jordans hodgepodge

The Customer Happiness Engineer

2017-12-14T07:30:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, my wife and I were online shopping for stocking stuffers for our kids. She stumbled across a fantastic gift for our 10 year old son... bacon flavored chapstick.

Gross right? Yet perfect for him.

Fast forward a few days.

We get an email from customer service stating their regret at not being able to fulfill the order due to lack of inventory. What was interesting to me was at the close of the email, the agent referred to herself as a Customer Happiness Engineer.

Customer Happiness Engineer!?!

Amazing.

This is an individual who clearly understands their role and its linkage to what their organization is about. Their working title clearly articulates their mission, vision and purpose in their role.

How refreshing.

I'm encouraged that there are organizations out there that understand and value elegantly simple mission, vision and purpose statements.

It's this kind of clarity that provides inspiration and keeps employees aligned.

And in the end aren't we all, no matter what line of business we're in, striving to be customer happiness engineers?

If not, you probably should be.

Sincerely,

Jordan Hodges

"Aspiring Customer Happiness Engineer"

The challenge to Simply Lead: Leadercast 2013 #cfaleadercast

2013-05-10T18:01:00.001-07:00

Source: http://www.beasuccessfulentrepreneur.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/serendipity-frame.jpg

I learned a new word today.

Serendipity.

Dictionary.com defines it as: "an aptitude for making desirable discoveries by accident"

I experienced serendipity today.

I have been finding myself getting busier and busier, with more and more meetings and although my days are TOTALLY packed out, having that feeling that I'm getting less and less done, and at times feeling less and less effective.

Ever have that feeling?

Ugh.

I've been on leadership training over the last 2 days; the first day being Leadership Effectiveness Initiative Training and the second being Leadercast 2013.

One of my big moments came when our LEI facilitator asked each of our cohort groups to discuss how much time we spent in meetings. As our group of 4 was discussing, I whipped out my phone and pulled up my calendar for a quick look. I counted hours and out of a 40 hour work week I had 33 hours of meetings. THIRTY THREE!!! Surely this must be an anomaly. But as I scrolled through the weeks, they all looked the same.

When the facilitator asked each cohort group to discuss the amount of time spent in meetings it came to our turn. One of the people in our group was giving the recap and mentioned that we had a low of one person with one hour of meetings per week to a high of 33 hours of meetings per week.

At that point I had the joy of becoming the class object lesson :-)

The question then was pointed at me: With all that time spent in meetings, when do you do your work?

*I'm shifting in my chair at this point*

It was clear, I and many others like me need to bring about some change in how we do our work.

Understandably much of our work as leaders occurs in meetings. However the thing that doesn't occur much in meetings and is a primary responsibility of a good leader is REFLECTION.

Reflection in this context, is the stepping back from all the chaos and noise around us and refocusing ourselves on What is important, Why its important and What I need to do about it.

In our training they use the term "Heroic Leadership" to describe people who try to do too many things, usually without the appropriate help of others. Many heroic leaders are functioning the way they are because the organization they are in rewards those who behave that way. If you become conditioned to this type of behaviour, you end up in an unsustainable situation. You're headed for burnout.

ENTER SERENDIPITY

Day 2 of training arrives.

Leadercast 2013.

The theme of this year's event: Simply Lead.

The whole day speaker after speaker is pounding into our psyche that to be an effective leader you MUST simplify.

Hearing this was like water to a man in the desert. The question is though, with all the demands on us, how do we simplify? What does that look like? Will it make me less effective? Will it effect my output?

Here is the gold I got from Leadercast 2013.

(Credits to Andy Stanley, John Maxwell, Condoleeza Rice, Jack Welch, Rorke Denver)

We can't do everything. Be willing to prune off everything but what is MOST important.
Give up the need to make everyone happy
Ask these questions of yourself regularly:

What am I doing?
Why am I doing it?
Where do I fit in?

We don't need more time (Einstein, Mother Theresa, Bach all had 24 hrs per day just like you)
It's not time we need, it's space. Need to free our mind from the clutter of the less important and keep focused on the goal
Stop believing you can multi-task. Yes you can walk and chew gum, but with your brain, you can only focus your thinking on one thing at a time
Great leaders do 3 simple things: Attend to what's important, ignore everything else, keep the goal in front of them. Always.
Leadership = existing to serve others, not the other way around
Calm is contagious (in fact, so is everything a leader does)

As I reflect after the whirlwind of these last 2 days I realize as a leader I have some important decisions to make.

Front and center is learning to ATTEND TO WHAT'S TRULY IMPORTANT. Not what's loudest. Not what's right in front of my face. Not the email that's the most recent in my inbox. Focus on what is TRULY important.

Next is to try to be ruthless in IGNORING DISTRACTIONS. This will involve having to stop treating email like it's Instant Messenger. It will involve having to stop trying to be Heroic and do everything for everyone. Some things will need to be "not done", in favor of ensuring delivery of what's truly important. This will also force me to deal with wanting everyone to be happy. Telling someone, "No I won't be able to do that for you by when you want it" is difficult for me. You? If I am certain that what the ask is doesn't fit into what's Truly Important, then I have to get more comfy with being able to say "No" or "Not right now".

Lastly, I need to ensure I KEEP THE GOAL ALWAYS IN FRONT OF ME. I need to have it boiled down to a one or two sentence statement of purpose for why me or my role even exists. There was a reason the job each of us does was created. Get in touch with that purpose and keep that purpose in front of you at all times.

Now, time to implement.

Culture Shock

2013-03-30T17:11:00.001-07:00

I remember my family's move to Ethiopia like it was yesterday. It was 1988. Ethiopia was in the midst of a terrible famine. Our family had been planning to move to Bolivia, and we were all geared up for that, when the organization asked us if we'd consider changing last minute to Ethiopia. So Ethiopia it was.

The organization gave us several months of orientation preparing us for inevitable "culture shock" that was going to occur for us North Americans with our move to a third world country.

I remember when our plane touched down, looking out the window and thinking the airport looked pretty normal. No culture shock yet. Even in the airport things were pretty normal. We loaded up our luggage into a nice Toyota van and still no culture shock. Then we drove out of the airport...

Culture shock.

I have vivid recollections of the sights, of seeing people relieving themselves in the medians, of people with minimal clothing, of people living in plastic bag houses, of children calling out "You you you you, money give!"
But nothing could have prepared me for the smell.

Culture shock.

I missed home. I missed our clean life.

As I grew up and spent both junior and senior high school in Ethiopia and Kenya, the sights and smells became normal. I stopped missing Canada for the most part.

What was growing on and in me was the deep friendships, the deep appreciation of people over schedules, the ability to laugh long and hard, the seemingly carefree existence that many enjoyed despite having so little. This too was culture shock, but the kind you eagerly drink in.

I keenly remember in Grade 12 having to go through Re-entry seminars and training for preparation to come back to North America. At the time it seemed like such a joke. Re-entry back to my home country, how hard could that be???

They were teaching us about how difficult it would be. Here in Africa we looked different from most people, yet we had adopted many of the same thought processes as the populace. In North America however, the challenge would be that we looked the same as everyone else, but inside we had been rewired. Third culture kids or TCKs they called us.

