Don’t Drop Your Monkey Cup!

Posted on August 27, 2009 by pdncoach

Values. According to commonly practiced “rules” of both personal development and strategic planning, individuals, teams and organizations must identify their Core Values and live by them to be authentic and successful in pursuit of a vision. I agree wholeheartedly.

Understanding what one values most explains so much that might otherwise be misunderstood, difficult or just down-right confusing. Everyone lives by a creed, basic values, a moral code that is either spoken or unspoken…adhered to or not…acted upon either consistently or inconsistently. Can you articulate your values and live by them as well?

Values guide our decisions; values determine our choices; values define our character and the product of our days. Values, whether we are aware of them or not, determine how we act, how we treat others, how we respond to opportunity and adversity, and how much value we add to the world around us. Values may make my behavior easy to predict, but in a good way. My values create a clear image of the person I strive to be.

Values inform our expenditures of time, of money, of relational collateral and of commitment to change. I’ve written this before but it always bears repeating: if you aren’t sure where to begin identifying your core values look at your checkbook register and your daily planner; where are you investing your primary resources of money and time? Ask yourself what you really want, and ask your friends and loved ones about what they think you value most.

Values. They make us who we are as individuals, as families, as businesses, as churches, as 4-H clubs, or however we come together in community or corporate purpose.

What are your values? What do you hold most dearly?

My Twitter Friend (make that Twiend), Marie Wikle (@spreadingjoy) loves her coffee, and drinks daily from her favorite coffee mug – the monkey cup with the broken arm that also serves as the cup’s handle (pictured above). Marie holds her monkey cup dearly. Seeing how she writes about her beloved monkey cup, I have to wonder which warms her more – her coffee or her monkey cup! Here is a recent Tweet from Marie:

“@pdncoach i love my monkey cup – the handle is his arm. Have dropped it and glued it back on several times. I can’t toss him out.”

I also know that Marie values family, her daughter and husband, and her ministry of Spreading Joy through powerful actions that add measurable value to her community. These things she holds dearly.

What you value most is what matters most at The Intersection of Purpose and Now.

  • What things, what ideals, what relationships are you “holding onto dearly”?
  • What is it that you are willing to “toss out”?
  • What is most important to you?
  • What do you really want out of life? What do you really want to experience today?
  • What is it that you want others to say and believe about you?
  • What are the vital few “Monkey Cups” in your life? (Have you ever had to repair an arm? I sure have; broken values must be mended.)

Living at The Intersection of Purpose and Now is about living a remarkable life by your own God-given definition, stabilized and purified by focusing on your most valued beliefs and relationships. Living at this Intersection is about personal leadership. It’s about knowing your purpose in life and your purpose in this moment. It’s about thinking On Purpose, feeling On Purpose, acting On Purpose.

Living at The Intersection of Purpose and Now is about re-connecting your thoughts and actions with your deepest VALUES and purpose, and engendering the same connection in others. It’s about having the courage to take action now on the things most important to you, about achieving what may seem just beyond your reach.

Living at The Intersection of Purpose and Now is about holding on to your Monkey Cup and, if you should ever drop it, mending it with loving care and glue that holds it to its original design.

Don’t Drop Your Monkey Cup. Hold onto it dearly. Join me at the Intersection of Purpose & Now.

Join me at the Intersection of Purpose & Now.
Posted in core values, personal development, strategic planning, values | Leave a comment

The Intersection of Leadership and Leadership Culture Part 4

Posted on August 26, 2009 by pdncoach


Ted Kennedy, Low-Potential Leader

I did not intend for there to be a “Part 4” of my series on The Intersection of Leadership and Leadership Culture. But I was struck by the death of Senator Ted Kennedy this morning after his painful bout with brain cancer. I have never been a fan of his politics, but have become a fan of the man and the leader this man became in the latter part of his life.

Kennedy, despite his many failings – and there were many – became what I call a great leader. If there is any sort of positive leadership culture in the U.S. Senate or Congress in general, Ted Kennedy, the youngest Kennedy son, the “black sheep” of that revered American family, the failed presidential candidate turned honored statesman, played a seminal role.

I could not have expressed my thoughts on the meaning of Kennedy’s life as a leader as well as author Sarah Green has in Harvard Business Publishing’s “Conversation Starter” for today. So for today, learn something more about the Intersection of Leadership and Leadership Culture, and about the Intersection of Purpose and Now, by reading Sarah Green’s brief summation of the life and death of Senator Ted Kennedy.

Ted Kennedy, Low-Potential Leader

Join me at the Intersection of Purpose & Now.
Posted in culture, harvard business school, leadership, Purpose | Leave a comment

The Intersection of Leadership and The Leadership Culture Part 3

Posted on August 17, 2009 by pdncoach

This is part three of our series about the intersection of how leaders develop a culture of leadership around them. Today, we draw directly from a conference article by Pastor Dave Ferguson of Community Christian Church in Suburban Chicago titled Lessons Learned While Starting New Things. Following are five elements necessary to develop an organizational culture that nurtures leadership capabilities that exist in everyone.

  1. Vision – a vision is never wholly your own and neither is a culture. When your leadership culture becomes the product of your vision and the recognized source for your vision, that is when you will have a compelling vision that people will follow. Your vision may be a story you need to tell, it may come from a variety of experiences, it may be inspired by the people in your organization and, ideally, by your customers. The visions that seem to evolve from all of these sources and more – those will be the most compelling visions of all.

  2. Strategy made simple – many leaders fail because their strategy is too complicated. Can you explain yours on the back of a napkin? Can you make compelling your vision or value statement, your key strategies and your major goals by drawing it up quickly over coffee with a colleague?

  3. Financial Viability – money always follows vision; vision does not follow money. Let’s face it, if you already have the resources to support your vision, it doesn’t require much vision, just a little action! The leader who says his business exists to “make a profit” may struggle to attract and maintain customers. The leader who says his business exists to attract and maintain customers is better positioned to increase profits.

  4. Innovation – when you are approached with a new idea and your first reaction is a “How”, “Why” or even “No”, you may kill innovation and your culture all in one. People want to make a difference and pursue their own dreams. What they need is a permission-giving leader who equips them to give it a try. Ferguson says it best:

    “What people need is affirmation of their dreams and space for them to figure out how to make them really work.”

  5. Building Bench Strength – effective leaders create healthy leadership cultures where anyone can explore his or her potential for leadership. Young leaders especially, but leaders at every career stage need the opportunity to lead. Perhaps the truest sign of a mature leader is the ability to get out of the way and let others lead, demonstrate your own willingness to follow even if you are a senior leader or at the “top” of the organization. Ultimately, a healthy leadership culture is one that allows risk-taking among emerging leaders.
Join me at the Intersection of Purpose & Now.
Posted in culture, leadership, strategy, vision | Leave a comment