as to which category people in the class fall into. Typically, the victims in the class are shocked that this is how they are viewed and how they conduct themselves.

How can you tell if you are in the mindset of being the victim? Here are some examples of what a victim looks like: making excuses, blaming others and not accepting responsibility. Rather than helping with a situation a victim complains about it, or worse they tell you what you did wrong. They display a helpless attitude; defeated, denial, always looking for people to feel bad about their situation, pointing fingers, and conversations are perceived as negative. Does that describe you? If you’re not sure ask a trusted friend/coach who will be honest with you. Not to worry these behaviours can be corrected! However, it takes commitment and a willingness to want to change. With a strong coach you can get on the road to becoming a victor! Your coach should be someone you trust to give you open and honest feedback to steer you in the direction of winning!

Some examples of what a victor looks like: a victor accepts responsibility; a victor knows how important it is to assist in times of crisis. A victor maintains a positive attitude at all times. A victor provides hope no matter what the situation; a victor will encourage, and a victor continually tries to find the good around them. This doesn’t mean that the victor is spreading cheer when the ship is sinking, it’s the opposite. The victor will help to pull things together and they will take the people who are defeated and push and coach them to see their way through any situation. A victor is truly an accountable person!

Accountability is a very interesting word this is often perceived differently by others. For me, I used to believe accountability was about disciplining people for not living up to what they were expected to do, man was I wrong. Accountability is accepting what you are responsible for and living up to your expectations day in and day out. When you make a mistake and you will, you own it and learn from it. When a person makes a commitment to set their sights on being a victor they naturally assume accountability because of how they view things. They also excel over others in their personal life and work, because to them they have an attitude that anything can be accomplished.

Do yourself a favor and start to pay attention to the people around you and observe. Listen for conversations that would describe a victor or a victim, you may be surprised at what you learn.

The mind is a powerful thing folks, tomorrow morning when you wake up, are you going to be a Victor or Victim…. the choice is yours!!