As we prepared to fly back to Canada, I remember feeling sick, like my soul was being ripped out and left behind in East Africa. I didn't want to go home, I already was home!

I remember arriving back in Canada. Everything was so clean. People were so polite... and private. Initially I thought it might not be so hard to adjust.

Wrong.

As days turned into weeks turned into months turned into years, I experienced more culture shock than I had ever experienced in Africa.

The thing that shocked me the most was this:

How can people who have so much, be so unhappy. How can so many be so driven to achieve that they have forgotten how to be relational, be carefree, laugh deeply and enjoy this life.
Where I just was, people had so little and things in the future were so uncertain, and yet people were happy! People laughed. People cried. People grew deep friendships. People would walk around holding each others hands.

It seemed that somehow from the time I lived here before, to the time I lived here again, everything had changed!!

Or had it?

It was me. I had changed. Africa changed me.

It is now 20 years since that REAL culture shock hit me, the shock of moving back to North America.

The thing that concerns me is that at times I feel lulled into the mindset of here... squashing down my African rewiring. Then I realize what's happening and I shake my head. Wake up! Realize that life is a gift. Spend time with people. Laugh. Cry. Play. Run. Relate. Go deep. Be thankful. Grow in gratefulness.

Africa I will always be thankful for the rewiring you did. Grateful.

For those of you that have never had the chance to experience the culture shock of moving back to North America, I hope one day you will. And that you too, will never want to go back to how you were before.

Of Life and Death and Leaving a Wake

2013-03-06T18:52:00.000-08:00

Like a jug of milk, our bodies come with an expiry date. With milk you know how long it's going to last, because you know the date. With us it's different. We have an expiry date, but we don't know what it is... Hard.

I've been reflecting on this deeply as a very dear friend of mine passed away this week at the age of 36. She was a wife and also a mother to three young children.

Tragic.

As we are preparing for the memorial service this weekend it is very clear that although her body expired, how she used her life created a lasting wake. Her body is gone but her wake remains.

Powerful.

She passed away on her birthday. 36 years of age. A few days before her birthday, on her Facebook page she posted this:

So, here is your D’s B-day mission should you choose to accept it: Hand out flowers for me. As many as you want. Whatever kind you fancy. To whomever you desire- homeless, hospital patience, pedestrians, church friends, to old folk’s in nursing homes, Starbucks, people in the mall… With whomever you desire- your love (for a meaningful-perhaps-slightly-awkward-till-you-get-over-it-and-have-a-blast date), your kids, a group of rowdy pals, your church group… attach your messages of love to the flowers for these people: “You are significant, You are beautiful, You are valuable, You are Loved, Your LIFE is beautiful…” Take pictures and/or videos of your shenanigans and send them to me so I can witness the celebration! You have until Monday night.

Oh the joy that fills my heart imagining this! Because I know the joy that it will bring to yours!!!

Now, get out there and start spreadin the love! :) ❃

So as her body was failing in the hospital hundreds if not thousands of random strangers were being reached out to with a simple message:

"You matter"

"Your life matters"

"You are loved"

Profound.

As we go through this life, we don't know how long our body will last, so my question is this:

What will you do with your life?

Will you use it for your own purposes?

Will you use to to "get ahead"?

Or will you use it to create things of lasting value?

This Saturday we are expecting many hundreds and possibly over a thousand to be attending the memorial service. Although her body is gone, her wake remains. The wake is beautiful and meaningful and has left people, lives and hearts transformed.

Your body has an expiry date. What are you going to do with the unknown amount of time/life you have?

When you're gone, how many people will come to your memorial?

What will they say?

How many lives were changed?

What was the wake that you left behind?

In the end, the wake you left is all that mattered.

(Note, if you're curious to come and see the wake she left for yourself, an open memorial service is being held at Sherwood Park Alliance Church Saturday March 9, 2013 1030AM. Come see what she left behind)

Ignorance is Bliss. Right?

2013-01-09T19:59:00.000-08:00

IGNORANCE IS BLISS

Have you ever owned a glass table?
Mixed blessing right?
If you've ever owned one you know 2 things about it:
1) When it's clean you know it.
2) When it's dirty... you know it.

I inherited my first glass dining room table when I purchased my current residence.
It's a beautiful glass table with wrought iron base.
I love the table.
However I also have kids, and one of them is 5 years old.

What I realized is that the blessing of this elegant glass table doesn't feel like a blessing after dinner is over. WHAT A MESS!

The glass table is forcing me to see how dirty tables actually get during each and every meal!

Ignorance USED to be bliss.

As I was washing the table down the other night I was reflecting on my love/hate relationship with this table and how it paralleled a lot to life.

Much like an ostrich stuffing his head in a hole in the ground, I sometimes find myself pulled towards wishing that I could go back to thinking, "If I can't see it, it must not be there".

But you can't.

Now that I know because of the glass, how dirty tables get, even if I moved back to a non glass top some day, I will never have the illusion that it is clean if I just give it the ol once over.

My new awareness has forever changed my thinking.

As your eyes become open towards messy areas of your life or your organization or relationships, take care of it. Don't be tempted to trade the glass table for the old wooden one, because once you've become aware of the mess, you can't go back to being unaware.

So while it still may be true that Ignorance is Bliss, I propose that a more powerful truth is that Awareness is Transformative.

The Uncomfortable Life

2012-12-06T21:01:00.000-08:00

Have you ever had the experience where something was the absolute BEST OF TIMES yet simultaneously was the absolute WORST OF TIMES?

For me that was boarding school.

Growing up apart from your family during most of your identity forming years of Jr/Sr High is a huge loss. Homesickness, missing out on relationships with siblings, missing out on "family time"... Many things about it were challenging. In some ways it was the worst of times. (at least that's how I felt at 13)

However, many things were INCREDIBLE.

Growing up in Kenya.

Safari's.

Mombasa.

Beaches.

Dorm Life.

Rich and deep friendships.

A new blended adoptive family.

And the number one: Living life outside of comfortable.

The more I reflect back on the things in my life that have been the hardest/worst/most uncomfortable things, strangely, I find are the things that have grown me the most.

Fast forward 25 years from that first board school experience.

I am currently enrolled in a leadership development program through the company that I work for and the session today asked us three questions:

1. Describe our Ideal Future

2. What we hoped to gain from the 9 months of training.

And...

3. What we would be willing to commit to seeing this Ideal Future occur.

As I thought about what I was willing to commit, it became crystal clear.

I must be willing to commit to living a life outside of my comfort zone.

I have found that out in the wild unpredictable expanse that exists outside of our routine and safe environs is a whole world of growth, experience and learning just waiting for us.

It is a difficult, even unnatural, first few steps to start walking away from comfort towards discomfort, but if you can find a way to ride that edge that has you not so uncomfortable that you are overwhelmed to incapacitation, but has you not so comfy that your sleeping your life away... If you can find that edge, that sweet spot in the middle, Growth Happens.

I will be striving to ride that edge over the next 9 months and look forward to seeing change.

Will I stray too far towards discomfort that I will fail sometimes? Probably.

Will I panic and jump back to comfy at times? Definitely.

