I Believe in Giving People Mulligans January 30, 2011
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“I don’t consider myself a born leader. In fact I was rejected from both the Key Club and the Rotary Club at different times.” Steven Bahls, President of Augustana College.
Steven Bahls, President of Augustana College speaks to the 2011 Quad City Leadership Academy
Steve Bahls provided inspiring opening words to our Quad City Leadership Academy last Friday. After talking about his initial failures, he went on to say that he did get involved with leadership positions in the Boy Scouts as well as other organizations. In a candid and inspiring message with the participants, Steve reinforced the idea that leadership is more of an art than a science, and he provided his top six tips. I won’t steal all of Steve’s great stories but do want to share a couple of them.
Lead where you are passionate. Prior to coming to Augustana College, Steve served as Dean of the Capital University Law School in Columbus Ohio. Steve went to meet with Dave Thomas, founder of Wendys and was excited about the opportunity to sell Dave on the idea of naming the law school after him. Shortly into his presentation, Dave stopped him and said, “I don’t like attorneys. Having grown up in the Foster system I understand how difficult lawyers made my life.” Realizing it was best not to sell something impossible, Steve shifted gears. Instead he worked with him to create the Dave Thomas College of Adoption Law.
Steve also talked about meeting with people at their 50 year class reunion from Augustana College. Each person had 3 minutes to reflect on their lives. (Can you imagine—3 minutes to reflect on your life of 73 years?) “Many are still trying to figure out their calling. They also talk about how they learned from their failures, false starts, failed marriages, etc.”
Employ Imagination Step outside your own shoes and look at problems from a different point of view.
Create a marketplace of ideas. Oliver Wendall Holmes said, “Truth is raised by the free trade of ideas.” Steve said if he could be on a desert island with one person, it would be Oliver Wendell Holmes.
Surround yourself with strong people and learn how to listen to different ideas.
Don’t put your personal ethics on the shelf.
Everyone who succeeds has a mentor. Find a peer, inside or outside of your organization who will serve as your mentor. This should be someone you totally trust, but also someone who will be direct with you.
Follow Micah 6:8. “He has shown you O man what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Pursue humility. Steve said “I believe in giving people mulligans. If I write people off for making mistakes, I’d be the only one in the room.”
Update 1/1/2012: Our blog has moved to a new home on our website, please visit us at http://integrityintegrated.com/resources/blog to read more!
The gem cannot be polished without friction… January 3, 2011
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“The gem cannot be polished without friction; nor the man perfected without trials.” Chinese proverb.
I continue to be inspired and it just doesn’t seem right to keep them to myself. After grading reflective papers and final assignments for our most recent MBA Leadership & Personal Development Class, I want to share just a few tidbits of wisdom from the students. As you read them, let me know how it inspires you to think differently.
CREATING A FIVE YEAR VISION:
“The visualization exercise where we pictured a day in our life in 2015 had a huge impact. Drawing it was even more fun. I do like to envision the future, but in the past many of my thoughts were more generic in regards to success and I’d never really defined what that looked like or meant to me. To put it down on paper made it real for the first time. To vocalize it had even more of an impact. For the first time I realized exactly what I want my life to look like and that my dreams are attainable, all I have to do is make sure I’m focusing on what’s really important.”
“Doing the “Where Will I Be in Five Years” activity was very insightful. So many times my wife and I casually talk about the future, but it seems like we are only caught up in what is happening today and in the next year. We never take the time to think about further down the road. Of course we try to plan for certain things, but to actually lay out a road map and hold ourselves accountable is another story. Taking the time to visualize where I will be in five years was critical for my development. Not only did it reiterate what would be most important to me, but it made me think of the exact actions I need to take right now to get there. And if I don’t like some of the things I see in five years, than I need to start correcting them today.”
ROLE OF OTHERS IN OUR DEVELOPMENT:
“It’s my responsibility to walk this journey of leadership, but that does not mean I have to do it alone. In fact, if there’s one immutable fact I’ve learned, it’s that taking this journey alone is a fool’s errand, and I have been quite the fool.”
“They complimented me on my willingness to grow as a person and wished me the best. This leads to a point of mine. It is human nature that we want to help everyone become better people. No one, or at least the people I associate with, wants to intentionally hurt other people. We are all here for one another and constructive feedback is part of life and the growing process.”
LEARNING WHAT NOT to DO:
“My current manager knows all the details and everyone comes to her for questions but her whole day is taken up by this and instead of being a manager she has become the subject matter expert. Instead of leading, she is telling.”
Okay, he wasn’t a student, but this is how John Quincy Adams summed it up (as a student reminded me): “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”
I am inspired by the many students I had the privilege to teach. Many thanks to all of you.
Update 1/1/2012: Our blog has moved to a new home on our website, please visit us at http://integrityintegrated.com/resources/blog to read more!
