'Battlefield circ' we called it. It was the period when the commander would visit the troops and subordinate leaders. Its purpose was to allow the commander to see if his or her intent was being met, determine if subordinates and their teams needed any resources and get a true picture of what was happening. In circulation, commanders could see the true picture then return to their staffs to alter plans, adjust resources and share their grassroots perspective. It didn't only happen on a battlefield. It would happen at home-station while training for war and its intent remained the same. Does it apply to private business? You bet! Here's an example.

Communication lies at the core of good leadership. Leaders inspire, influence, and care for their people. They do this largely through what they say, how they direct others, and the questions they ask. Often though, questions have smooth rounded tips which decrease their effectiveness. Let's use the common question "What do you think?" This is an open-ended question, meaning it allows the respondent to apply their own answer (versus a closed-ended yes or no) which is good, yet it may not achieve the effect a leader is looking for. Answers like "I thought it went well," or "I thought it was good" are broad and not useful. Let's sharpen them.

The tension between loyalty to one's team and loyalty to the company and its leadership is real. Leaders sit in the middle having to explain things, defend the company and their team and attempt to please both sides. I don't have an easy button for this quandary but here is a vignette and some tips for you or your leaders to navigate this space.

“You lack presence.” What does that mean, really? I evaluated potential leaders on their presence countless times in the Army. It was a critical factor in determining if I would place the lives of soldiers and care of their families under a certain person. In business one assumes responsibility for the livelihoods of their people and survival of the business. Presence matters. As leaders we want to select those we believe others will follow. Presence encompasses a lot and it is typically measured through the visible and verbal traits of a person. It is deeper than that though. Let me share what I look for in presence.

“What’s the value prop?”, I’ve heard often in business. It is a measurement I use almost daily in my business as I examine what value I may get from spending money on things like marketing, advertising, or consultants. How will my business grow, how will my revenue increase, how does this benefit the team after I invest this money? It’s a sound approach as the lifeblood of a business, aside from its people, is cashflow. But what about values? Shouldn’t they count? If the cost of a new initiative caused us to jettison our values, is it a worthy investment?

Stealing a line from Dr. Benjamin Franklin. Historians claim he uttered the following phrase in 1787 when walking out of Independence Hall after the Constitutional Convention. A lady is said to have shouted out, “Doctor, what have we got? A republic or a monarchy?” To which Franklin responded: “A republic, if you can keep it.”

I’ve coached several people who struggle to communicate important issues to their boss. Many of them have a boss who is so busy they only get a curt acknowledgement or nothing at all as he or she manages an enormous workload. This is not helpful to leaders as they need approval and guidance to accomplish tasks for the good of the company. I’ve had many leaders just throw their hands up in frustration and accept defeat

Serving in the Army prior to 9/11 we practiced warfare on a somewhat structured battlefield. We drew boundary lines on a map and commanders (or CEOs) were given their specific area and additional forces to accomplish specified missions. Inside of those boundary lines and within the ‘org chart’ commanders enjoyed unity of command. All units and people fell inside the commander’s authority. Following 9/11 battlefields became very ambiguous and complex, the ‘org chart’ even more so. The Army for instance had to team up with other governmental agencies like the State Department and USAID to name only a few. We did not have authority over those agencies yet they were vital to our success. Therefore we had to seek and foster unity of effort.

With Memorial Day 2021 now in the books, many schools have ended (or will soon) their 2020-2021 year. But what does this mean for leaders? I’ve always used the approach, leading beyond the workplace. It’s an element of investing in people which I describe in my first book, It’s Personal, Not Personnel. Leading beyond the workplace does not mean directing the personal lives of our people. It means that leaders take an interest and ‘tune in’ to what is happening in the lives of their people and how it impacts them. That's good leadership. Most any person will tell you that family is the most important thing to them yet many leaders have never met their families or understand what they are going through.

Thought I would share a treasured poem as we think of the fallen today and their families.

