John's Blog

There are few things as valuable as having confidence in your own ability. Your ability will open doors and paint your trail with greatness, if ... you trust it.  Many people make a decision only to be racked with doubt. Second guessing your decision undermines the choice, weakening its foundation, making it vulnerable to collapse.  As a leader, there is a lot at stake when you make a choice. Even though we know - he who hesitates loses - we still succumb to doubt and insecurities. I've seen more owners destroy their businesses by not making a definitive decision, than those that made a bad choice and stuck with it.  Confidence will make up for some incompetence, but indecisiveness will erode even the most lucrative of ideas. The U49's Axios Model put a "choice assistant" in the hands of the decision maker, boosting confidence in the choice taken. The extra confidence stirs faith in the heart of those willing to attempt the impossible, setting the sta...

I'm doing a "100 Articles in 100 Days" challenge, with approximately sixty five articles left. "Why 100 days? Why not just 30 days like all the other challenges," I hear you ask. Let me explain:  First, leaders forge mastery, then, Mastery creates leaders.  The unique leadership model, the U49, guides potential leaders through a growth program, aimed at fostering focus, momentum and mastery, establishing reliability and reputation along the way. All of these elements need time and effort to grow ... enter the 100 Challenge.   The strength of the 100 Challenge is in the incredible personal growth and understanding the leader gains as they establish momentum in their core skill. It takes a minimum of forty days exercising a skill for it to become grounded. In other words, in the first forty days, you just start to understand the subtly of the tasks you do.  The next sixty days of the Challenge takes the growing leader beyond mere understanding, past s...

"WTF!" This was my standard response to the "your-daily-habits-are-the -foundation-of-your-success" type leadership quotes, that is, until I discovered the power and purpose of mission.   My dad was a "stand up" guy when it came to work ethic. He would get up at four in the morning, do his daddy chores and still be in the office at 06:30 sharp. He was committed, determined and loyal towards his job, but he was just an average man and for all of his hard work, he never amounted to much.   I don't mean to sound ungrateful, nor am I attacking what my dad did to support his family. The point is that leadership quotes often imply that success is the result of hard work, but evidence in the real world suggests that success needs something more.   Shaun's dad was also commited to family and job, but with very different results. Shaun's dad worked hard at cultivating an attitude of service to others. He also worked to deliberately grow his s...

In a direct but empty competition for "King of the Castle" between vision and mission, mission wins, hands down!   Before you drag me to the gallows, let's look at what we should know about both vision and mission.   Mission is the skills and task we perform daily to achieve an outcome, like a fisherman selecting the right tackle and bait, casting to the right spot and owning enough patience to wait for the fish to bite.   Your mission can evolve as you gain mastery in the related skills and tasks, but it will always look the same, like a fisherman progressing from standing on the shore catching tiddly winks, to owning a boat catching once-in-a-life monsters - it's all still fishing!   Vision is the "hooray" to missions "hip hip." Vision is the shiny outcome that we aim at, like the fisherman aiming to catch one hundred fish in just one hundred days - and doing it!!    Vision is the bright chrome and brilliant paint job on our fancy car,...

Get out the box - Part 1 So many people get caught in "a rut," trapped inside the box of complacency.  We are conditioned by so many areas of life to stay inside the box that we are never surprised by the realisation we are in a rut. Rather, we are shocked by people able to break free of their of their confines, and puzzled by how they achieved this feat.  Sadly, people resign themselves to be slaves of their confinement, but not due to unwillingness or a lack of effort. Surrender is often due to a lack of understanding. Simply put: people just don't know how to get out of their box!   When effort is wasted and people are confused, the box remains king. Focused effort will surely free you from the trap of complacency.   To help lazer-tune your focus, be aware that the sides of the box that keep you prisoner have names. These names will give you a clue as how they fool you into surrender.   The four sides are:   - a lack of instant feedback ...

Life and love don't get meaning from ckearly written definitions. Life and love get meaning from principles.    I watched a documentary of a man, who once played Jesus of Nazareth in a movie, in search of the real Jesus. In the documentary, the actor told of how he researched every portrayal of Jesus he could find, because he wanted to get the "character" just right. He wanted to portray Jesus perfectly.     In the movie, the actor puts very little into the actions or emotions for the character of Jesus, choosing rather to only imply action, emotion and intent, leaving the character of Jesus open to interpretation.     The actor knew that viewers would project their own meaning and intent onto the character.      In the reviews, critics and fans called it the best movie of the life of Jesus ever made. It would have to be so ... because the actor gave us "our own version" of Jesus... we would have to award it the best rendition ever...

So, I believe my mission in life is to play the role of a teaspoon🥄. Yes, you read that correctly. Why a teaspoon, you ask. Well, I am.  When, for example,  making, a cup of coffee, and you have all the ingredients in the cup, you add the hot water, but do you drink it straight away?  No, of course not. You take a teaspoon (should be called a coffee spoon for this example 🤷‍♂️😁) and you stir...  The ingredients need to be stirred to properly mix them, giving a happy flavour experience all the way to the bottom of the cup.  In my mind, the teaspoon🥄 brings nothing nor removes anything from the cup of coffee, it is used to stir. EFG 😈  I believe people (yes, you are a people) have everything they need for life and godliness already. Sometimes people (you) just need to be stirred a little to remind you, to permeate you with the full coffee flavour throughout your cup of life.  Public courses, books, articles, videos, and one-on-one ...

