Sharing some boss moments. Good or bad, they are valuable learning experiences. Bad boss moments should be deciding what you will never be. Learning moments.
A key moment. It was my first 2 weeks, the beginning of my career in corporate (1992). In my curiosity to understand different disciplines I attended a morning production meeting. The venue like an amphitheatre, the atmosphere domineering and autocratic, bad language and intimidation. The Production Director pointed to me and said, “who the hell are you”? The language was harsher. I got up and walked out; later summoned to his spacious office. “Who the hell do you think you are walking out of my meeting”? My reply “nobody speaks to me like that, especially not in front of a crowd”.
From that moment the Production Director never acted on me again, we became good colleagues. He acted on ALL of production employees. They allowed it. You get what you accept.
A humorous moment. My 2nd year in corporate. A director, my first mentor, told me “You like a young bull, you see the cows on the other side of the fence, you jump the fence and hook your balls in the fence. I go to the gate, open it, and I mount all the cows”.
Patience and wisdom. Back then I had none.
A good takeaway. In the first introductory meeting of our new CEO in the USA, he said “out of the 10 things I will say, look for the 2 that could be a gamechanger and not the 8 that are nonsense because I do not yet know your business”.
New leaders are not conditioned to old practices, they bring different perspectives and new opportunities. Learn to value the differences.
A shock moment. Travelling to customers in Europe, while dropping my bags off in the room, my boss, in the lobby with members of my team told them “I have never had so much power, wealth and knowledge in my life”.
The knowledge part was great, but the rest revealed a lack of inner security from which flowed such negative leadership moments. There are no quick fixes in building a foundation that brings the natural and genuine skills to inspire others.
A disappointing moment. At a leadership conference I relayed to our new CEO that many of his team (my peers) were agreeing with stuff that prior his arrival they were opposing. His response “I like it, it means less negotiation”. I do not respect highly paid persons that agree because it is a boss message (puppets), and I value leaders that encourages vigorous debate in coming to strategic decisions.
Surround yourself with strong people, create an atmosphere for open sharing and genuinely listen.
A disbelief moment. Checking into a hotel in India, our GM for India was not checking in. He said that the CEO did not like “employees” staying at the same hotel as he did. And that the CEO expected a room on a different floor to the rest of us. This CEO was a leader that I respected, I could hardly believe it. I give that CEO the benefit of the doubt, hopefully imaginary beliefs of my GM.
With increasing fake news, it is becoming more critical to be evidence based.
A light moment. Global VPs were summoned to a Saturday call by our divisional President. The meeting started off like this “last night I met XYZ (Group President) in the car park. He said if we did not achieve our year profit objectives that he would have my balls for supper. I did not appreciate what he said but I got the message”.
Humour in communication gets the message home. For our CEO and us.
A valuable reminder. I like the phrase “why be average”, but I cannot claim originality to it. That was a phrase used by our last CEO.
If you going to do something, do it better than anyone else, or why do it at all. Do something properly and see where it gets you. Often businesses that seek diversity do so in response to the failing of their core business, not staying on that focused path long enough for success.
Think Bigg-r 