With Freedom Comes Responsibility!

I had left Hyderabad at 9:00 pm in the evening on my way to Mumbai in order to connect to a 2:00 am international flight to Frankfurt to get home to Toronto. I finally arrived at Frankfurt 8:00 in the morning. With only 1.5 hours between connecting flights, I rushed to the lounge to take a shower, make a change of clothes and have some breakfast. As I entered the sitting area, it was then the news of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan reached me. As I watched the TV monitor, I like everyone else was shocked!

My daughter Joanna is in Mokpo, South Korea. My son Richard was in Chile. My wife Linda was at home in Oakville, but with the time difference I was not able to connect with anyone. My immediate concern was Joanna. I didn’t know if the earthquake and/or tsunami had affected S. Korea in any way, and of course of greater concern was the potential risk arising from the damage to the nuclear reactors. Upon arrival at Pearson International Airport at 1:00 pm, I finally was able to connect with Linda, and she assured me that Joanna was fine. However, much to my surprise, I was told Richard was being evacuated out of the Chilean village he was staying, and directed to higher ground to avoid the danger from a potential tsunami that was expected to reach the area at midnight. After much worry and continued loss of sleep, the warning for Chile had been lifted. I could finally relax that both kids were safe. Yes, my kids were safe, that’s all that matters. But as I watched the news, tens of thousands of people had died, hundreds of thousands of people left homeless, and a world in mourning, I felt helpless and sad. While my family was safe for now, I realized, the emotions I was carrying, was nothing compared to the mom or dad, the son or daughter, who had to face such tragedy was feeling.

I was left thinking how can I help? What can I do? I had this driving need to contribute in some concrete way but was left doing what most of us might do, texting on my cell phone a number that automatically contributes a small amount of money to a charitable fund for relief efforts to those hurt or displaced by such a awful circumstance. But certainly I could do more!

Several weeks have passed now. Other events crowd the news. The situation in Japan remains grave, the death toll rises, the threat of a nuclear meltdown increases, and the needs of hundreds of thousands homeless and hungry Japanese grow. But our attention has been redirected to a war in Libya, a war ignited for control of the country and for a dream of democratic freedom. Other wars continue, some costing the West $2 billion a week, but to be truthful I struggle with the reason, why, the purpose, the need for such destruction (with this type of destruction not being natural but man made).

But then another war (albeit peaceful) broke out at home, with a federal election being forced upon us in Canada (an emotional war).  This will be our fifth election in seven years. Another $300 million dollars spent. A billion dollars expensed over seven years. While I appreciate our democratic freedom to vote, and will do so at the polling booth in a few weeks, I can’t help but question why?  Why so many elections? Why such uncertainty? Why such waste?

Our governments (plural) report there is no extra money to address the growing needs of the infirmed, the unemployed, the widowed, and the homeless or to invest in new jobs. There is no money for schools, health care, transportation and seniors. However, over $1,000,000,000 has been spent to finance five elections in seven years. With election campaigns come promises of expenditures in areas where previously there was no money available.

So I am brought back again to my question: Why?

When we decided to begin writing this column several years ago, I was told it cannot be used for any political reason or influence. So I won’t.

What I will say is that with freedom comes responsibility. Our governments seem to have lost sight of that. I hope we don’t. I hope that when we are asked to vote, to exercise our democratic freedom, that so many are fighting to obtain, we as CMAs show leadership and understand our responsibility that is attached to that freedom.

Get out and vote! Please!

Mantras of Success

“To gain the world but lose our family in the process is not success at all.”

If you visit any book store and go to the life section, you will find numerous books providing the 7 or 10 steps to success. If you just follow these simple rules you will enjoy a life of success and prosperity. People must buy the books because book stores continue to display and stock them. I’m not one to really put much faith though in what they have to say. I’d rather hear from people who have had the experience and learning to provide the advice and counsel instead.

I just returned from a trip to India. I was there to meet with the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmadabad and the India School of Business-Hyderabad to discuss implementing a joint MBA/CMA program like we have with so many Canadian universities. My predecessor David Hipgrave sowed the seed at these leading academic institutions and after three years of watering that seed I was pleased to finally confirm that we have a pilot group of IIM-Ahmadabad students enrolled in the CMA program (we will call them the fruit of our labour!!). In addition, the ISB is seriously considering the same program for their students. We were also able to develop relationships so that we share our research products, which will eventually be provided to all the CMA Ontario members through our PDI website. I must admit, I was pleased with the success after so much effort.

