All Posts by Ann Tardy

0 Are You a Storyteller or a Storycatcher? (ask your driver!)

0 Why People Wave on Beaver Island

I’ve been visiting Beaver Island my entire life. A small island in Lake Michigan accessible by ferry from Charlevoix (no, it’s not Mackinac). There’s one main road, no stop lights, and only one grocery store.

And a lot of people who wave. Drivers wave to other drivers…and to pedestrians and to cyclists. And people wave back. It doesn’t matter if you live here or if you’re just visiting, people wave to you. (Of course, with about 600 people on an island the size of Manhattan, waving is manageable.)

So why do people wave to each other (on or off the island)?

• originally, to demonstrate mutual disarmament – I have no weapons
• today, to say “hello” or “goodbye”
• to acknowledge and recognize people
• to welcome others and communicate a willingness to connect
• to show respect and solidarity

Motorcyclists wave, typically with two fingers pointing downward to signify “stay safe.” And Jeep drivers wave to convey respect. Our commonalities – motorcycles, Jeeps, Beaver Island – help us quickly identify those who share a kindred spirit. We wave to acknowledge the tribe, the community that our commonality creates.

So then what stops us from waving more often?

• we’re too disconnected, our faces buried in screens
• we are indifferent to others – we don’t care
• we worry that waving is insignificant – it wouldn’t matter
• we don’t see (or look for) our commonalities
• we fear being humiliated if others don’t wave back

What if we waved without expectation?

What if we waved simply to help others feel welcomed, acknowledged, and connected? What if we waved to create a kindred spirit instead of waiting for a kindred spirit before waving? All the waving on Beaver Island reminds me that humanity can actually be our commonality.

0 Managers Grow Like Bamboo Trees!

0 Are You Gratified When People Bring You Problems? (Colin Powell Is!)

Colin Powell (retired four-star general in the US Army) once said, “The day the soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help them or concluded that you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership.”

Like you, I run a team. I get it. We’re busy. And sometimes we wish people would just figure out their own jobs, and stop dumping problems at our feet. We have enough of our own!

And then Colin Powell’s admonition gives us pause. Imagine the silence we would experience if our people stopped reaching out for our guidance and partnership. If our phone goes silent, we failed.

But this doesn’t mean that we are required to rescue people.

• We don’t need to think for them.
• We don’t need to fix each crisis.
• We don’t have to give them all the answers.
• We don’t even have to tolerate repeated questions.

But we better hope they keep seeking our assistance.

And here’s how we can encourage our people to do just that:

• regard each problem as an opportunity to develop people
• insist that people bring us new and different problems
• demand that people identify two solutions for every problem they unload
• coach, mentor, and train people so they learn and grow into bigger problems
• urge people to capture their learnings in job aides and quick guides

Regardless of how busy and stressed we are, we want our “soldiers” to call on us. We want them to have confidence in us as their intrepid leader. We want them to know that we always care about their success.

That’s how we earn the title “boss” day after day.

0 Would You Cycle Vermont with Prosthetic Legs?

Last weekend I cycled through the glorious hills of Killington, Vermont to raise money for Vermont Adaptive Ski & Sports, a non-profit dedicated to empowering individuals with disabilities to participate in adaptive sports programs and activities. (www.vermontadaptive.org)

Admittedly, it was not an easy ride. The hills were steep and plentiful. The cracks in the road made NJ potholes seem innocuous. It was raining. The wind was in my face. I was freezing. And my legs were feeling sore already.

And then I met the people we were cycling for…. those who could not see, hear, talk, or pedal on their own. They were not, however, on the side of the road. They were on bikes participating in the ride!

• Some volunteer cyclists steered tandem bikes allowing blind cyclists to pedal in the back.
• Other volunteer cyclists used adaptive tandem bikes with cable-actuated rear steering to allow kids with cerebral palsy to participate as passengers at the helm.
• And cyclists with prosthetic legs persevered over the hills using handcycles – recumbent, hand-powered bicycles.

And suddenly I got a jolt of perspective.

Some people looked outside on the morning of the ride and decided not to go because it was raining. They didn’t want to get wet. They didn’t show up because of their circumstances.

I got the privilege of cycling with people who showed up in spite of their circumstances.

And I met the amazing volunteers who showed up without any thought to their own circumstances. They came to create an experience for and boost the confidence of those with disabilities.

Ironically, I registered for the ride to make a difference with some fundraising. But witnessing people’s unshakable commitment and courage made the perspective-altering difference for me.

When was the last time you showed up in spite of circumstances?

0 Are You a Spotlight Stealer? (Ask Katie Couric!)

I’ve been hooked on Katie Couric podcasts lately.

What I love most about Katie is her rabid curiosity. She is masterful at shining the spotlight on others. And when someone shares an experience similar to hers, she never steals the spotlight with, “That happened to me too. Let me tell you my experience…”

When someone tells us their story and we jump in with our own story, we are guilty of spotlight stealing.

We don’t do it maliciously, and (typically) we don’t intend to be rude. We actually share our just-like-me stories because humans connect based on similarities. We pivot to our story – which is just like theirs – because we want to bond.

But in doing so, we inadvertently steal the spotlight. We grab the microphone. We push them off the stage.

To truly develop a connection with someone, we need to keep the spotlight on them until the bulb flickers and fades.

How?

• Be genuinely interested and curious
• Use 1-inch and yardstick questions
• Ask follow-up questions
• Eliminate or mitigate distractions (Katie Couric never Snapchats through an interview!)
• Listen like you’re on assignment

It takes a conscious effort not to steal the spotlight, but the boon to the relationship is worth it:

• They feel listened to and important
• Their trust increases
• We connect and bond

And because of that increased trust, they more readily disclose information to us. We gain access to their beliefs, knowledge, and attitudes, thus further strengthening our bond and our ability to make a difference.

Don’t worry. We’ll get our turn on the stage. But remember, our power to connect and influence lies in letting someone else have the spotlight. Just watch Katie Couric in action!

0 If Only Uber’s CEO Had Called Levi’s CEO…

Uber’s culture is a mess. Complaints of sexual harassment, discrimination, and bullying, multiple resignations, and threatened lawsuits.

Seems Uber’s CEO could have used a bit of mentoring from Levi Strauss’ CEO, Chris Bergh….

Bergh recently shared his approach to culture in The New York Times column “Corner Office.” As soon as he arrived at Levi’s, he methodically interviewed 60 people, asking each the following questions:

1. What are 3 things you think we have to change?
2. What are 3 things we have to keep?
3. What do you most want me to do?
4. What are you most afraid I might do?

Bergh gets it. To understand and then influence a culture, we have to connect with and involve the people who are actually creating the culture.

Bergh’s ask-the-people approach is bursting with culture-cultivating benefits:

• We gain substantial insights from people in the trenches and on the front lines.
• We communicate the importance of people’s perspectives and ideas.
• We help people feel heard and valued for their contributions.
• We demonstrate the power of collaboration to create a culture together.

Typically companies engage in this exercise in exit interviews, but it seems ironic to care what someone has to say as they’re walking out the door.

We don’t need to wait for an exit interview and we don’t need to be the CEO to safeguard and influence the culture of a team, a department, or an organization. We just need to engage with and listen to the people in the culture.

This is our job because these are our people! And so we own the impact of our actions that drive or destroy our culture.

Are we going to Uber it or Levi it?