Tag Archives: leadership

31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 22 – Relapse

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i believe-001

Developing new skills requires a change management mentality. New skills must be practiced and reinforced over time, with continuous application. The more powerful and experiential the training with total immersion in the new skills, will result in new behaviors that are sustainable.

However, you must deal with inertia, which is resistance to change. Secondly you must contend with the temptation to resort to previous behaviors in the face of difficulty. Observation and experience reveal that in a crisis, if the new skills are not firmly embedded in the subconscious, we revert to previous behavior. We retreat to what is known, comfortable and firmly established. We may discard the new information, new practices for the comfortable behaviors of the past.

If change is not fully incorporated into your rote memory or natural rhythms, you may easily relapse. Therefore, it is important to have powerful implementation procedures that are rapidly reinforced repetition to replace the memorized subconscious behaviors.

Additionally, you must firmly believe in your people and adhere to your leadership pledge to their success. In the heat of battle, turmoil or a crisis, remember that your long-term effectiveness as a leader may hinge upon the following. Your ability to be steady, call while refusing to relapse and abandoning new programs and practices for the old way of doing things.

 

Leadership Pledge

To value and respect you

For your accomplishments each year;

Reward your focus on the bottom line,

Elicit feedback and design

Improvements to work conditions

And ways to fight the competition.

To give clear goals, not good intentions;

Form tactics that defy convention

And set a course for the clients needs,

Sometimes at warp or breakneck speeds;

But always mindful as we advance

To keep egos intact and skills enhanced.

To value and respect you

For loyalty and candor,

For personal leadership modeled

When understaffed and at full throttle,

To praise you when change is prominent,

Receptive when stress is dominant;

And listen actively to your voice,

For you have freedoms,

You’re here by choice.

Copyright © 2013 Orlando Ceaser

Reprinted from Leadership Above the Rim

Personal Reflections

  1. How do you demonstrate to others that you believe and trust them?

  2. What new programs have you put in place to improve the climate in your workplace?

  3. Think of behavior changes successfully implemented and what you did to make them work.

  4. Give examples of old habits that you have successfully replaced.

  5. What do you do to prevent yourself from relapsing into old habits? Give an example, personal or professional.

  6. Review information on change management to strengthen the intellectual and logical justification for your new practices.

  7. The element of surprise is a strong reason for reflex behavior. When you are caught off guard you may tend to relapse into old ways of thinking.

  8. Anticipation will help you stay with your new skills and let the old habits stay in the past.

More leadership information at OrlandoCeaser.com.

The ‘O’ Zone Blog: myozonelayer.com

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=orlando+ceaser    

31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 21 – Acting Authentically

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Acting Classes

We appreciate those who perform for us, especially actors and actresses. In a world where authenticity and transparency are encouraged, we honor those, who make a living, assuming another identity and playing different roles. William Shakespeare wrote, in the play As you like it,

“All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts,”

There are instances, where we assume certain traits and behaviors that initially feel awkward. They are not a natural part of who we are. We may be in the early stages of development. Therefore, we must fake it until we make it or act as if we have the skills, until they become a part of us.

When someone consistently plays a role, we can anticipate their actions and this predictability draws us into their character. This reminds me of us. We are vulnerable and share our personalities, so others can anticipate our actions. This predictability builds comfort, awareness and trust.

I was a part of a drama team at church, where we were trained by degreed professionals and practitioners, in the art of the theater. My manager questioned my hobby. I remember thinking, “you are asking me to act day at work, and least I can get some training to do it better.”

We are asked to act and play a role or different roles every day. We should at least play them with authenticity and transparency, until they are natural, realistic and believable.

In our role as leaders, there instances where we must act as a leader, until we put on the full mantle of the mindset and the role.

Act as A Leader

You Tube Narration: https://youtu.be/eLzlbmTPhCA

 

Act as a leader,

Roll up your sleeves and get involved;

Create the vision and the culture

Where people are consulted,

Before issues are resolved.

Act as a leader,

Form strategies on how to compete,

Discuss when to advance and retreat,

Review the options selected,

And plan for the unexpected.

Act as a leader,

Be prudent in talent selection,

Precise giving directions

And when they share your vision,

Their passion will seek perfection

And their results will pass inspection.

Act as a leader,

Develop and nourish your group,

For everyone’s expedient,

Each roles a key ingredient,

To add their texture to the soup.