Are either of those scenarios a total disaster? No.

All growth.

All learning.

All maturing.

So go live that Uncomfortable Life!

Find your edge.

Embracing The New Normal

2012-10-08T14:29:00.001-07:00

"Get back to normal, whatever your normal is" Tylenol

I understand what Tylenol is trying to sell us with their current add campaign about getting back to normal, but I think they've completely missed the boat.

People waste so much time, money, and energy trying to chase down a return to how things used to be.

Instead of this societal obsession with lifting, tucking, buying, spending, counselling all to try and restore what was and turn back the hands of time... why are we not throwing off everything that entangles us and striving to MOVE FORWARD and embrace the situation we find ourselves in?

THE NEW NORMAL!

Many times in my life I have encountered serious challenges and ALWAYS my approach is to try and escape the situation, make it revert back to old normal. Being sent to boarding school, going through divorce, having a father with cancer in his 40s. All of these situations I started out with the mindset of how can I get out of this, change the situation or make like it was before.

WRONG.

My time, energy and money was wasted each and every time. Instead of railing against the situations I was in, I should have been investing all I had into making the new situation, my new normal. Learning to excel within my new reality. This would be energy well spent.

Oscar Pistorius.

Does the name ring a bell?

For many of us, one of the standout moments in the 2012 Olympic games was the race run by Oscar Pistorius. Even if the name isn't familiar, the site of him running with his prosthetic "blades" is still etched on our minds.

He had double leg amputation when he was 11 months old, so while we see quite a strange sight, looking at the blades, for Oscar, it is his normal and has been for a long time.

Oscar understood that he had to deal with this as his new normal. He made the most in his state and rather than railing against it, he learned to adapt himself to excel and fly within the situation he found himself. Time/Energy well spent.

Many of us have these kind of experiences in our lives where something life altering happens but yet it isn't visible to the naked eye. (Think death, divorce, abuse, mental illness, broken relationships, unemployment.)

When we find ourselves facing something like this, rather than fighting against it, embrace it.

Embrace the new normal. Learn all there is to learn from this new situation. Learn to apply yourself and excel in it. In fact, learn to rejoice in it. It will build you and your character if you let it.

A friend of mine and I had an exchange on Facebook a couple days ago that brought me back the perspective that I needed:

Me: Indeed. The divorce kinda feels like a slow death. Pretty hard to know how to feel.

Friend: You just enjoy each moment as you never know when may be your last.....perhaps you are the luckier one to learn this so early in life - we should all live every moment this way!

Obviously my friend TOTALLY gets it. Seemed strange for a minute that someone could say that me going through a painful divorce, was LUCKY, but my friend was right on the money.

I'm only lucky though, if I stop resisting it and let the experience grow me, stretch me, mature me.

So when you go through your next trials and tribulations in your life, don't resist, let it in and learn from it. It will grow/mature you if you let it. I'm walking that painful road myself right now, but finding that it is far easier to go through these things if I can keep the perspective where it should be.

Check out this wild verse from the Bible that is completely counter culture. Ponder it. If you can get it, it'll change your life.

I know it's changing mine.

James 1.2-4

"Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing."

Peace.

Feedback: It's Both Give and Take

2012-08-19T20:49:00.000-07:00

Feedback.

It can be hard to hear.

It can also be hard to give, especially to give it well.

Is there a trick to making this giving and receiving of feedback a smashing success?

I think so, although trick might not be the best word.

Last week I had the HONOUR! of receiving feedback from a senior leader in the organization where I work. I say honour because the routine and regular giving of feedback has not been a part of my experience in past jobs. In the past it was kind of like this:

If I don't hear anything... everything must be good.... Right? ....er....

I'm not sure if you've been a part of the silence-is-golden type of workplace culture before but I believe that it just doesn't work.

People in a feedback vacuum are left to their own imaginations of how they are doing, and these imaginings rarely reflect reality.

Back to what happend last week.

The leader asked me if we could meet for them to provide me some feedback.
I said Yes.
At the meeting, the leader asked some open ended questions to gain context.
The leader then tailored/customized the feedback based on the understanding gained from my answers to the questions.
I listened and sought to understand.
Later that day I fired off an email to clarify what I had taken away as the feedback.
The leader responded with a few clarifying points and then did something utterly ridiculous...

The leader asked me if I could give them feedback... on the way they gave me the feedback!!!!

INCREDIBLE!

I did have a few things I thought the leader could do to improve and so we got together the next day to discuss.

The communication was open, collaborative, and direct.
Amazing.

There are some good lessons I took away from the experience and I'd like to share them.

ON GIVING FEEDBACK:

1. Ask permission to give the feedback first. This ensures the person is in a decent frame of mind to hear you.
2. Before giving the feedback, seek to understand the context around the topic and be open to changing/altering the feedback you were going to deliver.
3. Listen generously.
4. When you are done ask the receiver what they heard you say or what they are taking away.
5. Ask the receiver if they can give you feedback on your delivery.

ON RECEIVING FEEDBACK:

1. Get in a mindset of openness in preparation. Realize feedback is for your good and if you can hear it, you will grow and be better.
2. Listen generously.
3. Check pride at the door. Realize you, like the rest of humanity, are a work in progress.
4. Reflect back to the feedback provider what you heard them say to ensure you got it.
5. Decide on how you will allow the feedback to change you.

These principles aren't just limited to the workplace and I'm looking forward to trying them with my kids, friends and relationships.

Take the opportunity to be both a giver and receiver of feedback and watch your workplace, your parenting and your relationships all experience a level-up !!

Juggling and the Art of Multi-Tasking

2012-08-16T19:08:00.000-07:00

Have you ever tried juggling before?

I have.

I would say I am a fledgling juggler.

I can successfully juggle 3 balls in the air for around 30 seconds without dropping one.

I remember when I first was trying to learn to juggle. The guy who was teaching me had me start with just 2 balls. He had me hold them both in one hand, then throw one up and while it was coming down throw the other one up and catch the first, then catch the second.

At the beginning even that simple task seemed VERY difficult, but as I practiced I could do it. Then we added the other ball and after many many many dropsies I was able to string 4-5 "juggles" together before having them all crash down to the ground.

Recently, I've been having a very similar experience to this at work.

I remember when I used to be able to only focus on one of two things at a time. Any more than that and I would constantly be forgetting things and as they say "dropping the ball".

Over time however with some great coaching and pushing from leaders where I work I have had more success in keeping more things up in the air.

At the beginning I always feel I'm going to drop something, but having great people around and having a determined attitude, the results have started to surprise.

Now I know that I will still drop balls but the great thing is, the more you can juggle, even though you'll drop some, the end result is that there were so many more that you were able to keep up!!!

That thought I find very encouraging.

So for those of you who are trying to learn to "juggle" more in your career or life, don't focus so much on the one or two things you drop, take a second and look up.

See how many "balls" you actually are keeping up in the air!

Might surprise you!

Do you find the job you love OR do you love the job you have...