Once back at my hotel, I sat and read the local newspaper. Inside was a special feature honouring business leaders for the success they enjoyed. Each leader was asked to reveal their “mantra of success.” I found their expressions very interesting. Here are a few of the quotations:

It’s all because.... “My success which has been recognized by The Time Group, is all because of my family, my sons, and also my highly dedicated staff without whose hard work I would not have been here to receive this honour.” BS Sandu, WWICS Group, Mohali

We need a global sight… “The most challenging thing an Indian entrepreneur has to face is integrating family with the business. That is an exception, which is not found anywhere else in the world. We need to think globally and have a global sight. We also need to have more training programmes to generate good people to work for us.” Neerja Saluja, SEL

Honouring commitments…“I believe that my success lies in the values imbibed in us as children. We owe our knowledge and skill to our father and are grateful to have learnt early in life how to take our venture to greater heights. Having higher aspirations and honouring commitments to achieve them.” Sanjeev Kalra, Deepak Fasteners, Ludhiana

Strong will and positive thought…“To be successful I think that one needs very basic qualities. Strong will, positive thought, determination to succeed through hard work and support of family are the main factors that help an individual explore his/her skills. There are no shortcuts to success.” Pawan Goyal, Chemical Resources, Panchkula

Start building a dream from scratch…“Family support is most important in life. When aiming to reach such heights and start from scratch, one has to be very careful and consider the whole family’s opinion. It is a privilege to have such an opportunity in India where family values and ties still hold key importance in any venture.” SK Punj, Sri Sai 
University, Palampur

Be passionate…“An achiever has to be persistent with his dream, along with the support from his/her family, it’s a good team that makes your venture successful.” Rajan Pratap Singh, Sunrise Immigration, Chandigarh

Success is not money… “Money is not the measure of success. I had at a point earned enough money for me and my family and later realized that greater success lies in using that money to make everyone around you grow along with you. It is my family who has supported me all throughout.” IS Brar, Zanders Engineers, Mohali

And there were more:
A vision for the future…
Do it differently…
The target should be very clear…
It’s about firm belief…
The ability to take risks…
Professionalism…
I took my failures as my stepping stones to success…
Strong will and positive thought…
No short cut to success…
Success means happiness…
Futuristic approach…
Drive the dream…
Spirituality is the key…
Faith in humanity and God…

I was challenged to stop and think about what I would write if were to be asked the same question. What would you write?

As I read the article again I noticed a common word in most of the quotations. It was “family”. Many of those quoted recognized the influence family had on their success and with great success it was important not to lose focus on family. That caused me to take my phone and call home just to let my family know that in the middle of some contained celebration, I had not forgotten about what is really the most important focus in my life and that is my family.

On February 21, 2011, let’s celebrate family. Whether they are near or far, alive or departed, let’s be forgiving and thankful and recognize that “to gain the world but lose our family in the process is not success at all.”

Authority

Three years after joining CMA Ontario in August 2007, I’ve learned much about authority (“governance”) and how that impacts or influences one’s leadership.

As a kid I was the youngest of five brothers with a sister behind me. My parents were certainly not as attentive to me as they were with my oldest brother and my younger sister. I was pretty much left on my own to fend for myself and also to do my own thing. There were the occasional acts of discipline to let me know Dad was still in charge (“leadership”), but they were few and far between. As I grew older I became more independent.  This freedom became a significant factor in how I approached life. My parents had instilled in me a high value system, so (“major”) breaches in ethical and legal codes were never the case. But since I loved my independence, having to work in jobs that were so rules based (“accounting”) and with such strict reviews (“audits”) in addition to strict supervisory oversight, were always a challenge. I always wondered why so many had to check what I had done, was doing or was planning to do. 

Fortunately I landed in companies where my superiors gave me tremendous freedom and independence. Finally, once I became President the shareholders of the company simply said, “All we expect of you is to produce an ROI that meets our investment goals and we will leave you alone.  But if you don’t, we will get someone who can!” So this great status in having freedom of will and choice that I thought was the ultimate position in life had its price. At one point I wasn’t convinced I would be able to meet the ROI goal expected of me, so we sold the company. 

Moving in to the role of President & CEO of CMA Ontario was a huge paradigm shift for me and a huge risk for the Board of Directors (BOD). They hired someone from an entrepreneurial background to lead a regulated not-for profit accounting organization with a well established governance (“authority”) structure. My attitude coming into the job couldn’t be one of “I’ll do what I want” as I had been used to most of my life. I had to accept and respect the source of my authority that influenced my leadership. I quickly learned that the BOD receives its authority from the Members (while focused on the interests of the corporation). The President & CEO receives his/her authority from the BOD. Management receives its authority from the President & CEO and so on. It seems so simple, and it is, and it works, most of the time. I am given the freedom to carry out my role and responsibilities and exercise my leadership according to the authoritative code (“governance”) that is laid out for me. If I breach that authoritative code (“governance”), conflict arises and if not resolved, consequences are applied.

