An uncanny aspect of leadership

My friend and co-author Don Martin once mentioned to me that "to get something done, ask a busy person to do it."
In the old days we used to call that "doing a lot of things at once." Now it's called "multi-tasking."
I still like the old phrase.
Leaders will often be focused enough to keep one task at hand while either tackling another situation or recognizing an ability in someone else to be able to get the job done.
If you think about high level leaders they tend to be skilled at perpetuating a balancing act so that they (or their organizations) can become successful at attacking a multi-dimensional world.
Focus, foresight, and seeing the full view of what's in front are traits that seem to serve leaders well.
That's one of the aspects of leadership as I see it. Not the only one...but an important one.

Insights into the Big 3 Auto Company Leaders and the Government

Not once...never, nada, zero, did I hear ANYONE in the senate, congress, or Bush Administration take any of the blame for the fate of the Autombile Industry.
Now I'm not saying that the Big 3 didn't bring this fiasco on themselves by their lack of innovation, foresight, and the manufacturing of more fuel efficient cars - but they did have some help.

In 2003 Congress passed a tax bill, which was part of the Bush Administration economic stimulus package (go figure!), that offered a $100,000 tax credit for any vehicle purchased by business owners that weighed more than 6,000 pounds fully loaded. Which, by the way, included those...yes those...big 'ole SUVs. You know, the ones that have depreciated quicker than the computer you bought 5 years ago.

So, now it's a bit clearer. Give people a government induced reason to buy gas guzzling monsters and those who may not even need 'em will be lining up at the dealership to drive 'em on home (or to their business). And of course...GM, Chrysler, and Ford will, most certainly, be making them.

I'm not naive enough to think that the automobile companies and their lobbyists didn't have a hand in crafting the legislation, but nobody in the halls of the Capitol or White House said anything about the impact it would have on making more efficient vehicles, the environment, or this mess we're now in. No, this was a free ride to keep making vehicles that had the highest profit margins for the auto makers.

Oh yeah...and what else happened! The tax credit for hybrid vehicles seemed to have disappear almost as fast as the equity in your home. Hybrid tax credits (ranging from $250 - $3,000...I know, it isn't $100,000 but hey, why help the environment when you can drive a giant thing over it!) are based on a formula that has to do with the number of vehicles produced (starting with 60,000). As those are bought and that number is reduced to zero, the credit is zilch! It's a bit more involved than that, but you get the idea.

Geez, I'd hate to be the guy signing my sales agreement only to hear that I had just purchased Prius number 60,001!!

Now, I ask you, where was the leadership we needed? What happened to innovative thinkers who wanted to lead is such a way as to leave a legacy of growth, prosperity, jobs, and new ideas that move the country and the world into new vistas.

Well, I guess you have to follow the special interest groups, money, and statis quo to figure that one out.

We have a chance to change that. Having leadership that grasps creative opportunities and brings the energy to change a broken system must step up and do it. And I'm not just talking about politics here, I'm talking about business, societal, and individual leaders who step up to the task.

It's time.

Time to take stock of ourselves

Now that we're approaching the new year, it's time to look at the future and reflect upon the past.
We've seen how the lack of oversight and focus on growing the economy has lead to disasterous results. Greed and more greed has created a culture that forgot about the long range good of society, its resources and its people (who are actually its greatest resouce).
So now where do we go.
Well...first, we must recognize the importance of people and the strength a country can gain from building up its people economically, educationally, and health wise.
Strong leadership knows that without well educated, healthy, and an economically stable workforce a business (or society) will have trouble growing.
Taking excessive greed out of the equation will go a long way to achieving successful results.
I'm not saying to remove fair compensation and incentives...just understand how outrageous bonuses and salaries affects other stakeholders.
And...since business has had such a poor track record of regulating itself, it will, unfortunately, have to have the government impose regulations for the good of the society.
Geez, if we only had leaders who had the foresight and vision to focus on building businesses without taking stakeholders for a ride I'd be writing a different post.
Well, maybe someday.