A few weeks ago, I mentioned that Biz Week was hosting a special Web cast with noted Executive Coach – Marshall Goldsmith - whose been named, one of the 50 great thinkers and leaders who have influenced the field of management over the past 80 years.
I listened in on the webcast – and, as promised, here’s my recap and key takeaways.
First, some context – one of the key objectives for the web cast was to provide listeners with some tangible insights on how to effectively respond to the current economic downturn and prosper, even in an environment when many are disillusioned, uncertain or even, scared. Here are a few quick points which Marshall outlined and reiterated.
I. Life is constantly changing.
II. Don’t fixate on the present situation, the present challenges.
III. Life isn’t fair, don’t dwell on issues, deal with them.
IV. Ask yourself - How can I make the best of today?
V. Stay Upbeat – things will happen in this rapidly changing world.
Marshall gave the example of Alan Mulally – CEO of Ford, who has been dealt tough hands, first at Boeing Commercial (during the 9-11 period) and now at Ford, which is facing tough challenges during the current economic upheaval. Marshall mentioned that Alan remains upbeat, he is positive, he has fun, he’s enjoying his life. He’s very positive and he’s not stressed out, and that attitude, permeates across his organization.
Marshall then told a story about how he attended a recent lunch with Alan and a few friends – and he was actually selling ford vehicles to his friends, during lunch. (he sold 3 of them, using nothing but word of mouth and Ford Brochures).
Marshall went on to point out a few reasons why, he believes Alan is very successful, as a leader. He is incredibly disciplined, always focuses on what he can do and provides great process management.
We can all learn from his attitude. The reality is that life is always changing for all of us. We can fixate on the negative or we can say “here’s where things are today – let’s deal with it”.
Earlier, Marshall mentioned that he coached Alan for a period of time, while he was at Boeing , and even then, he was a great people manager. Towards the end of the webcast, Alan Mullaly made a surprise appearance on the call. I have to believe that this wasn’t staged, because the moderator sounded genuinely surprised. I’ll discuss what I learnt from Alan’s commentary – in my next post.
Servant Leader…..