But it made me think. Why do some of those in our organizations have such problems with authority (“governance”)? Why do these people at times in their careers believe they are not subject to the ones that are in authority, that is those that have been put in a position of leadership? What causes leaders to be impotent, incapable of fulfilling their mandate?

An article written by Eric Klein of Dharma Consulting addresses this topic quite well. 

When it comes to leadership, most organizations (people) are the same way: we want and don’t want leadership.

We’re ambivalent about leadership.
We like it when people exercise leadership in ways that are inspiring and bring out our best qualities. We like leadership that generates breakthrough results without requiring us to break a sweat. But we don’t want leadership if it causes discomfort, confusion, or sore muscles (mentally and emotionally). We don’t want to have to go through a lot of messy transformation on our way to breakthrough results.

This ambivalence makes exercising leadership a real challenge.
Because the people you work with both want and don’t want you to exercise leadership. Essentially, they want you to resolve their struggles without any . . . well . . . struggle. And that is rarely possible. So, when you take leadership action – you’ll be met with an ambivalent response. In some ways, your leadership is longed for and welcomed. In other ways, it’s the last thing anyone really wants from you.

This ambivalence applies to your boss, your peers, and your direct reports.
And it makes the practice of leadership tricky. Marty Linsky, of Harvard’s Kennedy School, captures this trickiness perfectly in his phrase: “Leadership is disappointing people at a rate they can absorb.”

Facing this ambivalence can trigger your own doubts and hesitancy about exercising leadership.
Better, it seems, to rely on your authority – the power that comes with your job description. At least, when you wield your designated authority, no one can say you’re not doing your job. Because, that’s exactly what you will be doing when you act within those well-defined bounds.

It’s when you step over the line of your sanctioned authority that you enter into the ambivalent world of leadership.
That’s when people can say, with some justification:

• “Who does he/she think he is?”
• “That’s not her/his job!”
• “We don’t have to listen to him/her.”

When people sense that you’re acting outside the bounds of your sanctioned authority – they’re ambivalent.
A part of them is relieved and thankful that at last someone is speaking the truth. While another part of them is irritated and anxious about dealing with issues that have been unspoken, even taboo, for so long.

When people in your organization call out to you for leadership – be aware.
They do want leadership. And they don’t. For a lot of reasons: their plate is full; they’re busy and overwhelmed. And they’re comfortable in their current state – no matter how miserable that comfort may appear.

All this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t lead.
It just means that you need a strong sense of purpose to guide you. A purpose that can keep you company as you encounter the inevitable ups and downs that will occur as you experience the organization’s ambivalence to leadership.

This purpose is at once deeply personal and organizationally relevant.
It can’t simply be an idea that’s logical. Logical arguments rarely have the power to withstand organizational ambivalence. (This is not to say that you must abandon logic. No. You must simply augment the logic of your position with a deeply felt sense of values and purpose.)

The more intimately you can fuse your own sense of values with the idea you’re proposing – the more you will be able to weather the storm of ambivalence.

Are you ready to wade in? Here are some questions to get started:

• What is an issue that you believe needs attention and is currently being neglected?
• What is a conversation that you believe needs to happen but which is currently being avoided?
• What is an idea that you believe needs to be championed but is currently without powerful sponsorship?

Your answers to these questions are your invitation to exercise leadership.
But, don’t dive right in. Recognize that you will be welcomed and resisted. Embraced and argued with. It’s inevitable. So, take it slowly. Because while what you’re offering the organization may, from your perspective, look as tempting and tasty as wonderful dessert. But people can only absorb it a spoonful at a time.

Those in leadership may find themselves in a lonely place at times. It takes courage, perseverance and a strong sense of purpose to overcome those who resist you. Don’t give up because your leadership is required to move the organization forward. At the same time, don’t misuse your authority.

Staying Focused

"The sun's energy warms the world. But when you focus it through a magnifying glass it can start a fire. Focus is so powerful!" - Alan Pariser

It has been at least 25 years since I had a speeding ticket. Recently I was travelling north on Highway 400. The traffic was flowing at 110-120km/h. For most of my 2½ hour trip, I stayed focused on maintaining a speed limit that would be acceptable to the ever watchful OPP. I was only 20 minutes from my destination when suddenly, I saw an OPP officer run to his vehicle, set the blue and red lights afire and rush onto the highway. I was confident he was about to chase another driver or drivers who seemed to be going faster than me. He stayed behind me though. I looked down at my speedometer, and to my horror it was at 125km/h. It was then I knew I had to pull over, because the culprit being chased was me. He walked up to my car, I rolled down the window. He simply said, “I clocked you driving at 125km/h in a 100km/h zone.” My response: “I guess I lost focus on what I was doing.” A ticket of $120 and 3 demerit points was my just reward.

