This is true on the small scale as well as one an international relations stage. Mikhail Gorbachev observed what Ronald Reagan used to describe the Soviet Union and used those descriptions to help push through reforms of Perestroika and Glasnost in the 1980s.

As much as the Western world may detest and deplore Osama bin Laden, if we want to succeed in the struggle with terrorism (which is more a struggle of the minds than a struggle of battlefields) we have to observe and learn from the terrorists as well. Osama bin Laden described his viewpoint of power by saying, “When people see a strong horse and a weak horse, by nature they will like the strong horse.”

Now, this recession – credit crunch, financial crisis, and global meltdown – has cured my addiction. I went on a vacation for two weeks, overseas (I love to travel and visit different countries). And for the first time in my life, within the last decade, I spent the entire time NOT connecting to the Internet and NOT hearing, reading, or watching any news! I loved it and highly recommend it.

There is nothing inherently wrong with staying informed, but sometimes a break is healthy for the mind and the soul.

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Forget about panicking and stop the stupidity of worrying – this is my opinion on what to do about the worst recession since the Great Depression and the pending pandemic of swine flu. Once you recognize a problem, find a solution or better yet TEN solutions, and then focus on the solutions.

A while back I wrote an article about Creative Problem Solving for Leaders and I recommend that you read it. Thinking creatively about solutions is one of the most valuable skill sets to have. Continually exercising your creative mind to innovate produces substance that is above and beyond what most others produce.

But at the end of the day, don’t focus on the problems, find solutions and focus your energy and passion on the solutions.

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The mood of the United States and the World, for that matter, seems to be rather gloomy and pessimistic. Hearing the rhetoric out of Washington about pending “catastrophic” consequences if we don’t pass a nearly trillion dollar stimulus bill certainly doesn’t help. The news reports also are upsetting with record job losses, continuing declines in our economy, the loss wealth of many retirement accounts, and other effects of the recession.

With all that is wrong with the current state of the world. I want to share the Optimist Creed. I think one of the fundamental tenants of being optimistic is not about naivety or ignorance, but just the outlook. The perspective that says, I know how bad things are in the world, but for my personal outlook, I am moving beyond the forces of negativity, beyond pessimism.

Getting Back to Achievement

I am remaining hopeful that tomorrow things will be better. In time, the recession will pass and will become history like all other recession and even the Great Depression. This is not failure, but merely a learning opportunity from which we can build a better future. This is not a desolate end, but an opportunity for a new beginning.

This is an opportunity for us to pull out of the mire, gain the strength from this learning experience, and forge a better future without such an experience for another 70 or 80 years. It’s an opportunity for us to set goals that next time we will go a complete century before the next recession. It’s a goal that an entire, future generation will not experience the pain and hunger of widespread panic, but will know prosperity through a stabilized economy.

It is my recommendation that you read the Optimist Creed, memorize it even, and let the optimist in you take over. Lead in optimism, and, then, get back to achievement.

The Optimist Creed

Promise Yourself-
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel that there is something in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

The Optimist Creed was drafted by Christian D. Larson, who lectured extensively about optimism during the time of the Great Depression.

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1. Take two “retreats” every year.

“Leave your office to develop long-range strategies.” Leadership transcends the tactical management and leads the strategic initiatives. A great way to refresh and refocus is to get out of the mold, so you can gain a different perspective on where things are heading.

2. Read books on other topics.

“Read books on topics that don’t pertain strictly to your business or industry. It’s the best way to maintain a broad perspective.” Leaders need to open up broad channels of input; you need to assess what other industries are doing as they impact yours. Microsoft did not attain its level of success by forgetting about their customers were doing. Their customers were small and medium businesses in healthcare, government, finance, and “mom and pop” shops, etc. All these other industries are intertwined with all the rest of the world.

3. Identify problems early.

“Identify problems early by tracking “exceptions,” such as sales figures that suddenly sag for a particular product. Jump on them right away.” Know what to expect and you will find anomalies. Once you found an anomaly, you have found a potential problem worth exploring. But, all in all, you need metrics in place to track anything.

4. Stop at the end of each day

“Stop at the end of each day to analyze how well you used it. If you wasted time on things you didn’t need to do, eliminate them tomorrow.” Just imagine how much more efficient and effective you will be!

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Quote for Leaders from Conrad Hilton:
“Achievement seems to be connected with action. Successful men and women keep moving. They make mistakes but they don’t quit.”

Conrad Hilton (1887- 1979) was the American hotelier who founded the Hilton Hotel chain.

Achievement, more than money, fame, or glory, seems to be the measure of success for a lot of entrepreneurs and other professionals. Some use money as a measurement for achievement, but it’s the working toward, realizing, and adding to achievement that is the true motivator.

People who achieve are self-driven. They don’t require someone to tell them what to do; they find out what needs to be done and do it.

My grandfather taught me this lesson when I worked with him during my teen years. My grandfather developed land and built residential homes; I worked with him because of my interest in real estate. He put me to work with carpenters, electricians, and the like; although my interest was more on the business side of real estate. I didn’t start as a good worker. I mostly did what I was told and then stopped working until the next task was given to me. Anyone who has been around a construction site knows how much cleaning up needs to be done; whether it be removing scraps of wood or cleaning up sawdust, there is always work to be done until the project is complete. When I didn’t work on a specific task, my standing instruction became “clean up.” I quickly learned how to find more tasks and didn’t wait until I was told. And I started to achieve more, because I got more done.

