Let's Get This Write.

If there were ever a mantra that galvanized the position I take on writing, it's "Say what you mean and mean what you say." To me it speaks to the process of unifying one's thoughts with one's truth. It speaks to shutting out the voices of objection and relying solely on your reputation and integrity to carry you; and earns you a right of passage in the minds of those who elect to consider your contribution.

When it comes to the age-old question - why do you do what you do? I believe we all have our own set of personal answers – rhymes or reasons, but I get this question posed to me quite often as it pertains to why I write consistently week after week here on Linkedin. Of course, the follow up question is… “How do you find the time?”

To answer the last question first, I prefer to look at it as making the time. If you profoundly care enough and believe strongly in something, at some point you will push aside the excuses and invest in making it happen.

What I choose to write is extremely important to me and it’s spurred on by countless influences. What I see taking place in the U.S. market, the global landscape, conversations that I have behind the scenes with executives who share their views, and professionals who offer their insights as well as well-founded frustrations. Collectively they provoke my attention, raise questions and allow me to focus on issues and topics that I believe have meaning to those who may not see themselves in a position to be heard.

You’ll have to trust me when I say that professionals in corporate environments are somewhat… (searching for the right word) – closed off, and in many cases… not by choice. They are void of a voice, reluctant to express their views, in short – put themselves out there. I can say this because 90% of the engagement that I receive on my articles comes in the form of private conversations via messenger here on this platform. At times they can be quite elaborate, in-depth and intensely profound. But in the end, the bottom line is that they are suppressed.

Don’t be offended

One might ask why? And I think that everyone reading this probably has a pretty good idea, because chances are you can unfortunately relate to it to some degree. Concerns vary, from being worried about saying something wrong or that could be misconstrued, to worrying about the opinions or perceptions of others. In some cases, people are reluctant to taking a position publicly on a topic or, seek to distance themselves from the possibility of offending someone with their countering point-of-view.

In the beginning, when I started writing, I too had certain reservations, a fine line that I wanted to be certain not to cross. However, that soon gave way to my desire to make an impact and a genuine difference. Playing it safe has rarely gotten me anywhere, and I realized that my views were a bit contrarian, often refuting popular opinion and surface-level observations. I couldn’t just go along with what everyone else was saying when I believed deep down that the story being told was either incomplete or – flat out misleading.

I took risks and heard crickets after the release of certain articles, realizing that the piece most assuredly went against the grain, but I believed in my views and felt that certain things needed to be brought to the surface in order to offer my community something significant to think about. In controversial moments like these, I can understand in some respects why most would want to sit on the sidelines and nod their heads in private, but on other occasions – most occasions, I have to be honest, I ask myself – “What are they waiting for?”

Perspective

As a CEO, as a human being, as a talent/people expert, as a Renegade, as an environmentalist (I probably know more about trees that I ever expected to), etc., I believe with all my heart that you either give a %$#@, or you don’t. A friend of mine once said… “people love to complain because it takes no effort,” and he’s right. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t experience the voices of discontent. Be it the disillusionment of a career, lack of respect and value placed on someone by leadership, an objectionable point-of-view within an organization, not being recognized or heard for one’s contribution and so on… Unfortunately, these voices take a seat as the silent majority and roll with the punches because they believe they have no choice. Which just isn’t so.

To evoke change, to offer solutions, to overcome obstacles, to enhance your position/status, to elevate your personal brand, to command attention, and to exchange ideas that challenge your peers, even in this community that we all share, takes a little effort. But with so much wasted time spent elsewhere, and so many important issues falling upon deaf ears, it comes down to where this professional positioning ranks among someone’s priority list. And it’s a discussion that you have to have with yourself.

And here we are

We are at an important inflection point in the world, just look at what is unfolding around us. Practically everything that we think about or can imagine has the potential to make a significant impact on what our world may look like tomorrow. We no more than think it and it’s here – THINK ABOUT WHAT I JUST SAID, because it’s very much a reality. The speed at which innovation is taking place is astounding, but like a new car depreciating in value as soon as you drive it off the lot, yesterday’s innovations become instantly outdated, allowing no king to take the hill. At least not for long.