We have all had the experience of driving long distances when many kilometres have passed and we wonder where the time went and how we got so far without really being aware of what we were doing. Current traffic laws deny us of cell phone use while driving. Large signs are posted at regular intervals warning us of speeding. Traffic signs guide us through dangerous curves, wet and slippery road sections, animal crossings, narrow bridges, oncoming vehicles, reduced lanes and the like. All of this is done not to restrict our destination goal but to help us stay focused. To lose focus increases risk, invites danger and if ignored, could result in injury or the loss of life.

Every successful athlete recognizes that a sports competition is not won solely be being physically stronger but by being mentally focused. The integration of mind and body is a must for success.

"My thoughts before a big race are usually pretty simple. I tell myself: Get out of the blocks, run your race, stay relaxed. If you run your race, you'll win... Channel your energy. Focus." - Carl Lewis

Several years ago, a few friends and I decided to travel from Rousseau to North Bay on snowmobile, a two day ride. On the way back and towards the end of the trip, a few of us decided to “race to the finish”. The snowmobile trails in Ontario are not typically very wide or straight, like Quebec. And certainly, in lower cottage country barely two snowmobiles can pass easily. That, with the overhanging trees and stumps, ruts and bumps, make for a difficult and tense ride. More than once I have stopped dead in my tracks after being surprised by an approaching rider. While recognizing these dangers, regardless we went for it. Along the trail and around each turn, machine and man were as one: cutting through the snow with precision, avoiding the tree branches and stumps by millimetres, tuning out every distraction with a singular energized focus on finishing the race successfully. It was exhilarating! Significant risk was reduced because of the intense focus we achieved and maintained. The thrill of reaching the finish line as a team was all the more victorious. 

In life, how many of us fail to achieve success due to a lack of focus?

So how can we become or stay focused to ensure success? 

An article by blogger, software engineer and entrepreneur David Cheong provides these tips:

1. Having well defined goals. Having goals which are well defined is key. Writing goals down really helps. Whenever I get distracted, I read my goals and I’m reminded of what I am trying to do and why.
2. Breaking things into bite sized chunks. Having broad high level goals are good but having an actionable plan is essential. A plan can identify how you can get from where you are to where you want to go. Breaking goals into smaller actionable chunks (tasks) is great – it gives me motivation to start and allows me to get things done in one sitting.
3. Prioritizing constantly. Some tasks are more important than others. Some tasks are more urgent than others. I’ve found that working on urgent tasks followed by tasks which have the greatest impact works well for me – urgent tasks allow me to get things done on time and important tasks allow me to maximize the benefits I receive.
4. Tracking progress vigorously. Each of us wants to improve our lives. However, it is easy to start with good intentions but more difficult to sustain commitment. By tracking my progress, I can see what I’ve done and can better gauge how much effort is left.
5. Planning ahead without fail. Concentrating on the remaining effort can help reinforce commitment. Some might think they’ll get discouraged, however I haven’t found this to be the case because my tasks are bite sized and easy to finish. I’ve found it really helps to look at my goals and task lists periodically, so I can assess how much time it’ll take to do something and determine the best time to sit down and work on it.
6. Rewarding myself when warranted. By all means focus on what’s outstanding, but also take stock of what’s done. I always reflect on what I’ve done, whether it is reading a post I did a while ago or looking at the ticks I’ve made alongside my task lists. Whenever I accomplish a piece of work, I always reward myself. It really does help with maintaining motivation.
7. Having positive patterns in my routine. Having good habits and positive patterns are instrumental. At the moment, I can consistently get more done. As these patterns continue to establish into a routine, I’m finding that I can better judge the periods of the day in which I really need to focus and work.
8. Removing distractions as best I can. The best way not to give in to temptation is not to have the option to. What seems to work for me is making the distractions difficult or inconvenient to access. Because it takes too much effort to indulge in the distraction, I find it is less likely for me to give in.
9. Blocking out some time. Having quiet time, set aside specifically for accomplishing a given task, is very productive. I also tend to be more focused in the morning after a restful night.
10. Keeping the results clear in mind. Instead of concentrating too much on the task at hand, sometimes I put some attention on the feelings I ultimately wish to experience. By focusing on the results, it is easier for me to maintain my motivation especially when working on things that I am not by nature motivated by.
11. Enlisting my family and friends for help. Communicate to someone your goals all the time. Not only have they been helpful with gentle reminders whenever they see my behaviour is not consistent with my goals, but they also give me constant incentives to work at my goals and succeed.

"Goals provide the energy source that powers our lives. One of the best ways we can get the most from the energy we have is to focus it. That is what goals can do for us; concentrate our energy. - Denis Waitley

As we move ahead in life, I urge you to focus your energy on greatness both personally and corporately. 

"The task of leadership is not to put greatness into humanity, but to elicit it, for the greatness is already there." - John Buchan