After an hour or so my back started to hurt from the crappy chair I was sitting in so I decided to create my very own “stand up desk to go” in honor of my recent home office stand up desk.

And for the record… my little arrangement worked great!  See what a little creativity and problem solving can accomplish?

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Anyhow, I wasn’t quite sure what to make of the idea.  I mean come on… standing up all the time… seriously?  The claims are that those that always stand are far more productive than those that sit in comfortable chairs.

Kevin Takes Action

Well, a few months after I got back from Japan my friend Kevin Meyer went on this same JKE trip and saw the same thing I did.  The only difference is Kevin took action when he got home and scrapped his traditional desk for a stand up desk.  It’s now more than one year later and Kevin is still standing.

It’s Now My Time

So, alas, I decided it was time to give it a try myself and this weekend I converted my old desk into a stand up desk.

I used an old shelf I had to hold my monitor and speakers so the only thing on the desk top was my wireless keyboard and mouse.

I used a small hole saw to cut an opening behind the monitor and down towards the floor to hide all the cables which is really nice.

How Did You Do It?

Now, you might be wondering how I increased the height of my desk.  Well, my goal was to not spend a cent on this project so I got creative and used two storage crates I already had to hold the desk up.

I know it’s not super professional and I’ll likely find a better solution over the next few weeks… but I didn’t want to delay anymore than I had.  And, again, I didn’t want to spend any money until I was convinced this was how I wanted to work for the next 30 years!

So Far So Good

It’s taking some getting used to… especially typing.  But my back feels great and I find myself far more focused on what I need to do.  So, we’ll see how it goes.  I’ll offer some updates from time to time and when (and if) I scrap the crates for something more professional I’ll be sure to let you know!

What Do You Think?

So, do you think I’m nuts?  Or are you standing at your desk as you read this?  And if you’re sitting could you ever imagine giving this stand up desk thing a try?

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The RSS feed content you are reading is copyrighted by the author, Ron Pereira. If you are reading this material on a site other than LSS Academy, the web site is likely infringing on the author's copyright.

“In everything consider the consequences.”
- La Fontaine

A few articles ago I proposed the idea that successful leaders, in addition to being humble, should also practice the 4 Cardinal virtues.

I also committed to expand on this idea with more thoughts on each virtue.

As such, tonight we begin this journey with a discussion of the Cardinal virtue of prudence.

Prudence Defined

There are many definitions of prudence available such as the exercise of sound judgment in practical affairs.

But what does this really mean? More specifically, how does a leader of people practice this important virtue?

Prudence is Not Analysis Paralysis

First, I’d like to propose what prudence is not. Specifically, the prudent leader does not fall into what is often referred to as analysis paralysis.

In other words, while they do take the time to study the facts of the situation they are able, and more importantly, willing to make the tough call once they are confident in the way forward.

In fact, this aligns perfectly with what Jim Collins wrote about in his book Good to Great, as so called Level 5 Leaders almost always exhibit the will and courage to make the tough call after studying the facts.

Think Before You Leap

Now, to be clear, the prudent leader definitely thinks before he or she leaps.

In other words, to be prudent means to make sound decisions after weighing all of the options.

Some say that prudence is nothing more than the avoidance of reckless behavior.  Of course this may be oversimplifying things a bit but recklessness is most definitely an imprudent attribute so perhaps it’s the perfect description after all!

Long Term Perspective

Next, it’s my belief that the prudent leader always maintains a long term perspective when making decisions.

In other words, these leaders make decisions based on how to win the war rather than an individual battle.

As the co-owner of a business I can honestly tell you this is easier said (and written) than done. But, then again, no one said being a leader is easy.

Father of all Virtues

Lastly, St. Thomas Aquinas considered prudence to be the cause, measure and form of all virtues. This is to say without prudence a leader cannot possibly practice any of the other virtues.

For example, without prudence a leader cannot practice the virtue of temperance as it would be impossible to determine if they were being driven by a craving/desire or legitimate need.

What Does Prudence Mean to You?

This is what prudence means to me… but, as always, I am more interested in what you think.

Do you agree with my assessment of what prudence is? Additionally, in your opinion, how does a leader practice this important virtue?

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Your generous support helps us pay the bills around here (i.e. monthly hosting, site maintenance, etc.) without having to plaster annoying Google ads all over the place.

I just did a quick check and learned that people from all over the world have purchased the audio book since we launched it in July.

Specifically, upon last check folks from the following countries have been kind enough to purchase the audio book:

Australia, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, Colombia, Finland, Germany, Hungary, India, Latvia, Netherlands, Philippines, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and the United States.

That’s pretty amazing and most definitely humbling.

Last Chance at Introductory Pricing

In any event, I launched this product at an introductory price of $7.95 and will continue to honor this price through the end of this week… after which time the price will go up.

So, if you’d like to pick up the LSS Academy Guide to Lean Audio Book for just $7.95 please do so before this coming Friday, October 23.  After that the price will increase.

Money Back Guarantee

And as we mention on the sales page… if you are not 100% happy with the purchase for whatever reason just let me know and I will refund your money no questions asked.

Again, thanks for all of your support.  I truly appreciate you.