2012-08-13T21:39:00.000-07:00

I had the most amazing and insightful conversation with a coworker today.
We were talking about job opportunities and about the importance of finding a job that fit with his passions and interests, a job that could love.
He halted me in the middle of my pontificating and said, I know that that is what most people are after. They are all trying to find that job that makes them happy, that job that they could love. (At this point he had me Hook, Line and Sinker...)

He said, my parents in our culture raised me up to not find the job I'd love, but to instead love the job I have.

There.

Do you catch the subtle difference?

If you do, you'll see it's beauty.

In North America we have indeed become very fixated on finding that special thing that will make us happy, be it a job, a significant other, a car.. you get the point. All of these things are external to ourselves and the problem is they are all going to decay. Jobs lose their lustre, significant others if you don't carefully take care of the relationship, tarnish, and cars, well as soon as you've bought it it's on the way down.

I LOVE his way of thinking.

It is completely up to you!

You get to hold the responsibility for the love of your job!!

It's not up to someone else. It's not even up to the job...

It's only up to you.

If you get your head screwed on straight, you can be happy doing any job.

That is what I learned today.

Hao Jin, thanks for teaching me this valuable truth!!

The Winding Road...Or is it?

2012-07-29T21:10:00.001-07:00

Ever had one of those hilltop experiences?
You know, you finally poke your head out of the weeds of life and actually get a gooood look around.

Perspective comes in those moments.

The majority of my life I feel like I am NOT having a moment like that however, recently, uncommonly I have had a few of those moments and during those moments I've discovered something interesting...

Typically our life journey seems to be a winding, meandering affair. Many twists and turns, detours and side roads. Mostly not a lot of freeway driving.

The interesting thing though is that lately, when I can poke my head out of the thick of the situation and survey I've noticed something.

As I look backwards on the winding road that represents my path I'm struck by how convoluted that it is, yet at the same time, as I really examine it, I'm noticing something.

Getting from wherever I was to where I am now, is actually pretty much a straight lane superhighway. Really.

The complexity comes from WHERE AM I.

That is the thing we don't spend enough time to really understand the complexity of how hard it would be to be EXACTLY where we are at this very moment.

All the experience, all the knowledge, all the failures, all the victories, all the relationships, all the hurts, all the shaping...
Everything that has come to make you exactly who you are in this instant.

When you really take in the magnitude of where and who you really are, all of it, you find yourself realizing as I have lately, that it was not a meandering/winding path at all. In fact...

It was the absolute straightest road between where/who you were to where/who you are.

Beautiful.

The Security Blanket

2012-07-26T22:13:00.000-07:00

CUTE

Awwwww. Cute right? Let's admit it, it is cute. This cuddly little person is wrapped up in a soft and comforting blankie. Perfection. It's how it should be. When he's cold or lonely he wraps up in it. When he's teething he can put it in his mouth. It's perfect. A perfect coping mechanism. A perfect strategy for taking care of many of baby's needs.

How about this blankie though?

NOT CUTE

Awwww. Cute right? Not a chance. Scary? Disgusting? Definitely NOT CUTE.

99.999% of the world would never, ever consider carrying around a blankie as an adult.

What started out as a cute, cuddly, fuzzy blankie that was so perfectly appropriate in one circumstance, over time became a rotting, fetid, disgusting thing.

This is exactly how it is with many of our own personal coping mechanisms.

I'll pick on my self to illustrate.

Growing up as a child of missionary parents, I experience EXTREMELY high mobility. I moved between Kenya and Ethiopia (boarding school vs where parents lived) 24 times over a period of 4 years and lived away from my family for a cumulative total of 3 years between ages 13-17.

I'm not whining about that at all, I wouldn't trade it for the world. It's all part of my journey and made me who I am today.

What I do want to focus on is the BLANKIE.

During those times I developed a coping mechanism that made sense for the time. It made sense to help me navigate, survive and actually thrive during those years.

The coping mechanism (my blankie) was this: avoid conflict and ensure I am liked at all costs.

For me, facing the environment and challenges it made sense. I made friends quickly. I was well liked. Having all these people caring for me, "liking" me eased the pain of being away from family. It helped me to fit in.

It became my security blanket.

Fast forward almost 20 years.

Being a husband, a father, being a leader... These things do NOT work while I'm carrying around my "security blankie" aka avoid-conflict-and-ensure-I-am-liked-at-all-costs...

NOPE. Those don't work. It may have been the primary demise of my marriage. When you're with someone but you are unable to have a straight conversation with them and instead you only tell them what you think they want to hear...so they'll "like" you... Doesn't work. Marriage over.

When you're a father and you want to be popular with your kids and be their *buddy* and be liked instead of being truthful, firm when needed and direct... Doesn't work. You see those kinds of parents all the time...

"Tyler, I'm going to start counting if you don't come over here RIGHT NOW... One, two...." UGH.

Doesn't work if you want to be a successful leader either. You cannot be obsessed with everyone liking you or your decisions. If you are a good leader you will probably be polarizing and you absolutely must NOT avoid conflict or the crucial conversations.

I'm starting to ramble so will wrap it up.

Bottom line.

We all have a tendancy to trot out our own version of a stinking rotten blankie from time to time to cope with situations we face as adults in the way that worked when we were kids.

For fun, try asking someone who knows you very well and whom you really trust, if they think you carry around a rotten security blanket for a coping mechanism.

You may have one, you just may not see it.

If you do have one, best to leave it back in 1980 where it belongs.

Reason #783 Why Leaders Fail: The Yes Men

2012-07-24T20:44:00.000-07:00

Are you a leader?

Middle manager?

Working for a leader?

(I believe that should cover everyone)

Ever felt the urge to simply agree with the senior leader of your company when deep down inside you didn't agree?

More than the urge, have you ever actually done it? That is, been a Yes Man? When everything inside you was telling you the answer was No but you said Yes??

I'm becoming increasingly aware as I grow and mature in leadership that there are a great many YES MEN out there.

I'm also thinking more and more that there is a real problem with the YES MEN. Yes they are kissing up to the leader, brown-nosing, climbing the corporate ladder, or whatever metaphor you see in them, but annoying as that behaviour is, that isn't the real problem.

The real problem as I see it, is for the leader!

A truly great leader would never intentionally surround themselves with Yes Men.

No way.

But it is possible that a truly great leader could end up being surrounded with Yes Men.

How can this be?

As a leader increases their focus on casting vision and building into his leaders that are around him, it becomes more difficult to keep that connection to the front lines, to those working in-the-trenches so to speak. If the people around him become over time, more consumed with saying what they think the leader wants to hear, rather than the truth or what he really should be hearing, there is going to be trouble in paradise.

The leader would be heavily relying on the truth and honesty to keep in touch with his organization but if no one is willing to have the straight/difficult conversations that possibly no one wants to hear, the leader loses touch and over time... will fail.

Imagine for a second the leader.

He asks someone a question.

There is a slight pause.

The person who is giving the answer is scrambling, mind racing, but not for what the answer is, but for what they think the leader wants to hear...

Lonely place for a leader to be if they ever realized that they were being surrounded by Yes Men.

Very lonely.

So my challenge is this, when asked a question by a leader, take the opportunity to help them and your organization by answering truthfully.

Will you win the popularity contest?

No.

For sure No.