Act as a leader,

Reward and recognize your team,

Spotlight talent, feed their esteem,

Through public and private ovations,

Show that you value their motivation.

Act as a leader,

As a mandate, model fairness,

Distribute justice when you speak,

Grow your skills and self-awareness

By being open to critique.

Act as a leader,

And the growth will be exponential.

Act as a leader,

And they will reach their potential.

As a leader;

Take individual seeds

And cultivate a team

That challenges you to lead.

Copyright © 2000 Orlando Ceaser

Personal Reflections

  1. Through the practice of mental rehearsal, visualize an upcoming important conversation. Anticipate the worst possible outcome and how you will handle it.

  2. Repeat step one several time to become comfortable with a range of response.

  3. Role-play your goals with someone and give them permission to ask questions.

  4. Conduct a mock interview and take turns being the applicant and the interviewer.

  5. Read Michael Shurtleff’s book Audition to learn how actors prepare.

  6. Read information on storytelling, public speaking and acting principles to improve your speaking and conversational skills.

More leadership information at OrlandoCeaser.com.   

The ‘O’ Zone Blog: myozonelayer.com

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=orlando+ceaser  

 

31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 20 – Adaptation

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Crystal Ball C

Survival is our strongest need, according to many philosophers. Abraham Maslow lists it among our basic needs, which we must fulfill before we move on to satisfying other needs on our list of priorities. Survival is dependent upon making the necessary adjustments to changes in our environment. We must include these adjustments, as a part of our evolving skills.

The quality of survival is linked to our adaptation ability, therefore our success in making adjustment to competitors in the marketplace or whatever environment surrounds us.  Our objective is to aim higher , rather than barely making it. We do not want to do just enough to get by. We want to thrive and prosper. A standard of living above the baseline of existence is a desirable goal. But to achieve this enhanced quality of life, we must make continuous adjustments to our behavior.

The poem Adaptation addresses the adjustments we need to make educationally, relationally and professionally to improve our prospects for higher earning power and fulfillment of purpose. Charles Darwin wrote about the survival of the fittest and that holds true in the development of species and in developing a personal profile competitive enough to make it in the business world. Adaptation encourages the survival of the fit; those who take the time and make the effort to anticipate challenges and respond to change. Only progress is satisfactory. Movement is essential to momentum.

Adaptation

 

This is what the world has come to,

If you’re lost, you’re left behind.

So, you need something they can’t

Take from you,

A treasure stored within your mind.

Survival has a new battle cry,

“Learn to adapt or learn to die.”

The work is becoming more difficult;

Best practices rapidly obsolete;

The business that focuses on results

Lacks tolerance for those who can’t compete.

You try to fail if you fail to try,

“Learn to adapt or learn to die.”

Distractions are greater, and times are hard,

And there are numerous reasons to quit.

Your peers may entice you to disregard

Being versatile and mentally fit.

I caution you to look them in the eye

And say learn to adapt or die.

Innovation is a survival tool;

Flexibility a requirement.

Those who survive and ultimately rule

Always adjust to their environment.

Industries and species that don’t comply,

“Learn to adapt or learn to die.”

 

There are many reasons to not achieve

But you owe it to yourself to attempt

To climb the mountain, but you must believe

The goal that was not captured was not dreamt.

Distinction or extinction will apply,

“Learn to adapt or learn to die.”

Copyright © 2011 Orlando Ceaser

 Personal Reflections

  1. How have you changed in the last year?

  2. If someone has not seen you in several years, what change would they notice?

  3. How has your business environment changed?

  4. What adjustments have you made or must make to keep up with new demands in your profession?

  5. How have you adapted to the technological demands of your profession?

  6. How do you stay on top of matters that require your attention?

  7. Alvin Toffler mentioned that technology has accelerated in this world of high tech, but we have not changed that much socially, in something he calls high touch. How are you socially keeping up with the times?

  8. How are you adapting to find time for the ones you love?

More leadership information at OrlandoCeaser.com.

 

The ‘O’ Zone Blog: myozonelayer.com

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=orlando+ceaser    

31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 19 – Purpose

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The opening quote in my book the Isle of knowledge states that “I feel pressure from my purpose to align my passion with my potential.” This sentence illustrates my internal struggle to find my purpose and ensure that it is connected to my passion, so that I realize my potential, and my desire to make a difference in the world.

