Tipping Point

Today I’m reflecting on tipping points. If you’ve read the Malcolm Gladwell book, The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, you get some idea of how things bubble along and then their importance grows, seemingly overnight.

Normally I don’t bring numbers into this blog, but to illustrate this point I need to show you a graph. You have read about the IPO of Facebook (unless you’re off the net). This is the largest technology IPO ever. Why are people so entranced by the stock? Several reasons. The first is, to people like you and I, it’s personal. We use it and have a sense of the value of its service. For the professional investors, it’s more like, “I don’t want to be left out.”

The real dynamic that has the attention of many is their user growth. Some who say the price of the Facebook IPO is exaggerated focus on the slowing of the growth rate. That’s actually understandable when you look at this graph.  What has my attention is the “tipping point” that began in August of 2008. For the next 12 months, Facebook users increased from 100 million to 300 million.

Why is this important to talk about? Two reasons. Many of you are either entrepreneurs or part of businesses that want to grow. Growth requires patience. During 2006, for instance, Facebook grew by 6.5 million users. Facebook listened to their users, kept offering them something they liked, and took the long view.

If you want to grow your business, start with clarity about who your customers are and how satisfied they are with what you are offering them. Know that their satisfaction is based upon today’s expectations and will change tomorrow. Facebook, and many other companies, are adept at meeting this continuously changing customer environment.

The second reason that this conversation interests me is more metaphysical. We live in a really small world when we consider how connected we are to each other. The original Six Degrees of Separation study of social psychologist Stanley Milgram in 1967 showed that we are no more than six steps away from each other. New research of Twitter users shows that this separation is 4.67.

Why is this so? There is a lot of study and no agreed upon conclusion. My sense is we are energetically connected in ways we don’t yet understand. These connections are not just with each other, but with everything in the universe (lots of good quantum physics on this).  We are at a time when we can positively shift the dynamics of the world, through authentic and purposeful connections. The impact of these connections is amplified in ways that are important and that we don’t understand.

So remember, you may be the one person who makes a difference.

What is Integrity?

Much of my day is spent with the question, “What is integrity.” I write, I reflect, I teach, I read, I feel. All in the quest for simple clarity. It’s emerging, and it’s surprising. When I first considered integrity, I was sure it was about being more honest. That’s true, and there is more. In fact, so much more that I then felt overwhelmed.

What I’m discovering about integrity is that it’s about the absolute alignment of my body, thoughts, feelings and actions. It calls me to total awareness.  This understanding sometimes brings forth despair. “How can anyone be in integrity?” the voice inside says. Yet, I know there are moments when I am in integrity. “If that’s so”, I wonder, “what’s happening in those moments?” “I’m present”, is my first response. “So is being present required for integrity?” I ask myself. Yep.

Is the quest for integrity so simple that it only requires being fully present? I’m not sure, but it feels like this could be true. When I’m present, I’m aware of everything I’m experiencing in this moment. I act from this awareness with a deliberateness that is only possible from this complete awareness. I can feel my body without the distortion of thoughts. My experiences are pure as they are not motivated by needs or desires.

This simple understanding doesn’t mean that being in integrity is easy. It requires diligence and practice. It demands self-honesty and reflection.

The question is, “Are you ready for complete integrity?” This question brings to mind our conversation a few days ago about accountability. With integrity, it’s also an all or nothing experience. No need for despair though, we have the opportunity to experience integrity more and more. This is possible if we stop judging ourselves when we are not in integrity. Judgment brings with it so much self-deception. We believe that if we are out of integrity we are “bad”. Nope, we are just out of integrity, like most everyone else. When we discover this is happening, we can stop, reorient to being present, and continue. It’s that simple.

Over the next few months, I will be writing more about integrity, offering ways I’ve found to be present with my body, emotions, thoughts, feelings and actions. I welcome your feedback. No more important time than now to increase the number who are living in integrity.

Willful Blindness

Willful blindness is a term used in the law to indicate when an individual seeks to avoid civil or criminal liability for a wrongful act by intentionally putting himself in a position where he will be unaware of facts which would render him liable. Willful blindness extends beyond the legal realm. Margaret Heffernan has written a book that expands the context of willful blindness to include the threats and dangers we face and don’t see because we choose to not see them.

In Willful Blindness, Margaret examines the phenomenon and traces its impact on our private and working lives, and within governments and organizations. She asks, “What makes us prefer ignorance? What are we so afraid of?” Her conclusions start with our fear of being accountable for our choices.

Margaret helps us understand how willful blindness develops, and then goes on to outline some of the ways that organizations and individuals can increase their awareness and deliberateness. It’s time for us all to claim accountability for our lives so the changes we dream of can become real.

Last year, I spoke to Margaret as part of the Business Matters program. You can hear this interview below.

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Warning Bells

This morning I was reading more about the big losses at JPMorgan Chase. By most accounts, warning bells had been going off about the danger the bank was facing with its trading activities in London. Executives were tranquilized by their optimism. This type of emotional illusion is often present at the downfall of leaders.