But will you be the one providing lasting value in the end, compared to the Yes Man? Definitely.

Don't give in to the temptation to get in good with the boss. If you really want to see your leaders succeed and not fail, speak the truth.

Carefully.

With Tact.

Just don't be a Yes Man.

Oh, and shout out to you leaders, when you find people that ARE NOT Yes Men... KEEP THEM!!

Keep them VERY close.

They are like GOLD.
Protect them.

They will keep YOU and REALITY in check!

The Transformation Paradigm: Groundswell

2012-07-10T22:03:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to figure out how to get this particular post out.
I have written and rewritten it trying to get the case to build to a climax where I unleash the surprising conclusion... to no avail. I can't write it that way. So instead, I'll cut to the chase. Here goes: I believe that

Cultural Transformation starts AT THE BOTTOM not at the top.

I've attended several training sessions for leaders in the last few months as well as reading numerous articles on cultural transformation. The consistent theme in much of what I've taken in, is that organizational transformation MUST start at the top. It's the leaders that must set the pace, set the examples and over time the organization will follow.

So leaders, my question is How's that working for you? Seriously. How is that working for you?

I know that my experience in our organization has seen us struggling through a transformation initiative that is years in the making. Progress has been slow, painful and at times stalled. That's how it's been.

Until now. Something has happened. Something that at first I didn't understand. In the last few months something has been different. Age old processes are being examined. Old ways of behaving and thinking are giving way to new behaviours and ways of being.

So the question is, WHAT HAS CHANGED?

As I've been seeking to understand, the answer has become clear.
Something is happening at the bottom.
At the lowest levels of our organization something is changing. Partly its started with an influx of new hires, and partly there are people who have been here for a long time that have realized that enough is enough! If we continue to be the way we've been, we'll have exactly what we've had. We have to be different to have something different!

Stumbling across this thought almost by accident, I began to reflect more. Are there other situations that would prove out the thought that cultural transformations actually occur bottom up rather than top down?

Arab Spring.

Do I even need to say more? If there is nothing else that we can learn through the massive upheaval and the groundswell that has and still is occurring in the Arab nations of Africa and the Middle East, its that if there is dissent at the lowest levels (people not in positions of leadership/authority) THAT is where the transformation will be created. NOT from the top as the leaders in Egypt and Libya quickly found out.
If the people at the bottom decide that there needs to be a change, THERE WILL BE A CHANGE.
If the people at the top decide there will be a change and the people at the bottom don't agree, there may be an initial change but it will not last as the people at the bottom actually have the power and dictate.

Growing up in East Africa and seeing more than my fair share of communism, corruption, death and exploitation, and seeing the people eventually rise up and overthrow the corrupt systems has me convinced that TRANSFORMATION STARTS AT THE BOTTOM.

In this light I've begun connecting more with our people who are just entering our organization and encouraging them to come in to our workplace with eyes wide open. Look for things that are broken. Don't overthrow the leaders but merely NOTICE things that are dysfunctional, broken, inefficient, non reflective of a productive and positive work culture. Then slowly, bit by bit, began offering up suggestions to those "at the top" on what kinds of tweaks and changes would help the organization to move from where it is to TOP NOTCH.

So if what I propose is true, is there a role for the leader in the organization to create Cultural Transformation? I say YES. Yes there is. However the role is not quite what I've been being taught lately.
It is not or should not be the role of the leader to dictate what the culture is or should be. (That should and will be decided by the general populace)

Here goes:
The leaders job is not to dictate the culture but to
REFLECT BACK TO THE ORGANIZATION THE CULTURE THAT IT ASPIRES TO.
This role can not be understated.
If the leader is successfully reflecting back to the organization, the leader is the sounding board. The leader is serving as the guide post for the organization to look to. The leader who does not reflect the cultural aspirations of the organization, well if you were the leader of a country, you're usurped, overthrown, deposed etc... In a 1st world organization, well, in the words of Donald Trump "YOU'RE FIRED".

My conclusion is this, lets not stop investing time/energy training leaders to create transformation environments, but lets RADICALLY up our investment in REALLY LISTENING to our people. If we listen they will tell us what and how to transform our organizations.

They want to tell us.

Leaders do you want to listen?
If you don't... well...

Watch out for the groundswell.

It'll get ya.

The Power of Stories: When told right, gets you both elephant and rider every time

2012-06-20T00:31:00.000-07:00

Emotional vs Rational
Right Brain vs Left Brain
Amygdala vs Neocortex
Elephant vs Rider

All different ways of stating that we as human beings have this duality about us that has us on the one hand being rational logical creatures, yet at the same time has us also deeply influenced and moved by emotions and feelings.

I paused my blog for the last 2 weeks as I've been reflecting.
What I've been reflecting on is some comments received on my last blog post.
I like comments, especially comments that really make me pause to think. To reflect.
What I've been pondering is this, is the way I write missing the mark? Which leads to an even bigger question of "Why do I even write, period"? (Simple answer that: In an attempt to make a difference in this world).
Back to first question.
Is the way I write missing the mark? (feel free to comment!)
Why do I tell stories that lead to a point? Why do I shamelessly share my exploits in parenting (good and bad) and then relate them to Enterprise 2.0, gamification and motivation?
The answer on this is actually simple.

I write like I write........ON PURPOSE.

There have been numerous studies that have shown that appealing only to a person's logic and rational brain only gets half of what is required to create a true change or transformation.
The same has been found when appealing primarily or solely to one's sense of emotion or feelings, again the ingredients for a person to truly change are only half there.

You need BOTH. (For more on this read Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard by Chip & Dan Heath)

At the start of the book they give the analogy of the Elephant and the Rider. If you only appeal to the rider (logic), the elephant of emotion will eventually overpower the rider, however if you only appeal to the emotion your in for a potential flurry of misinformed decisions. The power to change comes from appealing to both the logical side of us (the rider) and the emotional side of us (the elephant).

By telling stories and creating something that engages the right side of the brain I'm appealing to the reader's inner elephant.
By lining the findings of my "experiments" up to conclusions that are logical and rational I'm appealing to the reader's inner rider.
Now do I manage to accomplish this with each blog post? Debatable, however I have solid feedback from many readers that the connection is there. So in those cases, MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

I will continue to blog in this storylike fashion ending in some kind of conclusions.
If it works for you, great. If it doesn't work for you.... well, I tried.

In wrapping this post up I did want to say THANKS for all the hits to the blog and the great comments over the past year. The blog has hit around 26,000 unique views and is averaging over 4000 unique hits a month.
THANK YOU!

Stay tuned, more to come!

8 Laws of Transformation: Long distance running lessons from my kids

2012-06-03T21:42:00.002-07:00

I learned a very important lesson today while running 10km with my kids. (Me running, they on bikes)

If you don't pace your organization's transformation properly and with balance, you risk losing your running companions.

I just completed the slowest 10K I've ever done. In fact it took me 20% longer than my last 10K time. I am just happy that I was able to complete it. I almost didn't make it, at one point on the verge of calling in a friend with a truck to come haul us back home.
So what happened?

Feeling especially energetic today I determined I would conquer a 10km run with all 3 of my kids riding their bikes along with me. (Ages 9, 7 and *gulp* 4.)