Purchase the LSS Academy Guide to Lean Manufacturing Audio Book Now.

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As is normally the case, I learned a lot from all the comments. I agreed with some of them and disagreed with others… but one question that seemed to rise to the top was whether humility is something that can be developed?

My initial, knee jerk reaction, was of course it can be developed and I set off to write how this is the case.

Reflection

Then I decided to take a step back and really ponder the question. And during this reflection I was reminded of the central part of my life – my faith.

Specifically, when thinking about humility my thoughts immediately went to the virtue of temperance. Then I was reminded of the other 3 cardinal virtues – prudence, justice, and courage.

The Light Goes Off

And then it hit me. While humility is of course an important characteristic of a leader… it, in isolation, doesn’t come close to equaling the power of the 4 cardinal virtues.

With this said, I’ve decided to dive into each of the 4 cardinal virtues over the next few articles discussing how each of them plays a role in the life of an excellent leader no matter if they are a person or faith or not.

But before we jump into each virtue I’d like to offer a few words regarding the origins of these virtues.

Cardinal Virtues Background

As it turns out, Plato is credited with initially deriving these virtues while theologians like St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Augustine of Hippo went on to expand and adapt them to the ways of faith.

Finally, in case you wondered, the word cardinal is derived from the Latin word cardo, which means hinge.

As such, the cardinal virtues are often referred to as the hinges to which the doors of morality, faith, and I personally believe leadership swing.

Stay Tuned , Subscribe, and Last Chance!

So, please stay tuned to hear my reasoning! And if you have any thoughts on the matter I’d love to hear them in the comments section below.

To make sure you don’t miss any of these articles please subscribe to LSS Academy by email or RSS reader.

Finally, if you haven’t downloaded the LSS Academy Guide to Lean Audio Book please check it out today as we are raising the price next week.  Of course, all profits made go right back into making LSS Academy better than it is today.

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Humility

To start with, Level 5 Leaders are humble.

In other words, those that Collins and his team of researcher’s labeled Level 5 Leaders rarely, if ever, took credit for their company’s outstanding performance.

Many of them would, in fact, pass their company’s success off as luck or being in the right place at the right time.

The analogy of a window and mirror was also used to describe Level 5 Leaders. Specifically, these leaders tend to always look out their window at their associates when explaining their company’s success while always looking in the mirror when dealing with or explaining how problems arose.

Collins contrasts this with companies that were not being lead by Level 5 Leaders. These companies are often lead by tyrants who tend to blame others (look out window) for their failures while always being the first to accept credit (look in mirror) for any success.

And the blame these tyrants pass off knows no boundaries… employees get blamed, the economy gets blamed, low cost competition gets blamed, etc. Just about everyone and everything gets blame with one exception – the way they personally lead the organization.

The Will to Succeed

The next characteristic Level 5 Leaders display is an unquenchable will to succeed.

These leaders will do just about anything needed to move their company forward… including, for example, the firing of family members and anyone else they feel is not capable of this level of leadership.

I couldn’t help myself from struggling a bit throughout this section since, it seems, there is a very fine line between what Collins is talking about while still maintaining a focus of respect for people.

Of course, while many people speak about how companies like Toyota practice respect for people… what they often leave out is that Toyota leaders can be ruthless as they shun and ignore underperforming associates… which often leads to the underperformer resigning in shame.

Of course, with this said, sometimes people are not in the right jobs and a change is needed for the good of the company and the associate. The key, it seems, is how these difficult decisions are handled.

Additionally, Level 5 Leaders also hold firm to difficult business decisions and are not swayed when others begin to panic and/or attempt to continue status quo.

For example, Walgreen’s former CEO made the decision to move out of the restaurant business while continuing to develop what he felt was their true core competency – their drug stores.

This was an extremely hard decision – and one he faced a lot of opposition to – yet he never wavered. And as a result of this move, coupled with other sound decisions, Walgreens went on to enjoy phenomenal success which they continue to enjoy today.

What do you think?

So, it seems the two primary characteristics of the Level 5 Leader are straight forward – be humble while holding fast to the path you feel is best for the organization no matter how difficult it may be.

I’d like to turn it over to you, are in 100% agreement with this leadership style? Do you think Level 5 Leadership is essential for a company to succeed?

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As an aside, FastCap has been practicing lean for several years and, I’m honored to say, is a customer of Gemba Academy!

Please note: If you are reading this via email or your RSS reader you’ll likely need to click through to the website.

Kaizen – FastCap Style from FastCap on Vimeo.

See a demonstration of Kaizen… FastCap style.

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Mark, if I may be so bold, doesn’t really believe in certifications… especially if the words six sigma are involved!

Me, well I do have certification in six sigma… and am proud of it as I had to work my butt off for it.  And, more importantly, my certification got me interviews for jobs I wouldn’t have ever gotten without the certification.

With this said, I  am always interested in what others – like Mark – have to say on the matter.

So, while I am all about comments here on LSS Academy I’d like to encourage you to visit the Lean Blog and continue the discussion there rather than here.  As of this post there are more than 40 comments!  So please head on over there and keep the discussion going LSS Academy readers!

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