What is your purpose? We wrestle with the realization that we are blessed and may have talent and opportunity that is not fully utilized. We tend to go with the crowd as it relates to our careers or to align ourselves with what is popular or the most financially rewarding. Information came out recently about the top 10 jobs for the future, which indicated technology was the dominant career choice. Are you a technologically driven person? How do you align technology with your purpose?

You may be in a job that is not rewarding or fulfilling, but it is a job that pays the bills. When you determine your purpose, can you provide space to pursue it and keep your day job? Pursuing your purpose may require you to develop a ‘HIT’ list (Hobbies, Interests, Talents). This may provide the vehicle for you to address and fulfill your purpose.

Your purpose can sometimes be recognized in the things they give you the most excitement or feeling of value. Oftentimes, purpose is not about you, but what you can do for others. Through purpose you may find your significance. During your leadership gauntlet you may encounter a variety of distractions that derail you from finding and fulfilling your purpose. But you may find that within your purpose is God’s plan for your life.

God’s Plan for Your Life

YouTube narration with music 

Once you desired to be,

Who you were wired to be,

But you satisfied friends instead.

Though blessed with talent and skill,

You lacked the courage and will

To follow the dreams in your head.

Your parents hinted at times,

Since they were reaching their prime,

You should let them plan your success.

Therefore, achievements were built

On a foundation of guilt,

Which was geared to their happiness.

You were not strong enough then

To use self-discipline when

You heard the voice of the divine.

In whispers to intervene

He said he placed in your genes

The elements of your design.

Once you conspired to be,

Who you were wired to be,

To match the image of your trade.

You sought the power and fame,

The money, title and name,

In service to the masquerade.

Unplanned events played a role,

You flowed away from your goal,

Imprisoned by the undertow.

You gave into their appeal,

Although the look and the feel,

Was not what you needed to grow.

Through the influence of peers

You alternated careers,

And thus, fulfillment was delayed.

You showed an absence of nerve

And therefore, did not deserve

To prosper from poor choices made.

Now you aspire to be,

Who you were wired to be,

To do all you can with your life.

Committed to seek His will

And use your talents and skill,

To embrace God’s Plan for your life.

Copyright © 2001 Orlando Ceaser

Personal Reflections

  1. What is your purpose?

  2. How did you determine your purpose?

  3. Are you working to fulfill your purpose?

  4. How are other people helping you with your purpose?

  5. What resources are you using, or have you used to clearly define and execute your purpose?

  6. How can you help others to find their purpose?

More leadership information at OrlandoCeaser.com.

The ‘O’ Zone Blog: myozonelayer.com

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=orlando+ceaser

31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 18 – Breakthrough

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Imagine cruising along in your current reality knowing that life is good or at least predictable.  You have become complacent. Life appears to be working well for you. The challenges are manageable and under control. You reside in a comfort zone because difficulties and hardships do not exceed your ability to handle them. And you are not worried about the future for it promises more of the same.

Inertia, that natural resistance to change is keeping the necessary objects of your world in orbit. The results are predictable, as you act consistently to match your values and beliefs. It is fortunate to be insulated, protected and feeling no pain.

Eventually, you might become frustrated with the status quo. You are surrounded by sameness and mediocrity in a mundane and environment. You may want a fresh perspective, adventure and excitement. You may want a breakthrough before life/work breaks you.

Your current state, sometimes referred to as normal, “the way it is”, “business as usual,” and the status quo will remain stationary until something bad happens to negatively rock your world. Sir Isaac Newton said that an object at rest will stay at rest and an object in motion will stay in motion unless acted upon by an outside force. When the outside force strikes it may throw you headlong into a crisis. Therefore, it is wise to land a breakthrough before it becomes mandatory or too late. 

Theodore Levitt, the esteemed marketing guru, spoke of planned obsolescence. He said if you don’t make your product or service obsolete, somebody else will. To paraphrase, if you don’t plan to achieve a breakthrough, someone else may achieve a breakthrough that puts you out of business or leaves you behind the competition. Today is the day you began to make steps toward your breakthrough. If you look within the word, you may find that the word “rough” which may be an accurate depiction of the journey, but it will be worth the effort.