To garner their interest I painted a vision for them of how our route would wind through Sherwood Park and that we would stop and play at EVERY SINGLE playground that we encountered.
THEY WERE IN!

We were launching our first ever (and last?) Sherwood Park Playground 10km Fun Run!
Sounds great right? Well it started great.

1km
We started out with a bang. We visited 2 playgrounds by the 1km mark.
Things were going great.
Kids were pumped.

2km
Hit another 2 playgrounds by the 2K mark.
All going well.
Drinking water.
Having fun.

3km
Hit a fifth playground at which time my daughter came over and said:
"Dad this is the funnest time EVER!" and threw her arms around me and planted a kiss on my smiling face.
I have to admit that "I am the best Dad ever" thoughts were now going through my head.

So let's review. So far we are 3K in and we've hit 5 playgrounds. All good.

Now is where the story changes.

In my exuberance (if you know me, this isn't a stretch) I proclaimed, "We are now going to a playground that is BIGGER and BETTER than ANY of the 5 we've been to yet!"

*INSERT SOUNDS OF CHILDREN CHEERING HERE*

So off we trekked. Me running. My 4, 7, and 9 year olds pedalling madly.

Too few milestones or tangible rewards along the way can spell trouble

4K mark.
Dad this is awesome.
How much further is the playground?
These trails are beautiful!

5K mark.
Dad I'm hot.
Can we take a break.
Where is the playground.
And now I'm *running* and pushing my 4 year old occasionally up the steeper hills.

6K mark.
Pretty much fully pushing my 4 year old now.
My 9 year old son is looking fatigued and all 3 are asking me non stop where this playground is.
We do finally get there at about 6.5K mark. It's not all that they had hoped for.
4 year old sprains his ankle.

7K
Oasis. OK, not an oasis but at that point 7-11 did indeed feel like an oasis.
Slurpee's consumed.
Smiles returned.
Energy gained.
Optimism returns.
Off we go.

7-10K
As I was running along side my youngest son pushing him the entire last 3K it dawned on me:
He is going through and experiencing what many experience while going through organizational transformation.

At the beginning of the journey everything sounded great. We're all going on a playground running tour! Wohoo! 10K? That can't be that far. (The farthest my kids have ever come with me on their bikes while I run is about 6K)
A promising adventure with a bright shiny ending.
Naïveté about the difficulty of the journey.

The first 3K's were done correctly. We stopped for breaks. There were playgrounds.
Tangible and realized milestones.
Measured progress.
Fun.
Delivering on promises made.
Motivation.

The next 3K's. Stretching. Hard work but still the promise of something "just around the next turn". Questions start cropping up. How much further is it? Are we there yet? Cracks are showing.

The arrival.
This is it? This is what we spent all the energy for? Was it worth it?

The trek home.
Requires a team effort. Long. Hot. Hard. Tears. Can't we just be done. It required a positive and strongly motivated leader (me) to be the hand to push them along, offering encouragement and guidance and support for the phase where all felt there wasn't much left in the tank.

When we finally got home I debriefed with the kids. We all agreed together that we had gone too far and that next time we would start our return home at around the 3-4km mark. We need to work ourselves out as a group progressively to prepare for longer journeys in the future.

After experiencing this event I am convinced that what occurred for my kids is occurring for us who are working for an organization in the midst of a transformation.

So here's what I've concluded:

8 Things for Leaders to Remember While Going Through an Organizational Transformation

We set out on an ambitious journey full of hope of the future promised land that we are heading towards. VISION
We must remember to pace this journey for our people. PACE
Offer them many tangible rewards along the way.
Many water breaks. Many stops at playgrounds. REWARDS
Many updates as to how far we've come and how far out we are from our goal. COMMUNICATION
When we see something good, be quick to offer encouragement. ENCOURAGEMENT
When we see someone starting to fall behind, run along side them and offer them direct encouragement and when the going gets really tough even offer a hand on the shoulder to propel them a bit so they can feel the wind in their face again. The feel of forward movement. SUPPORT
Ensure that the distance or time between rest stops isn't too far or you will demoralize your people and they may begin to feel mistrust that you over promised and under delivered. MOMENTUM
Finally when you make mistakes in calculation or judgement be quick to admit and take responsibility. RESPONSIBILITY

As always, I'm interested in your thoughts.
Agree?
What has your experience with transformation taught you?

The Assignment: Transforming Leadership, Transforming Culture

2012-05-23T21:38:00.004-07:00

CULTURE REVOLUTION
Our organization is going through the early stages of a cultural revolution.
OUT is the old style command and control form of top down hierarchical "leadership".
IN is our new principle based leadership.

Exciting times but the change is not for the faint of heart.

We are struggling through what it means to truly change the cultural heartbeat of an eleven thousand strong organization.

One of the activities being undertaken is that our leaders are all going through a full day session titled:

Transforming Leadership, Transforming Culture.

I am writing this blog tonight as my day to attend this course has arrived and tomorrow is the big day.

THE ASSIGNMENT
To prepare for the day we were asked to bring "a hat that represents the work that your area is responsible for, or that highlights any specific experience or expertise that you bring to your role."

So here I sit at 10PM not sure what hat to bring.

Tempted to bring one of my Rasta hats from when I lived in Ethiopia. Or maybe the hat that belonged to my Dad as a kid in Nigeria. Or maybe my favorite hat from boarding school 25 years ago...

OR

my favourite hat.

My Rickard's White ball cap to be exact.

The exercise for tomorrow isn't about why I like the hat, its what could the hat represent regarding my work area...

Thinking about my hat:

It's simple.
It's worn.
It's old.
It's VERY comfortable.
I'm used to it.
It fits my head now very well.
Basically, I just like it.

THE PARALLEL

The hat very much could represent how many of us feel about cultural change. Thinking about change can cause discomfort. We like the current culture. It's comfy. We're used to it. It fits us VERY well thank you very much. We know how it feels, it's predictable and basically we just like it. (OK maybe we don't always like our current culture, but at least we know it.)

If I had to be forced to give up my hat I'd be upset. Even if for a "better" hat that had many benefits. My current hat represents many things that I'm loathe to just up and leave behind...

What will the new hat feel like?
Will it look as good on me as my old hat?
Will it suit me?
Will it make me look strange or stand out of the crowd in an embarrassing way?

Is this how it is with a cultural transformation?

Will this new culture fit me?
Will it turn me into a spectacle or put me out there as something strange?
Will it be comfortable?
Basically, WILL I LIKE IT AS MUCH AS THE OLD CULTURE???

Aren't these some of the same questions that our brains may be asking without us even knowing it?

I'm thinking so. I'm guessing that tomorrow the exercise may very well be to not only describe why we brought our hats, but to be asked to take off and leave our hats behind.

I'm thinking I'll have my answer in about 12 hours.

To be continued...

Creating an Enterprise 2.0 Environment: The Power of CHOICE in Work Assignments

2012-05-23T07:30:00.000-07:00

Much has been said about the importance of Gamification and Motivation when it comes to creating the right environment for Enterprise 2.0 cultural transformation to take hold in the workplace; so forgive me for adding yet more commentary on the subject.

