10 Things To Do Instead of Complain

I’ve said before that choosing gratefulness is our organization’s unofficial official theme for 2015. It’s a mindset that my family and I have been intentional about choosing in the aftermath of our loss. But, we shouldn’t wait for a life-altering event to occur before we focus on being grateful.

Gratefulness probably won’t appear on any ranking of “Top leadership traits of successful CEOs” (or COOs, or CFOs, or directors, or managers, or line workers, for that matter). But I’m finding that it is a highly overlooked and undervalued characteristic of successful leaders at every level. (more…)

As I noted in 5 Actions for Leading a Virtual Team, the Impacting Leaders team is comprised of mostly virtual employees. I asked my team to think about the actions they deem to be essential to success as a member of a virtual team. Here’s what they had to share:
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“These types of games bring out the best and the worst of people…(The players) need to see in me that I’m not going to quit.” – Mack Brown, University of Texas Head Football Coach, in his Monday press conference following the 2012 Red River Rivalry

Well, if you’re a Longhorn fan, Saturday was a day you’d just as soon forget. The much anticipated Red River Rivalry game between the University of Oklahoma and the University of Texas at the Cotton Bowl quickly turned into a Red River routing, with the Sooners beating the Longhorns 63-21.

I know how this game made me feel as a loyal fan, so I can’t imagine the heartache, disappointment, and frustration the players felt at the end of the game. That’s why I like Mack’s quote so much. When a team takes a beating, they look to their leader to see what they’re going to do next. Is all lost? Is it worth continuing to fight for? Do we get mad and pout and point fingers and blame, or do we suck it up, recommit ourselves to the goal, and keep pressing forward?

The leader sets the tone. The worst thing a leader can do to their team is convey defeat. If the leader gives up, the team doesn’t have anything left to fight for. Whether you’re an OU or a UT fan, this quote is one that’s definitely worth living out.

Have you ever experienced a painful loss that you had to suck up for the sake of your teammates? How does your team see you react to setbacks or disappointments?