Uncommon Leadership Lessons: Know and Yes
March 6, 2008 by David Zinger
Filed under Business
How have you learned to become a leader or a manager?
We can read management blogs, we can digest leadership books, we can take leadership courses, we can enroll in a Master’s of Business Administration, we can listen to a leadership speaker…
Yet sometimes our most significant learning comes from the strangest places.
Originally I had created some leadership short video clips for www.davidzinger.com as I have moved more and more towards a specific focus on employee engagement I realized the leadership lesson I learned from the Lion King and my young son Luke no longer fit at this site.
I offer it here not as a great video (I’m in my socks and carrying a broom) but it is a very uncommon source for a leadership lesson. Click here to view the video if it does not appear in the window below.
What about you?
What have you learned about management or leadership from uncommon sources and how did you learn it?
David
I learned a huge amount from our dog, Sam – A Border Collie.
Sam is 12 now and he has not had a great year. A year ago he was diagnosed as be diabetic, so now he is injected twice a day with insulin. he then went blind (due to be diabetic), had a major operation, could see for a few weeks and then lost one of his eyes (had to be taken out).
He then ate a tennis ball and had to be shaved for numerous scans.
So you get the picture – he has had to deal with a lot of change and weekly trips to the vets.
He has never moaned (do dogs moan?), never complained, never refused, never run away from the injections. All the vets comment they have never seen a dog so happy no matter how unwell he is!
Give Sam his ball and he is still a puppy at heart.
So what have I learned – over and above staying calm in a crises – accept change: it happens to you; sometimes you can’t do much about it – but just carry on.
Andrew
Andrew,
You just made my day. I love your Sam story and I think there is so much I can learn before I go to the dogs…
Thank you so much.
David
Thanks, David.
Sam has often allowed me to blog about him and this posting sparks off some more stories!
Andrew
David,
This post has really got me thinking about our great dog, Sam. So I have just posted some photos of Sam on my blog – for those of you who want to see Sam you can click my website above and you will go straight to the posting.
It’s amazing how your posting has inspired me, David. I was up at 5am this morning – Saturday morning – all keen and eager to write about Sam!
Thanks David it has been an inspiration.
Andrew
Andrew,
I read Sam’s work. He writes well. Looks like you have a new writing partner.
David
woof woof
David
I have chosen this post for my weekly GreatManagement Inspirational Articles – The Best Advice From Around The Web.
Andrew
Andrew
Sock it to me…I must have swept you away. I think know and yes…or maybe I have just gone to the dogs but I would be in good company with Sam.
David
David
Unfortunately, Sam went to ‘Pet Heaven’ yesterday.
You can see more at the link above.
Andrew
Andrew.
I was touched by Sam and his writing. I have sent you a private personal email.
David
Hi, I cannot compete with the Sam story – it is great.
In terms of learning lessons in strange places, this is something worth sharing.
I have two wonderful children who are 2 and 5, my oldest has just started school and developed the “I am a school kid attitude”. This was prevalent last week when after dinner she asked for desert by saying “Give me my desert” to which we obviously corrected her and explained that we need to use the word “please” – you need to ask “can I have some desert please?” To which she did and we all ate our desert.
Now we don’t eat desert every night, just maybe twice a week.
The next night she asked very politely for desert, to which we replied “it is not a desert night tonight, but thankyou for using your manners”
My poor little daughter become quite upset and all she could say was “but I said please”
The learning for me, leaders and managers need to be clear about the expectations that they set, as the leader may believe that they have met all of the expectations that they set, while the employees may think that you have met few of the expectations that were set.
Oh dessert could be so pleasing when you please but please not dessert all the time. Thanks for the comment Ian.
Ian,
Glad you like the Sam story. We do miss him. We watch some videos of him recently – great memories flooded back. I’ll have to post them to my site!
As a Manager (and a parent!) you have to provide clarity. I find it easier as a Manager than a parent, though.
Andrew