Morning Minute 5/07/24:
“Is No Decision, Sometimes Your Best Decision?”
Leaders make multiple decisions.
In business, the question is: “Which decisions should the leader make?”
In American football, the RPO, (run/pass/option) is designed to allow the players closest to the action, to make split second decisions. The coach may decide the strategy by calling a certain play. However, the RPO creates opportunities based on how the defense reacts, and how well your players execute their jobs. The quarterback may have 7 or 8 different options. The coach doesn’t decide which option to use. The player closest to the action, the quarterback, makes that decision. More on this later…
In business, leaders make multiple decisions daily. There are PEOPLE issues. Who gets hired? Who gets replaced? Which person is the best for a particular function? How are continuous training and cross training employed to increase productivity? Which team members may be possible candidates for future management roles?
The leader must decide on “Best Practices!” These streamline efforts to produce maximum productivity. PROCESSES must be written, communicated, and reviewed regularly. By encouraging team member participation, these processes may be adjusted, augmented, replaced, or eliminated. These processes must support and enhance the organization’s ability to successfully achieve its goals.
The leader must decide whatPRODUCTS (and/or services) will be produced and sold. These offerings will change over time, as the marketplace and technology augment or replace existing products. (For example, remember how that DVDs, as well as subscription services, replaced neighborhood Blockbuster video stores.) The leader also decides what add-on, step-up, and/or point of purchase items may be sold.
Then, the leader decides how to PROMOTE what is being sold. Great products and services will not sell, if prospects don’t know they exist. The leader must decide their promotional budget, plus how, when, and where to create both desire and availability.
Can “NO” decision be your best decision? Yes, if your ‘NO’ decision requires subordinates to make the decision. Their decisions enable you to view how they handle responsibility. Plus, they learn how and when to make decisions.
Let’s visit the football RPO. This system is designed so that the person closest to the action, the quarterback, makes the tactical decisions on how to attack the defense. The coach lays out the strategy by calling a play. Then the QB, choosing from a variety of options, decides which option to utilize. This process wins football games!
Do you make all the decisions in your organization? If so, your micro-management discourages individual initiative, creating ever increasing stress on yourself. You miss the opportunities that only those closest to the action will see. And you will not grow your bench of future leaders who can help you achieve growth and greater success!
“Is No Decision, Sometimes Your Best Decision?”
That is today’s Morning Minute.
Morning Minute 5/10/24:
“Celebrating a Lifetime of Service to Others!”
Daisy was born on October 31, 1860 in Savannah, Georgia.
She was one of six children. Her parents, William, and Eleanor, taught them all to be respectful, responsible, and loyal. At age 12, she was sent away to several boarding schools in various states to get a good education.
Daisy enjoyed tennis, swimming, horseback riding, and camping. She was especially fond of the arts, animals, and nature. These activities and interests would guide her future efforts as an adult. Once, during a break from school, she started a sewing club. The girls in this club honed their skills by making clothing that they would donate to children in Savannah, who were less fortunate.
Because of an illness as a young adult, Daisy was partially deaf in one ear. At her wedding in 1886, a piece of rice lodged in her other ear, causing her to lose all hearing in that ear. Her disability did not slow down Daisy’s activities. Ater her marriage, she frequently traveled back and forth between Europe and America.
In 1911, while in Britain, Daisy met Lord Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of the Boys Scouts. He expressed an interest in starting a similar organization for girls. That meeting inspired Daisy to establish the Girl Guides that same year. Their first meeting was attended by 7 girls in Scotland. Upon returning back to Savannah, during a call with her cousin, she exclaimed; “I’ve got something for the girls of Savannah, and all of America, and all the world, and we’re going to start it tonight!”
Daisy started the Girl Scouts in Savannah, inducting 18 girls into the troop. These were girls from all backgrounds, with class, cultural, and ethnic differences. She made a point to ensure that all girls had a place to develop their leadership skills, to advocate for and to support themselves, and to turn their ambitions into reality. The girls learned a variety of skills including first aid, map reading, cooking, and knot-tying. Daisy adopted the British system of awarding badges for proficiency in various skills.
“Daisy” was the childhood nickname for Juliet Gordon Low of Savannah, the founder of the Girl Scouts in America. During World War I, Low traveled extensively between Britain and America, supporting both Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. She worked with other organizations such as the Red Cross to involve girls in the war effort. The girls planted gardens, canned vegetables, rolled bandages, and sold War Bonds.
After the war, Low resigned from the Girl Scouts of America to spread the benefits of scouting to girls worldwide. She created Girl Scout troops in many places including Africa, China, Australia, and New Zealand. With her tremendous talent for public relations, speaking, and fundraising, she inspired girls around the world. Low mentored them to be respectful, responsible, and to develop their leadership skills.
In the 1920’s, Low contracted breast cancer. After a long illness she died in 1927. As of today, there are more than 3 million Girl Scouts worldwide. There have been over 50 million Girl Scouts since that first troop in Scotland. Juliet Gordon Low’s lifetime of service, created an endearing legacy, helping girls learn to help themselves and others.
“Celebrating Juliet Gordon Low of Savannah; and her Lifetime of Service!”
That is today’s Morning Minute!