Putting a price or value to what you do is based on a very simple formula: (how much others need what you do multiplied by how well you do it) divide by how easy it is to replace you.  So, lets consider a street sweeper: (it a needed job-but could be replaced by machines 4/10 X he does a goodish job of sweeping 6/10) / anyone could do it!!! So 0/10 = 0!!!! The income size the sweeper would earn is very low.  You have a skill or an ability that could benefit others, and earn you an extra income. Maybe you work at this skill, but its likely that its left to gather dust with all your other hopes and ambitions.  Make this year the year that you invest in your talents and abilities in a way that will bring you a tidy return.

In this world of exaggerated ambition, what is the true opposite of success? Failure? At first, it would seem so, but take a momemt to consider the common light bulb. Legend has it that Thomas Edison, the light bulb patent owner, had ten thousand failed attempts at the now-common-household necessity,  before making a working prototype. In an interview in 1936, a reporter asked Mr Edison about the ten thousand attempts, wondering if such numbers was a sign to quit.  Mr Edison replied with: "Either I win or I learn. I learned ten thousand ways on how not to do it." These words reveal Mr Edison's feelings that failure is not the opposite of  success, but an inherent part of the success process. The fact is, You WILL fail a few times at the start of a new adventure, but will you win and will you learn? Sportsmen and women call these failed attemots and learning curves -  "practice." So, back to the original question: what is the true opposite of success...

Leaders emerging from successful teams all echo this sentiment - “It wasn’t quite what I had hoped for, but it turned out better than expected.” Working in a team will defy what you expected, and it will move beyond what you had hoped. As the team takes on a life and a personality of its own, leaders and members must place their desire for “my way” on pause, allowing the uniqueness of what the team brings to flow. Working in a team will even defy the more inclusive mindset of “our way.” Teamwork should, and indeed must, give rise to the “team’s way.” By insisting on “my way,” the leader turns the team into nothing more than a group of labourers. This mindset robs team members of ownership, and ultimately separates them from the vision. Barking instructions at people that scurry off to do your bidding doesn’t make you a leader. The people that obey your commands without question are not your team. This forced labour may bring satisfaction to one, but not to the whole. If autocratic...

Groups vs. Teams A leader emerges when a team gathers to accomplish any sort of objective. A handful of key principles will assist a leader to lay a good foundation for his or her personal leadership style. Understanding the difference between a group and a team will help the leader identify where the team is in the development process. Listed below are some differences between groups and teams: - The biggest difference is that groups are people united by a common cause, but are not productive. United by a common cause, teams work to achieve a common goal. - Groups are motivated but directionless, whereas teams are motivated and have a clear direction, with clear goals. - Groups mull around with no leader, with no specific role for any individual. Teams define specific roles and clear responsibilities for each member. - A group draws individuals by their interest in a shared cause, while a team selects individuals for their skills and abilities to accomplish specific outco...

The Huntsman Example “The quality of a leader is reflected in the standards they set for themselves.”                    Ray Kroc People knew what to expect from the Huntsman as he had arranged many hunts before. He was a well-organised hunter and expected discipline within the rider’s ranks. People also knew the Huntsman and his wife were bona fide hosts, providing refreshments before, during, and after the hunt, for humans and animals alike. People of all riding competencies were comfortable in the knowledge that the Huntsman wouldn’t expect them to make jumps, or gallop at speeds that they were not able to handle. The Huntsman always found routes that challenged people’s skills without breaking their courage. A kind and patient man, the Huntsman placed the safety of the people, horses, and dogs before the achievement of the goal. Some of the leadership behaviours displayed extended from the Huntsman’s natural ability, some ...

The Team Code has been published!

As part of accredited training, each person on course gets one-on-one feedback. In this feedback, I usually ask people at the start if they think they are competent in the skills learned. Normally, the response falls in one of two categories. Some people are confidant of their ability and say yes. Some people are hesitant, and squeeze a yes or a maybe out.  

Indulge me for a moment… If success is a numbers game, many attempts will surely guarantee success at some stage? What do you think? In light of the Disney of Destiny article, I have decided to challenge myself to produce 100 posts in 100 days. My main topic is leadership, but I don't plan to stick to it, I plan to write.   I am not a professional writer, and decided to see if I could actually do this. The posts will have the hash tag #100posts100days.  Join me. Not just in reading the posts, but in producing your own for 100 days. Tag your posts in comments below or tweet them with the afore mentioned hash tag and let creativity rule! 1. Surprise Visit from my Heart 2. The Dragon Whisperer 3. Disney's of Destiny  4. Are you as good as you think you are? 

It takes three elements to make a fire; heat, oxygen and fuel.   These three elements make up what’s known as the Fire Triangle.   It’s a common strategy to remove just one of the three elements, breaking the triangle, to extinguish a fire successfully.   The Leadership Triangle also has three elements essential to its existence; vision, a leader and a team.   Removing one of these elements would break the Leadership Triangle and extinguish any hope for success.  

Personal Development Skill: Effective Communication We communicate, all the time. Using various mediums, messages travel back and forward between people at an incredible rate. Communication generates an incredible amount of data daily. Why then is effective communication so illusive?