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Ken Burns now has a PBS documentary on the life of Muhammad Ali.
For some time, I’ve been reflecting on Ali’s innovative prowess as an athlete. The recent PBS program has prompted me to blog a question that keeps returning to me.
In keeping with the direction some of my previous musings have gone in, I am wondering if Ali’s Rope-A-Dope is an example of Wu Wei?
Years ago, I found myself listening to an important historical analysis from Great By Choice by Jim Collins and Morten T. Hansen. Given some of the important lessons imprinted in my memory I thought I would put this on the blog. For those reading the book, pages 13 to 18 and 60 to 62 are where to focus.
In the fall of 1911 two explorers and their teams engaged in a race to be the first to reach the South Pole. Both groups were of the same age range, started the journey within days of each other, and had similar experience.
However, the outcomes were drastically different. One group, led by Norway’s Roald Amundsen, not only got to the South Pole first; but also arrived back to base camp with everyone intact. The other group, led by Britain’s Robert Falcon Scott, arrived to the South Pole over a month behind Amundsen’s team. Sadly, Robert Falcon Scott and his team perished on the way back to base camp.
What are some of the reasons that Collins and Hansen provide to distinguish how one explorer succeeded so spectacularly and the other failed so tragically?
For me there are two reasons that resonate with me from the book.
In regards to transportation, Scott chose to use ponies and “motor sledges” that were not fully tested in extreme South Pole conditions (page 16). The result? As Collins and Hansen write, “the motor-sledge engines cracked within the first few days, the ponies failed early, and his team slogged through most of the journey by “man-hauling,” harnessing themselves to sleds, trudging across the snow, and pulling the sleds behind them.”
In the matter of supplies, Amundsen prepared for catastrophe with three tons of supplies for five men (page 16). Scott allotted one ton of supplies for 17 men (page 16).
What is the difference in the supply numbers? “In his final push for the South Pole from 82 degrees, Amundsen carried enough extra supplies to miss every single depot and still have enough left over to go another hundred miles (page 16).”
Additionally, marking the journey with signs was important so that the explorers could know where to locate supplies and how to get back to base.
The difference between Amundsen and Scott is telling. “When setting supply depots, Amundsen not only flagged a primary depot, he placed 20 black pennants (easy to see against the white snow) in precise increments for miles on either side, giving himself a target more than ten kilometers wide in case he got slightly off course coming back in a storm. To accelerate segments of his return journey, he marked his path every quarter of a mile with packing-case remnants and every eight miles with black flags hoisted upon bamboo poles. Scott, in contrast, put a single flag on his primary depot and left no markings on his path, leaving him exposed to catastrophe if he even went a bit off course (page 16).”
Collins and Hansen also write that Amundsen had four altitude measuring thermometers, in the event of accidents, whereas Scott only brought one; which broke (page 16).
Scott’s group had a haphazard approach that largely depended on what the weather brought. “Scott would sometimes drive his team to exhaustion on good days and then sit in his tent and complain about the weather on bad days (page 61).”
Last fall I blogged about Wayne Dyer’s view of a leader according to Lao Tzu’s Tao Te Ching. In keeping with that topic, I’ve recently been taking an in-depth look at a particular chapter in The Path: What Chinese Philosophers Can Teach Us About the Good Life by Michael Puett and Christine Gross-Loh.
Chapter 5 entitled: On Laozi and Generating Worlds is particularly enlightening. Note that Laozi and Lao Tzu refer to the same individual.
The analogy that kicks off the chapter forces us to focus on what is really a source of strength. Our perception of strength usually revolves around thoughts of superior force, height, space, etc.
For me one of the key sources of strength that this chapter’s introduction highlights is flexibility.
Puett and Gross-Loh ask us to take a look at two different trees in a forest. One is the “mighty” oak and the other is the “tiny” sapling, referenced on page 87.
Given our initial thoughts of superior force, height, space; we may think that the “mighty” oak is clearly stronger than the “tiny” sapling.
But what happens when a major storm comes, which of the two trees will be the strongest?
I will allow Puett and Gross-Loh to explain, “The oak tree might not be able to withstand the wind, rain, and lighting of a fierce storm. In the end, it will topple to the ground, yet the sapling will remain intact. Why? The sapling has been bending and shifting with the winds; pliable and soft, it stands up again when the storm has passed.”
For me the key factor of strength is flexibility which is what the sapling exhibits and the oak does not.
There are a number of historical events and figures that Puett and Gross-Loh mention, which exhibit Laozi’s key teachings. I learned a lot from those examples and may make them the topics of future posts.
Back in January, I informed readers I enjoyed looking through this Slide Share (in particular point 15 which is to be the Evangelist for Courage) which outlines the book Trillion Dollar Coach: The Leadership Playbook of Silicon Valley’s Bill Campbell by Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, and Alan Eagle.