 

I Need a Breakthrough

I need a breakthrough,

A radical departure

From my current plateau,

To an area where endorphins flow,

In proportion to the challenges

I encounter.

I need a breakthrough,

Not incremental steps

To emancipation of thought;

But a bold new mindset to evoke

True innovation.

I need a breakthrough,

Ascending spiral staircases

To adventure;

To a domain where the air

Is different;

An elevation where

I must train vigorously

To sustain excellence

Of another kind.

I need to breakthrough

The stifling strait jacket

Of my staid routine;

To acquiesce to the audacity

To explore and find

The alternative sides

Of my capacity.

I need a breakthrough

To penetrate the glass ceilings,

To disintegrate the feelings

That the past and present

Are the best I can do.

I need a breakthrough

To build the images my mind

Has shared with me,

So that I can do

What is required to be

The type of person

I have been privileged to see.

Copyright © 2002 Orlando Ceaser

Reprinted from Leadership Above the Rim

by Orlando Ceaser

 

Personal Reflections

  1. Where is a breakthrough needed in your life?

  2. Where are you subject to experience your next breakthrough?

  3. Talk to family members about their need for a breakthrough and listen and help.

  4. Who can help you achieve your breakthrough?

  5. Are you bold enough to take the necessary risks?

  6. What kind of training and resources are required to achieve the next level?

  7. Enter the breakthrough in your journal, tablet, computer or cell phone.

More leadership information at OrlandoCeaser.com.

The ‘O’ Zone Blog: myozonelayer.com

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=orlando+ceaser

31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 16 – Time Wasters

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Temple

One challenge on your Leadership Gauntlet will affect you personally, as well as those whom you serve. They are time wasters.

Time is a treasure and a resource. There are 24 hours in each day and 168 hours in a week. How you use the time given to you is your choice. How you manage your time will contribute or take away from your ability to be successful. We are individuals who craft time to our benefit or detriment. We are time crafters and consumers of time consumers. We vary in the total distribution of this amazing gift over our lifetime, but each day, our allotment is the same.

The way we manage time can influence the amount we have, but there are factors that are beyond our control. However, if you take a class in time management, they will discuss time wasters. These are elements that absorb the time you have for meaningful activities and shift them to meaningless tasks. Time wasters are as empty calories. You consume them, but they have no intrinsic value. They are people or activities that distract you from doing something that has a higher priority. A time waster for one person may not be for another. They can be individualized.

Identify the time wasters in your life; the things that divert or take your time from more import tasks and minimize and eliminate them. Alan Larkin, the noted Time Management expert says the following about time. “Time is life. It is both irreversible and irreplaceable, to waste your time is to waste your life, but to master time is to master your life and to then make the most of it.”

The Temple of Wasted Time

Where is the pomp and circumstance,

Of cymbals and choirs and chimes;

As the minutes and the hours dance

To the Temple of Wasted Time?

Who will record these great events;

Ubiquitous as mortal crime,

As people from each continent

Pay homage to the Wasted Time?

Through rituals of sacrifice

Complacent and unorganized,

We pay commission and the price;

Efficiency is compromised.

We covet goals, yet wed to chance

With families in disarray,

We laugh at systems to enhance

The quantity of work and play.

The hours we procrastinate

Is taking money from the purse.

The bottomless collection plate

Should be immortalized in verse.

Who will disclose the compass zone;

Where mental pilgrimages start;

A temple not of steel or stone

Nor chambers of a person’s heart?

A monument, fictitious shrine

To glorify misuse of time.

As our health and work declines

We should despise abuse of time.

And yet, we spurn the accolades

Of opportunities lost and burned,

Through sanctioned daily masquerades;

And schedules that were overturned.

And so, we waste this prime resource

Throwing priorities away.

We celebrate this chosen course

With a book on the unplanned day.

Where is the pomp and circumstance,

Of cymbals and choirs and chimes;

As the minutes and the hours dance

To the Temple of Wasted Time?

Copyright © 2001 Orlando Ceaser

Reprinted with permission from Teach the Children to Dance

Personal Reflections

  1. What are your most important priorities?

  2. Who and what are your greatest distractions from getting things done?

  3. How will you notify them that you are busy?

  4. What habits do you have that are working against you?

  5. Who and what are sending you to the Temple of Wasted Time?

  6. How will you reschedule your day to focus on your priorities?

  7. What is the time of day when you are the most fruitful?

  8. You may contemplate the cost of time wasters as they relate to relationships, resources and results at home and at work.