An old Army buddy, Kenny (no that is not him) and I were talking leadership one day. Imagine that! He shared a story that really hit me. He was a first sergeant or VP of a mid-size company, a headquarters company, home to a larger organization’s (battalion) administrative staff, medics, maintenance, and other support teams. While participating in a large, graded field exercise, he was leading a convoy of multiple vehicles, people, and equipment to a tactical objective to support a larger organization’s mission. It was a complex mission by itself never mind the darkness and pounding rain which impeded movement. All of the sudden the convoy stopped. He attempted to radio the subordinate elements of the group but could not determine the problem.

I was coaching a young, energetic leader once whose role was about to change. He was a leader in the sales department and his new role would have him interacting and collaborating with the other departments in the company. I’ll call him Eddie. Eddie asked for advice as he began his new role and I stated, “play to your strengths, be aware of your weak spots.

These titles roll easily off our tongue and we use them daily without much thought. Their significance and implication, however, call for some focus. Leadership titles are easy to write on a job description or a company org chart but much more complex in application and impact. Most leaders possess a title or were assigned a title but not all live up to the meaning of it. This is especially important in the C-suite.

I’m stealing an old adage from the Army. As a young officer, I attended Ranger school and was awarded the Ranger tab, a patch which I could forever wear on my left shoulder indicating this accomplishment. Along side serving in combat, it was the toughest thing I’ve ever done in my life. I operated off one meal a day, only a few hours of sleep and had to lead others under those conditions. I lost 30lbs in the process and looked like a prisoner of war.

“I’ll see what I can do about looking into that for you,” said a young staff officer to me one late Friday afternoon in the 82nd Airborne Division after I reviewed his task list. I was the executive officer for a 700-person parachute infantry battalion, one of the most demanding jobs I held in the Army. Exhausted after a relentless week, I stopped him. “Say that again, better yet write it out on my dry-erase board.” This one was a keeper! I responded, “That’s as close as anyone has come to saying ‘no’ without actually saying it.” Keeping my composure, and feeling empathy for an equally exhausted paratrooper, I advised him to narrow down that sentence to one word. Yes.

I remember as a young leader listening to a senior leaders preach ‘work – life balance.’ I would always laugh inside at their urging as I knew they worked insane hours, took work home and often came to the office on Saturdays. Of course, balance means a 50/50 split. Not possible. When you factor in sleep (which is important) you find imbalance. When you work well beyond the 40-hour work week, you find imbalance. What is work and what is life anyway?

There is tension between checking on subordinates and fostering trust in your organization. Good leaders feel that tension and struggle trying to balance it. Poor leaders either micromanage or avoid checking anything. Both of those are fear-based approaches which erode trust. Micromanagers fear something will go wrong or that what they envisioned will not materialize. They generally do not trust people. Avoiders fear the confrontation which might occur or do not want to spend the energy giving someone good intent and the space to operate.

What was the greatest obstacle you had to overcome in your life? Go back to your childhood if needed.

Have you ever seen a leader who was totally confident? There are none. Everyone wrestles with doubt, uncertainty, and insecurity which eats away at confidence. Life experiences, bullying, harassment, misinformation, and the world around us, (especially in a pandemic) all cause lack of confidence.

Communication technology such as email, chat programs like Slack, and text have eased the ability to pass information in the modern workplace. The result; information overload. Without some standard of how information is passed, people, especially leaders become saturated and ineffective. They are left to sift through mountains of messages to find the ones which will help them lead their organization. People navigate their days wondering what to share with the boss. We had this problem in the Army with large units and multiple communication means. To fix this we used CCIR, Commander’s Critical Information Requirements. Replace commander with whatever your title is and you have a useful communication rubric your people can follow.

I’m writing about nurses this morning but it speaks directly to leadership. I’ve always had a deep love for nurses, what they stand for, the skills they possess and the values they embody. Yesterday was National Nurse’s Day. I confess I had forgotten but a client and friend reminded me, as good nurses (and leaders) do, copying me on a note sent to her nurses. I salute all of you!