In February, I posted a bit about Ray Dalio and his TED talk on decision making. See below for more information.
I’d like to go back to the Slide Share to discuss point 5 in which Campbell discusses decision making.
According to Campbell the manager ought to make sure that all perspectives get a hearing and due consideration in the decision making process that they are leading. However, the manager must be prepared to break through an impasse and make the decision.
I like the title of this slide, which is Best Idea, Not Consensus. So if managers need to make a decision when they come to a fork in the road, the best idea will win.
I have found a lot of useful information in this TED talk that Ray Dalio gave a few years ago on group and team dynamics when making decisions.
At 13:20 in the video Dalio says that, “Collective Decision Making is so much better than Individual Decision Making if it is done well.”
At 14:49/50 in the video Dalio notes, “There is an idea meritocracy where everybody can speak up.”
I have enjoyed looking through this Slide Share which outlines the book Trillion Dollar Coach: The Leadership Playbook of Silicon Valley’s Bill Campbell by Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, and Alan Eagle.
Campbell played a key role in building such companies as Google, Apple, and Intuit. His mentorship to Silicon Valley executives was renowned.
The slides provide important points for leaders to consider. For me, I enjoyed point 15, Be the Evangelist for Courage. I believe that Campbell aimed to instill confidence in the people he interacted with. The descriptive quote from the slide reads, “Believe in people more than they believe in themselves, and push them to be more courageous.”
Five years ago I wrote up my thoughts on General Stanley McChrystal’s Team of Teams.
Since that time I have kept my opinion that “the book will most likely go down as one of the best management books of the century.”
What chapter speaks to me most recently as worthy of a revisit?
Chapter 11: Leading Like a Gardener
It merits noting that this chapter takes on and overturns the idea of the leader as the chess master moving all the pieces. As referenced on page 222, “The role of a senior leader was no longer that of a controlling puppet master, but rather that of an empathetic crafter of culture.”
Additionally, the gardener sets, maintains, and performs upkeep on the garden so that the vegetables are nourished.
A few quotes from page 225 bring this home, with my favorite in bold. “The gardener creates an environment in which the plants can flourish. Watering, weeding, and protecting plants from rabbits and disease are essential for success. The gardener cannot actually “grow” tomatoes, squash, or beans- she can only foster an environment in which the plants do so.”
Leaving the garden alone after the initial planting is out of the question. Maintenance and upkeep on regular intervals are important.
Page 229 has a great quote which I like. “Gardeners plant and harvest, but more than anything, they tend. Plants are watered, beds are fertilized, and weeds are removed. Long days are spent walking humid pathways or on sore knees examining fragile stalks. Regular visits by good gardeners are not pro forma gestures of concern- they leave the crop stronger. So it is with leaders.”
The book Goodbye, Things: The New Japanese Minimalism by Fumio Sasaki provided three reasons (on page 47) accounting for the new Japanese minimalism which started around 2010.
These three reasons are:
The crisis of the Great East Japan Earthquake, caused Sasaki to write that, “I think it prompted a big change in how we look at our possessions.”
Difficult times do indeed make one assess their values. Too much stuff can be stifling. In terms of possessions, this book made me think that it is best to focus on life experiences rather than things. Those life experiences create memories which last longer and serve one better than physical objects.
Leaders may want to familiarize themselves with the 17th verse of Lao-tzu’s Tao Te Ching.
With the greatest leader above them, people barely know one exists.
Next comes one whom they love and praise.
Next comes one whom they fear.
Next comes one whom they despise and defy.
When a leader trusts no one, no one trusts him.
The great leader speaks little.
He never speaks carelessly.
He works without self-interest and leaves no trace.
When all is finished, the people say, “We did it ourselves.”
For a brief explanation, I enjoy this quote below from Dr. Wayne Dyer’s book Change Your Thoughts- Change Your Life: Living the Wisdom of the Tao on pages 77 to 78.
“The Tao advises making yourself as invisible as possible if you truly wish to be an effective leader. Thus, perhaps your best strategy would be to actually leave the room and allow everyone else to act without feeling the need to impress you. Maybe you should offer a slight suggestion and then an immediate departure. A knowing smile or gesture that conveys to the group that you trust in its ability to figure things out might work best. Possibly what’s needed is for you to tell a quick story of how others have resolved similar issues. Or you could simply meditate and send positive conflict resolving energy to all the individuals present.”
In the fall of 2017, Jenna Pontious wrote a guest post on her experiences at the California Library Association Conference.
I thought it worthwhile to share her article in the American Association of Law Libraries New Voices section entitled Storytimes to Statutes: My Transition From Public Libraries to Public Law Libraries by Jenna Pontious