  9. List your top 10 Time Wasters and post them for all to see. (be careful posting names)

  10. Managing time wasters may call for you to be more disciplined and diplomatic.

More leadership information at OrlandoCeaser.com.

The ‘O’ Zone Blog: myozonelayer.com

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=orlando+ceaser

31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 15 – Look for the Blessing

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We are conditioned to complain when things do not go according to plan. We fall into a woe is me or calamity consciousness, only focusing on the bad. This forms a weight around our necks and makes it difficult to swim upstream. We lose our objectivity and dwell on the reasons for our dissatisfaction. Imagine a radical approach. What if we had a shift in perspective and searched for tangible benefits from our disappointments?

Looking for the blessings is counter intuitive and awkward the first few times you do it. It is helpful to ask yourself a series of questions. What value can I get from this mishap? How can this ordeal make me stronger? Where is the silver lining? Is God trying to get my attention and teach me something? Is this a chance to model behavior that could help someone else through a difficult season?

Looking for the blessing will open you to the possibilities of coping better, seizing opportunities, influencing others and personal growth. How will you use this mindset to enrich your day?

Look for the Blessing

In life’s adventures and catastrophes,
When bad things happened magnetically,
I spent considerable energy
In anger, unhappy, impatiently
Driven, then it occurred to me
That it could help me
Become stress free,
If I just looked for the blessing.

When leaving my house late
And the traffic was delayed,
Once frustrated, I never displayed
A sense of reverence,
I never prayed
Or took the time,
To look for the blessing.

I’ve learned there is a purpose in events.
I may have been spared pain and accidents
Or met new challenges that God presents
When He wants me to look for the blessing.

Things happen for His reason
According to God’s plan.
We are too busy to seize them
And take the time to scan
Our surroundings to handle
What we can
Or in essence,
To look for the blessing.

Lord what must I do in this pain?
You want more of me than to complain.
I know in the circumstances
A blessing is contained,
And I should look for the blessing.

There have been setbacks
But I have found,
That if I take the focus off of me
And look around,
There’s a message in a bottle,
Directions to higher ground
If I look for the blessing.

I should seek the opportunity to grow
To render kindness or to bestow
A gift to a stranger,
Or meet someone I need to know
As I look for the blessing.

Copyright © 2001 Orlando Ceaser

Reprinted from the book “Look for the Blessing” by Orlando Ceaser

Personal Reflections

  1. Tell yourself that you will go through the day searching for opportunities to re-frame your thinking to gain benefits from your calamities.

  2. What challenges have you faced, that help you cope with your current situation?

  3. How can you taken the focus off you, to help others?

  4. Who will you target as individuals you can help with your advice?

  5. Who was able to share their wisdom with you, as they considered the blessings in their lives?

  6. What Scripture has been helpful to keep you focused on God’s goodness?

  7. Practice changing your thinking to look for the gift in the moment.

More leadership information at OrlandoCeaser.com.

The ‘O’ Zone Blog: myozonelayer.com

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=orlando+ceaser

 

31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 14 – Storytelling

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Field training is a process where someone works in the field (ride a long) with a Sales representatives during a typical workday. They would spend the entire day in the car and in offices evaluating the salesperson’s performance. The Field Trainer or Manager would provide feedback on sales planning and execution, business skills and customer service. Consequently, there is a lot of time in the car driving between sales calls. Field training also provides opportunities to share war stories or sales stories with the sales representative.

My District manager was a master storyteller. He would tell detailed stories about people and the company. An analysis of his possible motives for telling stories in those teachable scenarios led me to surmise the following about him:

  1. Enjoyed telling stories to impress us with his expertise

  2. Wanted to increase our knowledge by sharing his experiences

  3. Distributed selling techniques and information from our peers

  4. Shared company history to give us a sense of belonging and healing

  5. Provided examples of consequences of what happened to people who violated company policies (a policy reinforcement strategy)

  6. A model of behavior, we could use if we were promoted

  7. A model to use in developing our own stories

  8. Provided an environment to improve our storytelling by sharing stories with him

  9. Encouraged us to use stories with our client

When we became managers, the art of storytelling was found to be pervasive throughout the leadership culture. It was used at manager meetings to entertain, build relationships, pass along company and leadership information and help develop the younger managers. I swore that when I became a manager, I would never use stories. But I have passed on this time-honored tradition with many more stories of my own.