The action that leads to achievement is not the same as busy work – the menial tasks that always need to get done. Rather, it’s the action that impacts directly with the project. Learning how to focus your energies and turn on the action has a direct impact on what you are able to achieve. As with many other things, the more you work on something – “practice, practice, practice” – the better you work.

Work on the action that leads toward achievement and the more you will achieve. When you make mistakes, remember the 3 Steps for How to Respond to Failure. Also, keep in mind that “action” is an important part of leadership – Formula for Successful Leadership.

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I’ve come across another good quote. This one was passed to me from a longtime friend; the author is unknown.

“Life isn’t about how to survive the storm, but how to dance in the rain.”

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Today is the State of Wisconsin Primary and for the first time in a long while I am at home instead of voting by absentee ballot. There are very few leadership positions as important as the Presidency of the United States, so I have been giving a lot of contemplation as to who I feel is the best leader for the next four-to-eight years.

John McCain

Back in 2000, I was a supporter for John McCain, a highly respectable patriot, knowledgeable and experienced candidate, and someone who is able to make better decisions than most. This year, he is the presumptive nominee with a clear and decisive lead of delegates for the Republican Party nomination.

With the DNC

This year, I am contemplating casting my vote in the Democratic Party. In Wisconsin, voters are allowed to register at the voting booth and select party affiliation at that time. By the way, the open primary registration of Wisconsin works to the advantage of Senators Obama and McCain who both do very well among independent voters.

Hillary Clinton

I honestly do not believe Senator Clinton to be the best choice. She is way too divisive for a leader. I think there would be more problems between the executive and legislative branches of government if she was elected. Do not misunderstand, I think she is very intelligent and capable as a politician, but I do not think she is who this country needs at this time.

Barack Obama

Senator Obama is, in my opinion, a highly influential leader. His oratorical abilities and celebrity status, allow him a great deal latitude from which to lead. I do not agree with every position that he takes, but I don’t 100% agree with every position that any of the candidates take. I do think that America needs an influential leader – someone who can inspire, influence, and provoke positive action.

Party Politics

As you can probably discern from this blog entry, I do not allow myself to be limited by political parties. I think it was George Washington, in his farewell address who warned against political parties and history has proven him to be accurate and wise. Great many problems have risen from party politics. Too many issues become a matter of competition to win than a decision to make for the best interest of the nation. The only good is the default mode of restraint in passing new legislation.

Jeffersonian Principle of Government

The Jeffersonian Principle of Government from our third President, Thomas Jefferson, is that government that governs best is that government that governs least. The division caused by a dual party system does keep the legislature in check, but too often distracts from issues that truly matter. There are thousands of young men and women who are dying in this nation’s wars in Iraq, in Afghanistan, and against terrorism. Too many people are struggling paycheck-to-paycheck in our economy, while fat-cat executives are given huge severance packages when they fail in their jobs. These two issues – war and economy – are the top two issues for me and most significant problems facing our nation at this time.

Casting my Vote to Make a Difference

So, today, I am going to cast my vote to play my role and be responsible for the governing of this nation. Freedom, of course, is not free. It comes with the high cost of responsibility. If we want to maintain a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people,” then we need to be responsible to fulfill our obligations by participating in the political process.

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Conflicts rip through every team and wreak havoc on the unity and focus of team. It is critical to understand what causes conflicts and seek resolution as expeditiously and thoroughly as possible. The main cause of conflicts is personality. Sometimes, the personality conflicts are wrapped around viable issues like differences of opinion on how to best accomplish a task, what rules or regulations govern an operation, or what takes priority among multiple issues; too often conflicts are unresolved because of personalities rather than issues.

Here are 7 steps for resolving personality conflicts in the workplace:

1) Maintain friendliness:

Cordial and courteous actions and words are often all that is required to mitigate personality conflicts. Maintain a friendly environment and you may very well maintain a “personality conflict free” environment.

2) Keep it professional:

Professionalism is a pertinent factor to keep tempers and attitudes from getting out of control. The Type-A personality is a great person to have on the team, but the Type-A personality can cause problems if there isn’t a clear practice of professionalism.

3) Determine the source of problems:

When conflicts arise, do not dismiss them as matters of personality. Seek to resolve any and all underlying problems, differences of opinion, and genuine work issues. Focusing attention on problems that matter will unite the team and draw attention to teamwork.

4) Document conflicts:

When conflicts do arise, it is important to keep track of the problems to determine the depth and breadth of the issues that infect your workplace. Documentation can also be used to determine an underlying source of problems or avoidable trends in conflicts.

5) Keep relevant parties informed:

Conflicts should not be swept under the rug and hidden. Problems will haunt your team and infect your work; conflicts need to be resolved – this is the only way to maintain the unity and effectiveness of a team.

6) Don’t hesitate to take the issue higher:

Sometimes a team member may need to be laterally transferred in order to put personality issues in perspective. If properly managed, a personality conflict should never lead to firing a team member, but under some circumstance a lateral transfer may be the best answer. If you do not have the authority to transfer someone, take the issue to those with the authority. Keep in mind, proper documentation will probably be required in order to make the case, so go back to step number 4.

7) Keep it professional:

All in all, keep things professional. We are all different and this is the value of a team.

Leadership quote from William Wrigley:
“In business, when two people always agree, one of them is irrelevant.”

Conflicts, in and of themselves, are not problems, but rather contribute to the dynamism and viability of a team.

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