Lee Ellis's Blog, page 297

Leading with Honor Wisdom for Today, September 4, 2015

“Talent will get you in the door, but character will keep you in the room.” – Unknown

A New Generation of Talent – See How You Fit Into the Labor Landscape

It’s astonishing to realize that of our children who are in kindergarten today, 75% of them will end up in jobs that don’t even exist today. Perhaps even more surprising is the fact that 50% of today’s college freshman’s knowledge and learning materials are obsolete by the time those same freshmen reach their senior year!

Today’s workforce revolves around talent, instead of just manpower. How do you fit into the labor landscape?

Read this article from Jim Trunick, and share your comments in this forum –

How Great Leaders Synch Their Personal and Organizational Values for Success

By Lee Ellis

 

(Editor’s Note: Over the last six months we have been working our way through The Honor Code – 7 Core Behaviors for Honorable Leadership. In case you didn’t get your copy, you can find it at www.LeadingWithHonor.com.)

 

 

Like all of the Honor Code statements, the last code is a hard one to fulfill because we are fraught with human frailties. Temptation can come from many directions. When the road ahead looks hard or we are facing fears and doubts, living by our values can seem too hard. This reality makes easy to rationalize that some compromise is acceptable. None of us are perfect, but honorable people realize there is a battle raging for the very soul of who they are, and they engage and fight to win the prize of living and leading with honor.

Here is Article 7 of the Honor Code –

Live your values. Be faithful to your spiritual core, your conscience, and your deepest intuitions.

Leaders Modeling Values

They say that values, mindsets, behaviors, and habits are caught more than taught. I believe that. Truly one of the greatest blessings I got from the years of hardships as a POW in Vietnam was living in the presence of courageous leaders who daily fought to live by their personal values and those of our organization. They modeled honorable behavior and their faithful impact made a difference in my life, then and now.

Granted, in the camps there weren’t many of the normal personal temptations to abandon our values: no drugs, no alcohol, no pornography, no opportunities for adultery, not even any money—the love of which is “the root of all evil.” So we were protected from having to face many of the snares of regular living.

Yet, ironically, living by our values was in essence our main goal and the focus of everything we did; it was the only way we were capable of achieving some purpose.

Personal Values = Organizational Values

As you have probably seen in your own experience, personal values inevitably drive organizational and team values. Our organizational values were simple:

be faithful to our country
our fellow POWs, and
do our duty by resisting the exploitations of the enemy.

These basics were summarized in our short six article code of conduct which we had all memorized early in our training. We had clarity, we were committed, and we followed our leaders who acted on these values every day.

It was this singular focus on living and leading with honor that bound us together and galvanized our resistance against the enemy’s schemes to convince us to take the “easy way out.”

The lines were clear; the enemy and consequences were obvious, and perhaps that made it easier for us to suffer and sacrifice to live by our values.

Three Valuable Lessons for All Leaders

The environment was unique, but I think there are some clear lessons we can extrapolate from that experience.

Clarify your values. What do you really believe? Who are you? What do you stand for? Reflect on the foundation of your beliefs. Your faith, your family teaching, your professional ethics, your patriotism, your sense of community. What are your non-negotiables? The Honor Code would be a good place to start.


Commit and stand courageously. Will you stand firm in the face of a busy schedule, unfair competition, the need to look good, the desire to meet legitimate desires for comfort and pleasure in ways that compromise your values? Recognize that your doubts and fears will take you out. Commit to suffer and sacrifice to remain faithful to your values.


Act in congruence with who you are. Be true to yourself. It’s not easy; we are humans and not firm and fixed. We operate by ebbs and flows of our commitment. Fight the battle to keep your honor intact and when you fail, admit it and bounce back.

Be Inspired and Stay Connected

Need some practical ways to maintain and fulfill your personal and organizational values? Here are a couple of important ones –

Inspiration is Important and Must Be Ongoing. Emotions are the energy that drives us to accomplish our deepest desires. Find your inspiration from various sources –

Spiritual Foundations – renew them and be true to your faith.
Family Relationships and Traditions of Your Heritage
Personal Development through Conversations, Books, Blogs, Podcasts, Events, and more. And, are you authentically sharing with others to help them develop?




Stay Connected to People Who are Likeminded.

Who is speaking into your life?
Do you have authentic relationships?
Be discerning. Don’t let those with negative values pull you down.

This journey through the seven articles of the Honor Code has been a good refresher for me, and I hope it’s been valuable for you, too. Please share your experiences in this area and do the favor of passing along a copy of the Honor Code to others.

LE

 

Sign up and watch Lee’s Coaching Video related to this article.

 

 

Related Articles:

– Honor Code Article 1 – Four Lies that All Leaders Are Tempted to Use, and How to Tell the Truth

– Honor Code Article 2 – Treating Others with Dignity and Respect Even When It’s Difficult: Four Leadership Traps to Avoid

– Honor Code Article 3 – 7 Leadership Steps That You Need to Know on Keeping Your Promises

– Honor Code Article 4 – Feel the Temptation to Stretch the Truth? 3 Ethical Guardrails to Keep You in the Right Lane

– Honor Code Article 5 – 3 Long-Term Ways to Successfully Fulfill Your Duty as an Honorable Leader

– Honor Code Article 6 – How to Conquer Your Latest Leadership Obstacle: 3 Proven Ways to Grow in Courage

It’s Pay Day!

Today is Pay Day! If you’re the leader of your team or organization, how do you feel on pay day? Is it just another day, or is it an opportunity to thank your staff or a job well done?

Please share any leadership-related ideas that you use in conjunction with this regular occurrence.

On This Day in Leadership History, August 30, 2015

On this day in leadership history in 1645, American Indians and the Dutch made a peace treaty at New Amsterdam. New Amsterdam later became known as New York. Have you thought about the impact and legacy of your work 50, 100, or 200 years from now? Your vision and goals may have a much larger impact than you realize. Stay passionate about fulfilling your unique purpose as a leader!

New Amsterdam – Wikipedia

 

Leading with Honor Wisdom for Today, August 28, 2015

“Live less out of habit and more out of intent.” – Unknown

 

When to Change How You Lead – Insightful Article for 21st Century Leaders

It’s very fashionable to say we live in fast-changing times. Does that mean that the basic principles of leadership itself must change? This very insightful article below from McKinsey and Company shares “When to Change How You Lead”.

Click to read and share your comments here –

 

Singing From the Same Sheet of Music on Your Leadership Team?

Need your family, team, or organization to sing from the same sheet of music? A clear, solid set of values helps!

Download your complimentary copy of “The Honor Code – 7 Core Behaviors for Honorable Leadership”, and share what you think is the most important core behavior on this list in this forum.

Frustrated by the Lack of Leadership Accountability? The Problem and Some Solutions Inside

Are you frustrated by a lack of accountability in your personal profession or companies and organizations that you interact with on a regular basis? What’s the danger when fear takes over? This interview with Lee Ellis highlights a great example of (1) the problem and (2) suggested solutions for leaders. Please listen and share!

Special Offer Continues on the Leading with Honor Freedom Package

Sorry to keep mentioning the ‘Leading with Honor Freedom Package’, but it’s so good that we can’t help it! Save 30% off and enjoy some personal leadership development with the 14 leadership lessons learned from Lee Ellis’ Vietnam POW experience.

Learn More and Order Your Copy –