This myopia, however, isn’t the exclusive purview of organizational leaders. We all get caught up in it from time to time. There was a groundswell of optimism in the U.S. about the continuous rise of housing prices. While there were some on the edges, who warned of the fallacy of this belief, many bet their 401k accounts or acquired greater debt than was prudent under the spell of this infectious optimism.

Warming bells go off and we don’t heed them. We believe they are not meant for us. Our intuition is often screaming “NO” and we override the warning with tranquilizing stories that are logical. It is the flaw of logical thinking that blinds us. There is no logic that can understand the complexity of the world. We can’t yet explain how a plant knows to grow roots and leaves and flowers. How then can we logically explain an economic system that is as much hidden as it is visible?

If we reorient our guidance system and allow intuition to be the centerpiece, we will rarely experience surprises. I’m not advocating ignoring the logical mind. I suggest we use it in a different way. Instead of having it be the captain of our boat, give it a new job. This job is to gather information that helps us better understand what our intuition is showing us. This broadened understanding helps us act with greater confidence and feel more peaceful.

I’m trusting intuition more and more. I see life-long patterns that orient me to not trust it. Every time I have ignored intuition lately, I look back and realize it showed me the truth of a situation and my mind’s confidence was not well placed. The journey continues.

What is Enough Accountability?

Yesterday, I wrote on the the question, “What is Enough?” As I was walking with my wife among the wild peppermint and bee balm hearing our bees industriously gathering pollen around us, I realized there are many other viewpoints from which to consider this question.

As I sat back at my desk to write, I remembered a conversation I had with someone who works with leaders of large corporations. I said, “I believe it’s vital to strive to absolute accountability within businesses.” He pushed back saying, “That is too much. People will become disillusioned if you set the standard too high. We should be satisfied with improvement over the current state.”

What is enough accountability? Over the past few days, I have read comments from Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, about the $2B trading loss they incurred. Today several people who were directly responsible for the loss resigned. This is a typical outcome when something big goes wrong. A few people get the ax and the beat goes on.

What about the people who are accountable for the business culture that fostered this situation? What about the board of directors, who have oversight accountability? They all seem to be saying, “OK, we made errors, let’s learn from them and move on.” I’m not certain that real learning is possible unless everyone who is accountable has a consequence. I’m not suggesting that a bunch of people be fired. What I’m saying is that there should be a consequence that is public and clear.

I know when my young boys act in a way that is inconsistent with our agreements, they experience a consequence. They might lose access to television or treats for a period of time. I know if I don’t apply a consequence immediately and uniformly, they don’t learn.

Accountability is absolute. We are either accountable for what happens, or we are not. I know if someone is being accountable if there is a consequence for their accountability. This isn’t a matter of blame. It’s simply an outcome that is directly connected to accountability.

My accountability to you as readers is to write what I feel is true and do it when I promise. If I don’t do that, I’m not going to be punished. There is a consequence. It’s lowered trust, which may mean you tune out. On the other hand, if I do what I promise, trust increases and the number of readers grows. It’s really simple.

So What’s Enough?

 

Over the past few weeks, as we have settled into our new home, I have noticed an emotional push-pull that surprises me. We have found the perfect home. We are astounded daily by treasures that are unexpected. From the blue heron who was fishing in the pond last night, to the overwhelming abundance of herbs that grow freely, our dreams unfold right before our eyes.

With our challenges of finding this home behind us, I expected to feel nothing but contentment. Mostly that is how I spend my days. I have noticed, though, that there is the faint hint of restlessness poking up. At first, it is so out-of-place that I didn’t notice it. Recently, my ongoing practice of taking stock of how I’m feeling revealed this hint of “wanting more”.

What is the root of this thread of discontent? Ahh, it’s simple, I realize. I have spent most of my life looking ahead. I spoke about this in my March 22^nd blog posting, The Challenge of Looking Forward or Backward. Frequently, I am thinking about what comes next. When I pull myself out of the present, there is no possibility for contentment.

I can feel a gnawing fear that if I don’t look ahead I will be surprised. Again, I know this is an error. I can never know what is ahead anyway. What I can do is attune my abilities to sense everything that’s going on in the present moment, and act, when necessary, in response to what’s happening RIGHT NOW.

Sharpening my attention to the present moment pays all sorts of dividends. Relationships always blossom when I am present with those I connect with. Being present brings no assumptions from the past with it. Not assuming allows me to see the truth of the moment and act with precise clarity, often sidestepping potential problems and allowing me to take advantage of opportunities I might otherwise miss.

Good reminder as I settle into contentment at the end of a perfect day!

Reap what you Sow!

A year ago, I stopped producing Business Matters, a weekly, nationally syndicated radio program I created in 2008. I was a bit burned out and wanted to broaden my horizons. For the most part, I forgot about the program.

