Fixing the Problem

Barb and I recently returned from a trip to the Holy Land. Our daughter, who has been there many times, led a tour from her church. We got the benefit of spending the two weeks on this tour of a lifetime, (and even better) two weeks with her. So that I could better understand the conflict over there, she encouraged me to read a couple of books. One of them had this incredible quote:

“If there is a problem somewhere…this is what happens: Three people will try to do something concrete to settle the issue. Ten people will give a lecture analyzing what the three are doing. One hundred people will commend or condemn the ten for their lecture. One thousand people will argue about the problem. And one person-only one-will involve himself so deeply in the true solution that he is too busy to listen to any of it…now, which person are you?”

Boy does this one hit home to me! Which one am I? How many times have I argued about the problem rather than trying to fix it?

In my work life, one of the biggest challenges as a leader was to find the right person and put them on the right seat on the bus so that the entire bus moved in sync. Put someone in the wrong seat and they struggle! If they struggle, then the whole team struggles. Put someone on the bus that doesn’t share your values and mission and again the whole team struggles. This is an art more than a science. Resumes don’t always tell the real story. In today’s world, if you call for a reference, all you seem to get is name, rank and serial number. (Or dates of employment).

In my younger days as a leader, I made more hiring mistakes. I later learned how to build a better team. This team needed people with all kinds of gifts, strengths and interests. I needed analytical leaders, inspirational leaders, knowledgeable leaders, hard-working and ambitious leaders and loyal leaders. But most of all, more than anything else, I needed “can do” leaders.

These were people that saw a problem and took the initiative to jump in and fix it. If we were struggling to make plan, they proactively implemented action steps to ‘right the ship’. If sales were down, they personally got involved. If customer service was an issue, they rolled up their sleeves to find out the reasons and to correct our actions. In summary, these leaders always saw a need and jumped in.

Want to be a successful leader? Strategically build a team each with unique gifts that complement, encourage and support one another, all working for a common goal. It’s not easy to do but once you accomplish it, it’s a beautiful thing. Sort of like a symphony at work.

And surround yourself with ‘those ones’ that jump in to help fix the problem. They cut through the noise and drama. They get things done!

With a goal to “help the next one in line”, Glen Cavallo, a 30+ year healthcare executive has chosen to share the many lessons he has learned with others. Glen does this by serving as a coach/advisor to leaders at all levels of organizations, as a board member and as he presents inspirational speeches at regional, national, annual and awards meetings.