I do want to talk about Motivation today but specifically in the context of CHOICE.

To start off I'll tell a story.

Typically Saturdays are chore day at the Hodges house. As my kids are getting older I've been including them more and more in the chores to teach them how to be involved in the upkeep and running of a household as well as a good old fashioned work ethic.

How this usually goes is something like this:

Me: Kids, it's time for Saturday chores!

Kids: Awww Dad. Do we have to?

Me: Yes kids. Isaiah, you do this, this and this. Demaris, you do this and this. Elijah, you do this. (Elijah only gets one THIS as he's 4 and his primary chore is to not interfere with his older brother and sister)

The kids then proceed to half heartedly go about doing the things I've asked them to do. This involves many "Can I be done yet's?" and many "Is this good enough's?" Usually also involves some fighting, no one really helps each other and I don't get much done myself as most of my time is spent policing...

Sound like your house? Maybe it's only at my place.

ENTER A CHANGE OF STRATEGY INVOLVING THE POWER OF CHOICE!!!

As I've been reading and studying ways to motivate and grow participation and satisfaction in the workplace, I attempt many of the learnings on my unsuspecting children.

This particular Saturday everything changed.

I took a piece of paper and wrote down everything that I could think of that could be a chore suitable for 3 kids 10 years and younger. There must have been a dozen or so things on the list.

Then I gave them the ABILITY TO CHOOSE.

Instead of barking out their assignments and who would do what I simply said,

"Kids, here is the list of everything that has to get done today. When everything on the list is complete the rest of the day is yours. You three decide who is going to do each task and I'll be around if you need anything but you're in charge."

That's when the miracle happened.

Faces lit up.
Energy entered the room.
Engagement occurred.
Excitement showed up.
And WOW did chores get done.

The three huddled at the table with pens deciding who was going to do what. They divided and then proceeded to conquer the list in half the time or less compared to usual with NO prodding from me whatsoever. In fact I asked them if they wanted to slow down or take a break from their hard work and I was met with a resounding NO!.

They LOVED THAT THEY GOT TO CHOOSE WHAT THEY GOT TO WORK ON.

I know that our organizations are vastly more complex organisms with many moving parts and people and priorities YET... Why is it that we so rarely offer our hard working people the ability to CHOOSE THE WORK THEY WILL DO?

I am wrong to think that it would be a RAGING SUCCESS in the workplace just as it was in my home?

What have we got to loose?

CONTROL.

That's what we give up.

CONTROL is at the very root of Enterprise 2.0 transformation; The giving up of CONTROL to be more specific.

To truly engage our people we MUST give up the desire and mechanisms of control that we have used in the past to get what we want done.

When we GIVE UP CONTROL and empower our people to make CHOICES we will be astounded at how much ownership and responsibility for our organizations success our people will take!

Be brave. Give up control. Give the blessing of CHOICE!

Social Media Rocket Fuel: Does Empire Avenue Stack Up? #EAv

2012-05-20T15:48:00.000-07:00

I wrote a blog post a few months back on the power of Empire Avenue Missions and their ability to HUGELY elevate your potential audience and impact. I had concluded in that post that Empire Avenue was indeed Social Media Rocket Fuel.

This is a follow up post to that one to reiterate that Empire Avenue indeed is Rocket Fuel and to be careful as it is HIGHLY COMBUSTIBLE!!

I have seen INCREDIBLE increase in readership and exposure of my blog as I've started launching a mission that shadows every post I write.

I've kept the stats on my last few posts and the results are convincing:

My post The Leadercast: Choices. Culture. People had the following statistics:

In approximately 1 hour posted at worst possible time of 1030pm Sunday night:

Blog went from 49 daily views to 879 views.
30 Google +1’s
36 Tweets for total unique twitter audience of 62,000!
3 Facebook Likes (WHAT UP Facebook, why no love???)

My post The Tree Swing: Finding Purpose had the following statistics:

In approximately 1 hour again posted oddly at 1130pm Saturday night:

Blog went from 70 daily views to 850 views
33 Google +1’s
41 Tweets for total unique audience of 41,000!
3 Facebook Likes (still no FB loving...)

As I concluded in that original post, if you are trying to increase your exposure, my experience says that Empire Avenue Missions will IMMEDIATELY AND DIRECTLY do this for you.

Thank you Empire Avenue for your awesomeness.

Find me on Empire Avenue. My Ticker is JORDANHODGES.

Enterprise 2.0, Motivation and Gamification: The Turkey Soup Part 2

2012-05-19T22:45:00.000-07:00

Oh Oh.

Something went horribly wrong in Motivation Land.

The kids stopped eating the turkey soup...
(This only makes sense if you read my earlier post)

WHAT HAPPENED??

What I thought to be a brilliant move in the Gamification of Supper has now failed.

Let me back up.

I had made a game out of finding bones in the turkey soup.
This was exciting and novel for the kids and they gobbled soup like they hadn't eaten for a week THE FIRST TIME.

Fast forward to today.
I pulled out the turkey soup from the freezer, heated it up and presented it to the kids.

Kids: AWESOME DAD!! Do we get 10 cents for every bone we find again??

Me: Why YES OF COURSE YOU DO children!

They dug in.

Then.. THEY STOPPED EATING THE SOUP.

"What's going on" I thought.

Last time they gobbled it right to the bottom and this time they gave a cursory scrape along the bottom to find bones-
and then
just.
stopped.

Me: "What's wrong with the soup guys?"

Kids: "We don't really like the soup Daddy"

They don't really like the soup! My mind raced. What had gone wrong. Then it hit me. Of course.

They ate the soup initially as there was a reward. Rewards have been proven to have some value for short term gain. Over time though, the reward has not been worth it to the kids since they don't really like the soup.

They have no INTRINSIC motivation to eat that soup, only the EXTRINSIC reward that I was offering to them.

Next time I'll have to find a way to connect them with some INTRINSIC motivation to eat the soup...

Although for that one, I have no idea.

And for the record, I didn't really like the soup either.

The Leadercast: Culture. Choices. People.

2012-05-06T21:42:00.000-07:00

Wow.

Mind is reeling.

So many thoughts.

So much inspiration.

Thank you Leadercast 2012.

What I took from the Leadercast Conference this year was quite simple and can be summed up in 3 words:

CULTURE. CHOICES. PEOPLE.

Probably could even boil it down to just PEOPLE.

There were many great speakers including:
Angela Ahrendts, Burberry
Patrick Lencioni, author/speaker
John Maxwell, author/speaker

And many great quotes including:

In order for a company to truly experience a transformation of its culture, the leaders must first experience their own transformation John Maxwell

The choices you make, make you John Maxwell

Managers lead everybody the same, Leaders lead everybody different John Maxwell

To build a healthy organizational culture the first thing you need is to "Build a Cohesive Leadership Team" (Patrick Lencioni) without that true cultural transformation is impossible.

A leader is a dedicated practitioner in the art of CHOOSING Dr. Sheena Iyengar

Culture trumps vision. Every. Time. Angela Ahrendts, Burberry.

