Sunday, March 26, 2006

Perfect Logic, Beautiful Loser

He wants to dream like a young man
With the wisdom of an old man
He wants his home and security
He wants to live like a sailor at sea
Beautiful loser
Where you gonna fall
When you realize
You just don't need it all
He's your oldest and your best friend
If you need him he'll be there again
He's always willing to be second best
A perfect (begin my edit) logic (end my edit), a perfect guest


- Bob Seger.... Composer...

Thanks to Jeff, Bobby, William, Detroit, Bob, and the Silver Bullet (not the beer)..

Sunday, March 05, 2006

Sunday Morning Sermon

Sunday Morning Sermon

3/5/06

Sometimes inspiration comes from the strangest places, sometimes it comes from exactly where you expect. When you go to a leadership conference you expect to be inspired. When you go to church you expect to be moved. For that reason (and many more) the receivers "expectations" which may be set by a venues "aura" may put communications in those places at an advantage to others. Believe me though if you listen close enough you'll realize that the sermon of life can come from just about anywhere. Take for example Rocky and Bullwinkle. No not the 2000 film (although it had De Niro and some other great stars in it). I mean the 60's television show.

On the surface the show is based on a the adventures of a squirrel and moose (Rocky and Bullwinkle) from a town called Frostbite Falls, who battle the forces of evil (Boris and Natasha). When you look at the characters you soon realize that there is a very thinly drawn statement about leadership with an admitted dogmatic undertone. On the surface you have characters who portray two recurring roles. One role being confident but not so smart role and the second being a pessimistic but oh so cunning role. As is often the case in real life these roles play out under the guidance a character called the "fearless leader". What may be lost by only giving a cursory look, is the underlining statement that is made about management. As dogmatic as it may seem, you will often find the roles portrayed in people you see every day. It may not always be obvious but the reality effect of this show is probably what made it so popular during it's run. The interplay between these roles is where the rubber meets the road.

So what's the insight? Where is the inspiration? To this end I can only suggest that each individual find their own answer by looking within themselves.

What I see is a very close correlation to two different team management styles. The "fearless leader", who micro-manages Boris and Natasha and the self directed team management of Rocky and Bullwinkle. Save the good vs. evil undertone, both management styles are portrayed along with the benefits and pitfalls of each. If you find yourself leading a Rocky, Bullwinkle, Boris or Natasha (and we all do at times), you might find the answer to what you seek in the simple message a cartoon can send. Take what you will from this post, no doubt the venue of your "situation" will highlight what you seek.