Whenever we gather, we influence the world through our stories.

Stories

YouTube Narration Set to Music

https://youtu.be/JI0q9QUvWjE

At corporate campfires

And watering holes,
The people gather.

Their hearts are stirred

By the leaders,

The keepers of the scrolls,
Whose words

Speak the curriculum

Of what occurred.

The leaders through language
Interpret and present:
Through parables and scenarios
Values are infused;
And in a lighter forum
They package events
So people are instructed,

Encouraged and amused.

At family gatherings
Enrichment of the soul
Occurs when the elders,
The keepers of the scrolls,
Assemble the generations
And dispense discipline
Through stories sprinkled

With wisdom and wit,

In moderation.

The elders portray

Passion and progress,
Pride and principles

And honor in the family name.

They tell tales of obstacles

And human failings,

Of being human,

And being sensible,

For invincibility

Is not a trait we can claim.

The stories form a bond
That is not bondage.
They chronicle ambition,
Growth and attrition
And forge connections
Of substance and relevance
That add alignment
And purpose to our lives

And gives us the strength

To continue the expedition.

At work and in families,
The keepers of the scrolls,
Through stories give us context
And texture.
For within these tales,
We identify with the roles
And through this revelation
We take our places
And become storytellers,
And add our voices
To the conversations.

Copyright © 2003 Orlando Ceaser

Reprinted from Leadership above the rim by Orlando Ceaser

www.watchwellinc.com

Personal Reflections

  1. How are you using stories in your day-to-day operations?

  2. Develop the art of telling to use strategically and family, social and work situations.

  3. Where can you find your best stories?

  4. How can you develop your story telling technique?

More leadership information at OrlandoCeaser.com.

The ‘O’ Zone Blog: myozonelayer.com

YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=orlando+ceaser

31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 13 – Intimidation

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Hindre

The next station on the gauntlet is intimidation. There are people or systems in place that wish to thwart your development. They will stand in front of you in order to block your path. They may be openly hostile or work behind the scene to be a barrier. Their peace of mind cannot exist if you are a candidate competing for the accolades of the spotlight. Therefore, intimidation is a tool of the insecure.

Intimidation may be experienced from a competitor on the job, a competitor in the marketplace or an individual acquaintance whose actions brazenly attempt to block your progress. You may be perceived as a threat. You may be unassuming, beaming with humility, but nonetheless, you are a force that needs to be suppressed.

The Hindre™ will be used as an all-purpose image of the resistance and intimidation. It was created to exemplify people and forces that hinder your performance. In my introductory blog post, the Hindre™ was described as follows;  “The Hindre™ is a person or spirit whose purpose is to keep you down, drain your confidence, stunt your growth, hold you back, and prevent you from moving forward, realizing potential and living up to your expectations. They are positioned in households and organizations to thwart success, to discourage siblings and offspring and to disillusion those who have the ability and talent to achieve their dreams.”

You may not wish to think negatively. It is not healthy to walk around paranoid, but the doctrine of survival wants you to be observant. You must be observant, even if you see yourself as a servant to do good and help others. Survival and success, encourages you to face intimidation, anticipate intimidation and derive a strategy to handle it effectively.

How will you face intimidation today?

If Someone Perceives You as a Threat

If someone perceives you as a threat,

It’s hard to encourage you and to let

Your potential grow and be objective

And fathom the world from your perspective.

If someone perceives you as a threat,

They will intentionally try to bet

Against you and hope you do the same;

For they want to remove you from the game.

They tamper with confident people’s minds;

Let you in the race, but place you behind,

And pamper you with condescension,

To hamper you by creating tension.

They want to own you like property;

Subconsciously, treat you improperly;

Deny your physical and civil rights;

Bombard with pernicious and subtle slights.

They will attack your self-esteem;

Think it’s a waste of time for you to dream;

Make you second guess your own existence,

So that you concede without resistance.

If someone perceives you as a threat.

Unconscious and conscious biases beget

Micro-inequities and aggression;

Micro-messages are an obsession.

If someone perceives you as a threat;

They want you entirely in their debt.

They are treacherous and will use power,

To wring hope out of every hour.