Being stuck in the middle of our own corporate transformation, there are days when I can't see the forest for the trees.
Change is hard. One of the speakers mentioned that being a leader is an uphill road the whole way! Ouch.

As I've reflected back on my experience as a leader, my company's transformation journey, and what I just learned at this years Leadercast I have concluded that more than ever we need to connect with our people.

We need to be vulnerable. Let people in. Let them see your sweaty armpits and have a laugh. Let them know that you don't have all the answers. Let them know that most of them are smarter than you. Let them know that the culture IS the people.

Let them know that the choices that they make every day ARE the culture of the organization and let fellow leaders know that the choices they make every day ARE the culture.

You cannot side step or get around it: The culture of our organizations is ENTIRELY created by You+Me.

I am realizing that we must all work together to build it. We cannot buy it. We cannot "copy" someone else's culture. We must work together to create our own. Meaningful yet difficult work.

In a moment of despondence I threw the following update out to my Facebook timeline:

"My mind is spinning. What an amazing day at Leadercast. Wishing it wasn't so hard to implement the strategies and learnings in the workplace."

One of my coworkers who is much wiser than I, responded with the following:

Start with you. Then have a significant conversation. Then have another one. Eventually it all adds up.

So there you have it.
Start with you.
Start making the right choices every day.
Build relationship with your fellow leaders to create space for unity.
Be real.
Be vulnerable.

Watch transformation happen!

The Tree Swing: Finding Purpose

2012-04-29T21:00:00.000-07:00

Potential.

The Tree Swing.
A symbol.

Freedom.
Carefree.
Wind.
Laughter.
Rush.
Life.

Can a swing really deliver all of this? I hope so. It's the reason I created it.

Going through separation/divorce as a parent has taught me many things and most important of all - Don't take time with your kids for granted. Ever.

As I said goodbye to my kids for the millionth time this past Saturday I sat down on my front step deep in thought.
What can I do for my kids when they aren't with me that will bless them when they are?
SWING!

My kids love to swing, particularly my 7 year old daughter.

Not being the handiest tool in the shed, I found excellent instructions on how to create a tree swing.

The Tree

I followed them exactly as outlined with an outstanding result.

After completing the swing I jumped on it and tried it out.

Flying through the air.
Beautiful.
Thoughts of my girl.

Can't wait for her to try it.
Anticipation.
I wait.
Like the swing.

REFLECT.

Simple Tools

The materials and tools required to make the swing are so simple.
The work required was average and would have been easy had it not been my first time.
The outcome has HUGE potential yet it has yet to perform.

The swing was made for the kids to experience freedom, wind, the rush; yet it just sits there.
Empty and still.

Isn't this how we all are? We are put together with basic parts and basic abilities yet each of us have a special purpose.

We are each made for a special purpose. Designed to do something perfectly.

Have you been sitting idle like the empty swing?

Spend the time. Understand your purpose. Shine. You will never be more fulfilled or complete.

Don't stay like my swing...

Unfulfilled purpose.

Empire Avenue: Social Media Rocket fuel?

2012-04-03T21:23:00.001-07:00

I've been striving for a few months now to create social media content that matters.

For the most part, I'm focusing that content on blog posts right here on Jordan's Hodgepodge.

As I've been more creative in my labels for search I've also been exploring ways to use other social media tools to increase the readership of my articles.

To date, my biggest success has been the use of Empire Avenue Missions!

My last blog post Enterprise 2.0, Motivation and Gamification: If my kids can get it... had tremendous exposure and potential reach. I attibute the majority of that to the EA Mission that I set up.

After creating the post I did 4 simple things.

First I shared the post on Google+.
Second, I shared the post on Facebook.
Third, I shared the post on Twitter.
Fourth, I created a mission on EA to view the blog.
Fifth, I created a second mission on EA because the first one sold out so fast :-)

The results
In a 24 hour span the post received:
38021 potential audience through Twitter (source www.tweetreach.com)
209 unique page views of the post
36 Google +1's
24 Empire Avenue Likes
22 Tweets or retweets
20 Comments on the blog
8 Empire Avenue comments
6 Facebook likes
2 Facebook comments

So for you bloggers of awesomeness out there, these numbers will be peanuts, but for me these kind of numbers in a 24 hour period are great!

So what did it cost me to get this kind of exposure?

It cost me about 10 minutes to set up the EA missions.
It cost me about 1 million Eaves (Empire Avenue currency). (Hey the currency is virtual why not spend it on something tangible!)

And that was it.

So is Empire Avenue creating Social Media Rocket fuel?

My experience last week says it is.

And in fact if you're reading this post as a result of the mission I've attached please leave a comment stating so as proof of why you came!!

Enterprise 2.0, Motivation and Gamification: If my kids can get it...

2012-03-26T21:30:00.000-07:00

I've been doing a lot of reading lately about motivation in the workplace, gamification of work and enterprise 2.0. As I've been consuming this, I was also facing a dilema with my kids insatiable appetite for playing on their Nintendo 3DS's. As both were swirling around in my mind at the same time, why not see if any of the information I had ingested could apply to their context.

From my Reading:
One of the simple concepts in workplace motivation is autonomy.
One of the simple concepts in workplace gamification is credits/rewards.

Thinking about those two simple pieces I planned my attack.

I launched the initiative on my kids on a Friday afternoon, and it basically was introduced like this:
For every hour the kids spent reading, doing math homework, or doing chores they would earn a one hour credit to be spent however they saw fit. (translation "video games")

Simple enough?

By the end of the weekend I had witnessed what I deem to be incredible results.

My 7 year old completed the following:
She worked on her math facts book for 2.5 hours.
She read for .5 hours.
She did 1.5 hours of chores.
Total Credits earned was 4.5.
She only used up 2 leaving her with 2.5 credits.

My 9 year old completed the following:
He read for 2 hours.
He did chores for 2 hours.
Total Credits earned was 4.
He ended up "spending" all 4 of his credits on Mario Kart 7 for Nintendo 3DS :-)

My 4 year old completed the following:
He read for 1 hour (LeapPad actually as he can't read yet)
He did chores for 1 hour.
Total Credits earned was 2.
He also "spent" all of his credits on Mario Kart 7.

The thing I learned is that the kids were HAPPY with this arrangement.
Not only did they NEVER complain about the reading or the math or the chores, so those things got done, they also appreciated their play time IMMENSELY more than they did before.

They had to earn it.

They learned the power of earning.
They learned how good it feels to have autonomy.
They learned how to "spend".
They learned how to "budget".
They learned that most things in life have a "cost" attached to them.
I ceased being "the taskmaster". They became self directed work teams! Did I mention they are 4, 7 and 9!

At one point my son asked if he could borrow a half a credit from me and pay me back.
I told him No but chuckled as I explained to him that ON HIS OWN he had just understood the concept of the credit card and loan industry.

Amazing and soooo simple.

I'm sure people smarter than I have already figured these things out but my eyes were opened.

Now if only it were this simple to launch a Credits program in the workplace...

Thoughts?

The Social Enterprise: A brief history

2012-03-04T11:47:00.001-08:00

While reading one of my favorite blogs thesocialworkplace.com I came across this great infographic on SoMe evolution. Check it out...
Original article can be viewed here: