Michael Lee Stallard

We learn best when we think, feel and do.  That’s the message of Dr. Adele Diamond, a cognitive developmental neuroscientist who currently teaches at the University of British Columbia in Canada.  We might refer to this as “whole body learning.”  According to Dr. Diamond, the executive function of the brain — the prefrontal cortex — works best when we go beyond the rational mind by also involving emotions and physical behaviors.  That makes sense since the more we involve other parts of the brain, the more neural connections we make that reinforce learning.

The implications are wide-ranging.  It reminds me of Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences and Robert Sternberg’s identification of different thinking styles. The more we incorporate different approaches to learning that speak to diverse individuals who are wired to learn differently, the greater the probability they will in fact learn.

Are you using more than analytic, rational methods of learning?   Do you use stories to move people emotionally?  Do you employ exercises that require people to behave in ways that will help them learn?

For those who want to go deeper, there a fascinating hour-long interview of Dr. Adele Diamond by Krista Tippett of American Public Radio’s “Speaking of Faith” program that you can hear at this link.

The US Navy and U2 in the same article! Huh?

That’s right.  It’s true. Check it out for yourself.

The Leader to Leader Institute just posted an article on its website that Jason Pankau and I wrote for the Summer edition of the Leader to Leader Journal. The article features the stories of the US Navy’s former Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Admiral Vern Clark, and Bono, the lead singer of the rock band U2.  The article is about the topic of connecting with “core employees” to boost strategic alignment, employee engagement, productivity and innovation.  Here is a link to the article entitled “To Boost Performance, Connect with the Core.” Read more »

This weekend, my wife Katie and I went for a rare getaway to Boston, about a three hour drive from our home in Connecticut.   Our primary interest was to see the home of the Adams family, not of the television sitcom fame, however. We were interested in seeing the other Adams family, John and Abigail Adams, and their son John Quincy Adams.  Katie and I much admire the Adams’s for their character, their faith and the positive impact they had America.

As it turned out, Sunday was the birthday of John Quincy Adams.  When we visited the tombs of the Adams’s we saw a wreath on John Quincy Adam’s tomb sent from President Obama.

The highlight of the trip for me was seeing the Mendi Bible that was given by the Mendi men to John Quincy Adams in thanks for representing them in their successful case to win their freedom, a case that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.  The Mendi Bible is kept in a safe except on the weekend of John Quincy Adams’s birthday when it is on display in the Adams’s library adjacent to their home in Quincy, Massachusetts.

The tour guide let me read a copy of the letter the Mendi Men presented to John Quincy Adams at the time they gave him the Bible. The letter expressed their gratitude to President Adams, how much the Bible meant to them during their time in prison and how they continue reading it now that they are free. President Adams wrote back to the Mendi that “it was from that book that I learnt to espouse your cause when you were in trouble.”

The story of the Mendi men was captured in Stephen Spielberg’s highly acclaimed movie “Amistad,” which I encourage you to see.   In 2007, Deval Patrick, Massachusett’s first African-American governor, was sworn in using the Mendi Bible (you can read about it in this Boston Globe article.)

Near the church where the Adams’s are entombed, there is a statue of young John Quincy at around nine years old holding the hand of his mother Abigail.  She was a remarkable woman of faith, wisdom and courage.  Knowing the stories of John and Abigail Adams it should come as no surprise that their son went on to become America’s sixth president and later a defender of liberty and justice in the case of the Mendi’s.  As historian David McCullough wrote,

“While there are indeed great, often unfathomable forces in history before which even the most exceptional of individuals seem insignificant, the wonder is how often events turn upon a single personality, or the quality we call character.”

The Adams’ family was a tremendous example of strength of character in action.  I was encouraged learning more about them.

Learning about and celebrating the stories of individuals who have good character is one way we can be encouraged to live up to their example. By developing habits that reflect strength of character in our lives and teaching the stories of role models such as the Adams’s to our children we help them develop good character too.

On July 14, 2010 at 12:00 pm EDT, Michael and Jason Pankau will join the Best Practice Institute to present a 45 minute webinar on creating a work environment to maximize employee engagement and strategic alignment.   Following the webinar there will be a 15 minute period for Q&A.

During the session, Michael and Jason will cover:

• Six universal human needs to thrive at work
• Three core elements of a culture that motivates employees to give their all
• Best practices of leaders who energize the people they lead
• Why task and relationship excellence are necessary to achieve sustainable superior performance.

You can register for the webinar at this link.

One reason so many leaders fail is that they become isolated.  We all need good friends who “have our back,” as my friend and business colleague Jason Pankau likes to say.  Good friends tell us the truth, they are willing to speak up if they believe we are wrong, and they support and encourage us through the inevitable difficult seasons we all experience in life.

A couple summers ago, I shot the above photograph of the William Seward statue in New York City’s Madison Square Park knowing that one day I would write about him. Seward was a onetime political rival of Abraham Lincoln’s who became a member of Lincoln’s cabinet and one of Lincoln’s best friends.  Doris Kearns-Goodwin wrote about their friendship in her wonderful book Team of Rivals. Frequently, Lincoln went to Steward’s residence in Washington D.C. where the two men talked for hours. Seward’s friendship was a lifeline for Lincoln during his struggles with depression, challenging periods he faced during the Civil War, his wife’s mental illness and the grief he felt following the death of his son.

