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The intense focus on those pertinent details cements the foundation that establishes excellence in performance.
Comes down to planning...simple actions that add up over time to become the culture, which executes the standard of performance...
Start with a comprehensive recognition of, reverence for, and identification of the specific actions and attitudes relevant to your team’s performance and production.
Identify the right metrics
Be clarion clear in communicating your expectation of high effort and execution of your Standard of Performance.
Stretch team and individual objectives and expectations, and be crystal clear about how to reach those expectations. Do this with your teams and individuals...get them involved to create ownership of the outcome
Let all know that you expect them to possess the highest level of expertise in their area of responsibility.
Beyond standards and methodology, teach your beliefs, values, and philosophy.
Goal as a leader is to align the team with the values and vision...this is only achieved if they know the values and vision of the leader...gets the right people involved as well...if they don't believe your values and vision then they will fail or create problems in your organization
Teach “connection and extension.”
A team is one, owned by all its parts, win or lose, and all contributions matter when achieving excellence...dalio 1+1=3...greater than sum of its parts
Make the expectations and metrics of competence that you demand in action and attitudes from personnel the new reality of your organization.
Live and lead in your culture
I become a victim of myself and go into a kind of stupor because I’m trying so hard without really knowing what the heck I’m trying to do.
It has to be tactical more than a conscious
Tactical...as in identifying and leveraging small advantages to get ahead...
effort to really “try harder.”
do what you already know how to do at the level of excellence you’ve acquired—whether
The challenge to everyone, individual and organization, is to increase your level of effortless excellence...trying harder is not sustainable (burnout) and almost guarantees poor results despite the effort
I was a master at crunch time because I had put in years of smart hard work in mastering my craft and creating a comprehensive Standard of Performance for my organization.
Becoming a leader or master in anything starts now...with principles, standards, objectives, and the expectations to live up to those standards and objectives...everyday for as long as you want to be a master and leader in your area
The key to performing under pressure at the highest possible level, regardless of circumstance, is preparation in the context of your Standard of Performance and a thorough assimilation by your organization of the actions and attitudes contained within your philosophy of leadership.
Planning and execution when things are flexible to make high performance the default under pressure
I trusted that it was going to happen because we had prepared thoroughly.
By focusing strictly on my Standard of Performance, the 49ers were able to play the bigger games very well because it was basically business as usual—no “try harder” mentality was used. In fact, I believed it would be counterproductive.
So while the opponents had to elevate their game, we did too, but it was a very natural culmination of all our previous work. It’s similar to a wave that gathers force for many miles out at sea and eventually crashes down with tremendous power on the beach.
He made it very clear. There was no confusion in their minds as to what he expected.
Andy grove was also meticulous about one on one and clarifying intentions, actions, and expectations do people knew was being asked and if they could do it to the level expected of them
a real stickler not only about playing football but about raising the image of the franchise from within.
Attention to detail important for the image of the organization, both internally and externally
It was one of the tiny things—thousands of them—that he put in place that were part of eventually winning.
Bill Walsh was not afraid of talent. He hired assistant coaches who were extremely good, and he did it with the expectation that they would move on—up to head coaching positions.
While you were a 49er, you were expected to give it your all,
but Bill was very enlightened in the way he supported the lives and careers of employees beyond just what they could do for his team.
He was simply unbelievable in the way he could spot potential in a person and then develop it.
I think this comes from the detail of Bill's standards of performance...when you see someone who demonstrates some ability, passion, and already in line with your standards of performance, you have to get them on board! They'll grow under your leadership to become a leader in your team and organization.
making lemonade when you don’t have any lemons is great leadership.
Lemons (something bad or undesirable, unsavory) into lemonade (something sweet, refreshing, enjoyable, valuable) means turning something undesirable into something valuable, requires creativity
nobody was looking for a glue that didn’t stick, but then a creative leader saw a way to turn it into lemonade—Post-it Notes.
At first the room was filled with laughter as we saw the mayhem Trumpy’s mistake had precipitated. One man, however, wasn’t laughing—Bill Johnson. He was thinking.
Planning
Putting the tight end in motion caught on quickly around the NFL because it created new problems for the defense.
Innovation
inspiration for extending your own receptiveness to innovation, for seeing what others don’t see.
my attempt to make the most out of what I had to work with
Constraints lead to innovation!
other teams were just too strong for us. That left the pass as our only option.
Play to your strengths...
In studying films of Virgil and watching him in practice, I determined that while he didn’t have much of an arm, he was composed under pressure and could read defenses and was nimble physically and quick mentally.
Planning; assessing your core competency and strengths
and nobody in the NFL was doing it, in part because of the difficulty in creating, teaching, and executing the complexities of the system—you
Simple system but complex to replicate, plays to your team's strengths, huge lead because of the time steep learning curve...huge strategic/competitive advantage! Know your strengths and plan around them in a way no one else can
I counted on the backs and tight ends to run for yardage after they caught the ball.
Contrary to traditional role...look at tradition as a recommendation, but not a constraint or requirement...no one will expect it
was forced to be innovative to a degree I didn’t foresee.
was born of necessity, bred of innovation and creativity applied to existing—and so-called limited—assets.
They were locked into the past and unwittingly locking themselves out of the future.
Tradition and expectations can be hurdles, serous barriers to innovation...Be open minded and receptive of new ideas or ways of doing things
what Howard and many others missed in the early days was that 60 percent of the yardage on our pass plays came through running after the catch.
Measuring total yards versus passing yards...better metric
(Few inventions are created out of nothing. What I was doing had its roots in the theories of others who had modernized the passing game,
Similarly, blumberg makes this point in his book startup ceo with examples about Steve jobs and the automated loom having many tinkerers and inventors
In fact, it was brought into college football simply as a device to make the game safer.
Know your history! Know why the traditions are the way they are! Understanding and knowing are two very different things with different outcomes for innovation
Success doesn’t care which road you take to get to its doorstep.
Be bold.
Respect the past without clinging to it:
“What assets do we have right now that we’re not taking advantage of?”
make the most of what you’ve got.
Be obsessive in looking for the upside in the downside.
Instead of looking for reasons we couldn’t make it work, I sought solutions that would make it succeed.
Perspective...Consider that when you're planning you're not constrained by tradition or external expectations, that the decisions you make are based on your strengths...Consider that who you bring on is not themselves limited and that their weaknesses are only subjective depending on your perspective...challenging task, but required to be a true innovator
“What happens if this does not work? What then?”
In your own challenges, are you receptive to new, even unorthodox ways of getting things done?
We get stuck there and resist the new, the unfamiliar, the unconventional.
Systems must respond to their environment..when things change and stop working, so you must change and start working
should desperation be the primary determinant for seeking new direction, innovative solutions?