Mislabeled, while mistreated and misled.

They will try and get inside your head;

Provoking you with their skills to incite

Confrontation and blame you for the fight.

If someone perceives you as a threat,

What tactics will you use to make them sweat?

You must use your excellence to confirm,

You are here for the moment and long term.

If someone perceives you as a threat;

They fear they haven’t seen anything yet;

For there is determination in your eyes;

On the way to fully actualize.

They try negativity to define,

The image that they want people to see;

But, don’t let their efforts to undermine,

Discourage your purpose and destiny.

Copyright © 2017 Orlando Ceaser

OrlandoCeaser.com

Personal Reflections

  1. Who are the intimidating people or circumstances in your world?

  2. What can you do to minimize their impact?

  3. Who can you go to for help?

  4. Can you schedule a meeting with verse to discuss their actions in your discomfort?

  5. What situations do you find particularly threatening?

  6. How can you invent the intimidation from affecting your performance?

More leadership information at OrlandoCeaser.com.

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31 Day Leadership Gauntlet – Day 4 – Structure

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Solving problems and making decisions are dependent upon structure. We must design the right format or technique to tackle each situation. The seamstress says that we should measure twice and cut once. The architect creates a blueprint, and from this structure, the building is constructed. Plans are formulated before actions are taken.

Structure is all around us. We find it in Nature, and we use it to govern our behavior, through rules and regulations. We establish goals to give direction to our actions. Structure is necessary to minimize disruption and confusion. Read the Structure poem, being mindful of the principles, consider the personal reflections and apply structure where it is needed in your daily activities.

Structure

In Nature, all of life is organized;

The body systems’ elegant design

Rivals a universe categorized

As millions of stars in the night sky shine,

As planets in order orbit in space,

As structure keeps each object in its place.

We need structure and a firm foundation;

To set boundaries in our routines,

So, we concentrate in conversations

On short term and long term and in between;

To keep us on schedule and on track,

To manage a structured plan of attack.

We have a purpose, as we run this race,

Programmed with a sequence for us to win;

There is a pattern that we must embrace;

A series of actions we must begin.

We set goals and methods to reinforce

Each goal with a checklist to stay on course.

There’s structure with diet and exercise;

Willpower and demonstrating constraint;

The flexibility to improvise;

To be creative and resolve complaints;

We need discipline, so we can abstain;

From actions that will later cause us pain.

Structure is a gift that we should enjoy.

When structure appears confining,

A well-tuned strategy we should employ;

When our performance is declining.

It has a formula like a lecture,

With strength in content and architecture.

We need structure that is clearly defined;

That includes respect for authority;

To help develop our heart and mind

With excellence as the priority;

The structure will hold us accountable,

So, obstacles aren’t insurmountable.

Structure will lead us to the right decisions;

Those consistent with what we want to be,

To excel and thrive with supervision,

To channel our time and energy;

Its skeletal framework will ease the threat

Of reckless actions that place us in debt.

To live comfortably within our means,

We have standards and a choice to say no;

We are not just for self, but for the team,

Interdependence is the status quo.

We use ambition as a strategy;

For the good of group and community.

We need structure in order to advance;

To study harder and perform the tasks;

Learn fundamentals before we freelance,

And give the assignment all that it asks

And know structure’s role in all we do,

As it gives us guidance to follow through.

Structure trains us to allocate the time,

So, life is far less complicated,

And puts us on a path away from crime,

That’s choreographed and orchestrated;

To be on the field not on the sidelines

And functioning according to guidelines.

Structure can be seen as stimulation;

Keeping the mind engaged and occupied

Through a number of planned simulations

To grant experiences that provide

The guard rails to sustain us in our lanes;

And to fully utilize our brains.

When we master how structure should be used;

We will not easily be distracted;

Temptations will be ignored or refused

And we will no longer be attracted

To positions of mediocrity,

When it is excellence that makes us free.

Copyright © 2016 Orlando Ceaser

Reprinted from Leadership Greatness Through High Performance Poetry by Orlando Ceaser

 

Personal Reflection

  1. Where can you use more structure in your life?

  2. Describe a problem you need to solve. How will designing the right structure help you solve it?

  3. Select a problem to solve and create the right structure to tackle it with help from others to hold you accountable.

  4. List the main principles found in the stanzas that resonate with you.

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