Ask yourself if you have a few good friends who have your back at work and in life outside of work.  If you do, why not reach out to them and let them know how much you appreciate their friendship.  If you don’t have close friends, take out pen and paper then write down the names of individuals who have the potential to become good friends. Consider the following questions when selecting potential good friends:  Is he trustworthy?; Does he share your interests and values?; Does he live near you so that you can meet on a regular basis? Now that you have a few names, prioritize them then reach out to see if they are willing to meet you over a meal or coffee.  If the meeting goes well, ask if he would consider meeting on a regular basis. In my next post, I’ll write about the types of interactions that will make your meeting time with good friends worthwhile for each of you.

I’m dedicating this post to one of my best friends, Jason Pankau.  Here is a picture of us when we spoke recently at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas (Jason is on the right side of the picture). We are standing in front of the Mission Control center for the International Space Station.

With the recent firing of General McChrystal as commander of American forces in Afghanistan over his insubordination, I thought it would be an ideal time to reproduce here what I wrote in Fired Up or Burned Out about one of the greatest military leaders in history, America’s Army Chief of Staff, General George C. Marshall.

Marshall created a culture that stands in stark contrast to the culture created by General McChrystal as reported in a Rolling Stone magazine article entitled “The Runaway General.” Defenders of McChrystal argue he was speaking truth to power.  General Marshall was known for speaking truth to power but, unlike McChrystal, he recognized the need to respect legitimate authority and to always be respectful in dealing with the people he interacted with whether they were fellow soldiers, diplomats or representatives of foreign governments.

Because Marshall possessed humility of character, he knew that he was not always right and had to defer to the decisions of his superior in the chain-of-command then put extra effort into executing such decisions. As a result, Marshall had the complete confidence of the leaders he reported to such as General John “Blackjack” Pershing and President Franklin Deleno Roosevelt.

Marshall should be one of the role models all leaders strive to emulate. The title of the chapter I wrote about General Marshall was  ”Soldier of Peace.”  You can read it below.

Read more »

Delivering Happiness is the rare book that gives us an inside look at one individual’s journey to find happiness and as a leader in business. Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos, has written a thoughtful account of what he has learned from experiences in life, in business and from his studies of the fast growing field of positive psychology.

I highly recommend this book to leaders and others who want to see what an engaging work environment — or “Connection Culture” as I’ve described it in my writings — looks like. Not only will you learn about Hsieh’s thinking, you’ll see how he puts ideas into action. Read more »

Summer is an excellent time to be intentional about strengthening the relationships in your life, including your relationships at work. Think about the people you need to have good relationships with to perform your job well (I call these “Critical Connections”) then consider the present state of each relationship.  If some of these Critical Connection relationships are not strong, you need to take action to strengthen them.

Once you’ve identified your Critical Connection priorities, spend time with these individuals over meals or coffee. Ask them questions unrelated to work so that you get to know them as human beings. Asking questions of another human being, then listening carefully to their reply so that you can understand and empathize with them, demonstrates that you value them as human beings. Understanding and empathy reflect the essence of connection.

Here are are a few questions to consider asking when you meet with your Critical Connections:

Where did you grow up?
What are your interests outside of work?
What are your favorite movies and television shows?
What are you favorite books?
Who are your favorite musicians?
Who are your heroes?
Where did you go to college and what did you study?
What events in your life shaped you as a person?
Who has had the greatest impact on your life and why?
What is the best advice you received?

These questions should give you plenty to talk about and help you strengthen your connection with the people you rely on at work.

There is a movement to replace GDP as a statistical measure of national success and well-being.  In “The Rise and Fall of GDP,” that appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Jon Gertner describes this effort.  Gertner writes about the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) developing a “key national indicators” system that will be available online. (Last year I spoke at the GAO’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. about The Connection Culture: A New Source of Competitive Advantage.) The article goes on to say that “interpersonal connectedness” is one of the components being considered.

Including connection as a component in a measure of national success would be wise.  What’s measured is what gets done.  David Brooks, also of The New York Times, effectively supports my view.  He argued in “The Limits of Policy,” that it would be wise for government leaders to “try to use policy to strengthen relationships.”

I just met and heard Chick-fil-A’s President Dan Cathy speak to a group at the Chick-fil-A Leadercast about values, faith, serving others and the competitive advantage of relationships.  It was an inspiring message and he is genuine and clearly passionate about the organization, its people, customers and what it represents.  Dan told the audience that he recently committed to his father, Chick-fil-A founder S. Truett Cathy, to keep the company private which will help preserve the values of this great organization.

Observing Dan speak, it’s clear that he connects with the employees of Chick-fil-A.  He spends more than half of his time on the road visiting stores and connecting with employees and customers.  He tells stories that move him and in so doing move the hearts of others.  He often uses objects that help people remember his points.  A large pepper grinder represents adding pepper to the customer’s experience by going the second mile to be friendly.  Chick-fil-A has won numerous awards for its exceptionally high level of customer service.

Sometimes when I hear corporate leaders talk I wonder if they walk the talk.  I’ve done some due diligence and feel highly confident that Chick-fil-A is the real deal.  Even my own mother who lives in Bristol, Virginia sings the praises of the local Chick-fil-A for their good people and positive influence on the local community.

In the coming weeks I’ll be interviewing Dan Cathy to learn more about his journey as a leader and his work at Chick-fil-A so stay tuned.