Fast forward to six week’s ago – I was listening to a news interview program on the radio and was reminded of my frustration with the national media. I find the content is narrow in scope and the essence of what’s going on is missing .  I feel that the role of media is to inform listeners so they are equipped to make the best decisions possible. I initially started Business Matters to fill this perceived void.

My frustration grew over the days after listening to this broadcast and I decided to again start producing Business Matters, at least every other week. It feels great talking again with people who are making things happen. The old energy is back!

This prelude is to disclose a surprise, which is the lesson I’m sharing today.  After I ceased production of Business Matters, I left the website up with the program’s past broadcast archives. After the first new program, I was curious to know the interest it was generating. As I looked at a few months of data on our online audience, I found that over 15,000 people a month were downloading the program’s archives.

As I sat with this news, I remembered how easy it is for me to create new ventures, projects or businesses. It’s kinda like sowing seeds. Sometimes, though, I forget to consider how the seeds have grown. I end up walking away just before harvest time. This sobering revelation is just sinking in.

I wondered if you experience this as well. How often do you start things and then walk away just before they’re ready to fully blossom. Just a thought for your Saturday evening consideration.

Until later,

Thomas

Introspection and Leadership

In·tro·spec·tion – the act of looking within oneself. When I talk with leaders, they all agree they should take more time for introspection. When I ask them, “How would you do that?” They generally don’t have a clue.

Introspection needs a “pump primer”. I don’t simply sit in a chair and say to myself, “Well, what do I see?” Introspection is catalyzed by fully participating in activities that take me out of traditional conversations and into ones that touch my spirit. Some people read. Joseph Badaracco, a professor at the Harvard Business School, talks about the power of reading fiction for introspection in his book, Questions of Character: Illuminating the Heart of Leadership through Literature.

For others, it might be painting or horseback riding or carpentry. It’s about throwing oneself completely into this activity so that all the threads to the operational world are quieted and the act of introspection arises. Great leaders know the importance of this practice and they value it as much as a meeting with their most important constituents.

My personal practice for introspection is reading and writing poetry. When I lose myself into the feeling that comes from being with a poem, a mirror arises and I see myself in ways that were not possible before. A recent poem that touched my soul follows this post.

I encourage you to find your place to lose yourself. While I talk about leaders in this blog, I really mean you, for each of us is a leader in some way.

Until later,

Thomas

What Can I Say

What can I say that I have not said before?
So I’ll say it again.
The leaf has a song in it.
Stone is the face of patience.
Inside the river there is an unfinishable story
and you are somewhere in it
and it will never end until all ends.

Take your busy heart to the art museum and the
chamber of commerce
but take it also to the forest.
The song you heard singing in the leaf when you
were a child
is singing still.
I am of years lived, so far, seventy-four,
and the leaf is singing still.

~ Mary Oliver ~

Opportunities Lost!

This morning, I was visiting with a friend who’s a professor at the business school of a local university. He was just finishing grading term papers. We talked about how he grades, and I was struck by the attention he places on each paper. He writes comments, as he grades pointing out how well the student is meeting his expectations.

I asked, “ Do you give the papers back to the students?” He said, “If they ask for them”. I wondered,  “How many would want them back?” He said, “About 5%.”

I was stunned. For the most part, these students, who didn’t ask to see their term papers, where walking away from a great opportunity to learn. This had me wonder how many opportunities to learn I walk away from.

For instance, every interaction I have with others is an opportunity to learn. I can begin with looking back at a particular interaction and feel if I was present with the person. If I wasn’t, what was the distraction? I can remember if there was any judgment of the person. If I did, what can I learn about myself from this judgment? I can also recognize if I made any sort of commitment, like “let’s have lunch soon”. If I did, what am I going to do about the commitment?

We are in school and don’t realize it. Our life offers opportunities to learn about ourselves and all we have to do is take the time to get the lesson.

Until later,

Thomas

A New Way to Support Each Other…

I’m a long-time entrepreneur.  In the past, I secured money for business ideas in traditional ways, either from friends and family or professional investors. While funding wasn’t easy, it was still possible, if you had a good-enough idea and were able to instill confidence in the investors.

Today, it’s very different, especially after 2008. Small business startups (particularly for women) are having difficulty in finding funding even for the best of idea. I find this odd, particularly since small businesses are the job engine for the U.S. economy. To make matters worse, commercial banks, for the most part, have decided they are not interested in small business at all.

In doing research for my radio program, I found an emerging environment that is helping thousands of people get the support they need that doesn’t require government subsidies or loans. Building upon the social networks and the Internet, people like you and I are making donations or loans and providing equity to help worthy business ideas get off the ground.

This new environment is called crowdfunding. I talked with experts on the evolution of this phenomena and entrepreneurs, who are providing funding portals and programs that help connect donors and investors with those who need funding. You can listen to these conversations by clicking on Business Matters Radio.

I also took a look at the potential impact of the Jobs Act of 2012, which was recently signed by the President. For the first time, it opens the potential funding to small business from people who are not “accredited investors”. We may be seeing the dawning of a new financial system that can truly democratize business financing.

Until tomorrow,

Thomas