Your first 5 minutes.
They set the stage. For a meeting. For a conversation. For the day. They disproportionately fuel the spirit of all that follows.
What do you do with your first 5?
When I was a theatre director it happened way faster. 5 seconds. Even before you delivered the monologue you had
The more successful we are, the more pressing this question becomes.
How do I find focus-think-reflect-get organized time when there simply never is ENOUGH time?
For many of us, time is our most precious commodity. And on any given day there never seems to be as much as we would like.
I just spent 12 days in Bhutan. Did the sort of stuff most first-time visitors to Bhutan are wont to do. Hiked up to the Tiger’s Nest Monastery. Visited the massive Punakha Dzong Monastery in Punakha Valley. Marveled at Buddha Dordenna, the largest Buddha statue in the world.
Awe-inspiring. But my richest insights came from my encounters with the Bhutanese people. Insights about Presence.
I tire of the athlete-success-story. I feel like I know the script too well.
Innate talent. Hard work and training. Motivational coach who challenges just right. Sports psychologist who creates the optimal mind space.
Nice. But how does this relate to how you and I maneuver in the world?
Then there’s Roger Federer.
When I look at public leadership, the view is dismal.
I’m reminded of it as I flip through an old essay by Jay Cost in the Wall Street Journal, The Politics of Distrust (10/17/15). I am reminded of it as I watch political leaders pontificate in front of a camera. I listen, and I do a gut check. Can I trust you?
I have an open-door policy.
You heard a General Manager say it at a Town Hall meeting. You may have spoken those words yourself to a member of your team.
Come talk to me anytime.
Really? Like really? What does the GM actually mean when s/he says it?
Friday at the counter of my favorite sushi bar in Ft. Lauderdale. Andy, the fellow sitting to my right, turns out to be the just-retired CEO of a well-known Fortune 500 recruitment firm.
Do you miss your work? I ask Andy
I hated the politics of my job. Andy answers circuitously.
Chances are, you know about “managing UP.” The art of influencing your mercurial, distracted, and perhaps occasionally unpredictable boss. If you have worked in the business world long enough, you have likely taken a class on this essential skill.
Hint: Know her priorities. Speak his language. Anticipate their needs. Be truthful and don’t BS them. Contract
Andy Cohen is the affably vivacious host of BRAVO Television’s late-night talk fest “What Happens Live.” Like him or loathe him, Cohen has created a hard-to-ignore reality television empire at BRAVO.
I view this show as an authentic, no bullshit experience, he declares in an old issue of Details Magazine.
I didn’t watch the James Comey or Jeff Sessions hearings. Caught the highlights at night. Senators hovering in elevated seats, staring down at the solitary witness with an imperious stance. Probing, probing, probing, probing.
A spectacle.
I think of the word “probe.” Russia probe. Watergate probe.