Another reality is the pain that our global community is experiencing right now, something so obscure that it has never been seen before in our lifetime, albeit I’m not sure if the impact of the event is unprecedented in and of itself, and that is important to be mindful of as we push forward toward the light, and draw upon the strength of our experiences to offer us a clear sense of reality. Today people are dealing with uncertainty in the midst of solitude, placing their trivial complaints – pre Covid-19 into proper perspective, allowing each of us to gain a stronghold on to what we perceive as being truly important. Corporate structures are shifting, knee jerk reactions are taking place and pivotal decisions are being made in an instant out of fear, a commitment to safety and the burden of responsibility. Everyone looks on with grave anticipation for what not only awaits them, but their nation. During these uncertain times with everything in flux, I feel an even greater sense of responsibility to reach out and cultivate a forum where like minds can gather, where we can perhaps forget about life for a while and share a common interest.   

My vehicle to do that is putting words to virtual paper. I’m not saying that it has to be yours; but thought-leadership like yours, needs to be expressed for the benefit of us all as a community.

We all thrive among talented thinkers; we love the exchange of ideas and being in the company of those who we align with both personally and professionally. We’re all sponges constantly on the lookout for those who can aide us in upping our game, who give us an alternative perspective to consider – something to think about. Trust me! I encounter and engage with these professionals (You) each and every day without exception, and every single one of you has a tremendous amount to offer. So I challenge you, in your own way, to make it rain.

True inspiration

The proverbial fire in my belly for writing is ignited by those who I engage with or make that effort to present their views, historical perspectives and invaluable insight. Allow me to offer you an example. Back on March 18, 2020 I published an article entitled: “Don’t get caught watching the paint dry.” The piece focused on the ongoing battle for 5G and was the 3rd of 4 articles in a series dedicated to the topic. The exchange of comments expressed in response to the article, to me, was exceptional. It offered “on the front lines” insight and a tenured perspective that truly enhanced the breath of my knowledge on the subject and left me with more than one ah-ha moment.

In response to the engaging discussion sparked by Miguel Dajer and Rudy Augsburger, a gentleman by the name of Steven Shio, a retired R&D Director at Alcatel-Lucent who had never before made an appearance in our community, had something truly meaningful to share. He said… "Miguel, so nice to meet you at this forum. I am totally agree with you. Back when we were at Bell Labs era, we looked at bigger pictures of science and technologies. We could accomplish the unmatched science research tasks. Just think back the break-up of the Ma Bell triggered by MCI filed antitrust lawsuit and later MCI purchased by WorldCom and eventually WorldCom filed bankruptcy for accounting scandal. By looking back from breaking up of the Ma Bell till now, the Major US telecommunication companies: AT&T, Verizon (British Vodafone 45%), T-Mobile( German Deutsche Telekom), Sprint (2013 acquired by Japanese Softbank, and now owned by T-Mobile- German Deutsche Telekom). By looking back the history since breaking up Ma Bell, American telecommunication industries weakened and gradually taken up by foreign telecommunication companies. What about the fate of Bell Labs which was once the most famous research academy in the world? It almost disappeared, all the good scientists lost the research funding, they left and went all over the world. I feel very sad. I could imagine if our competitors would, like Americans, help them to do the self-destruction again on our remaining industries including the defense. I am saddened..."

Of course, this is just one in a myriad of extensive examples that I could point to. What I can tell you however, is that over the span of now 54 articles, that this never gets old. It is the abundance of collaborative thought, the melding of perspectives and the discovery of little nuggets of information that would have otherwise been kept in silence, that lures me to a keyboard each week. It runs through my veins and serves as the fuel for approaching this social platform, I believe, differently from most, and invites me to extend myself as well as the members of my team to dig deep and hopefully create meaning behind topics that I feel convicted by.

Why so long?

I get poked quite often about the length of my articles. I guess there is an unspoken rule-of-thumb that 600 to 800 words appears to be the standard in order to be easily consumable, and trust me, I go into every article with this in mind. However, within those guides I find my thought process to be incomplete, and that it would require me to leave out information or details that I believe to have value. So for now, I guess I’ll have to endure the friendly comments like “I’ve enjoyed your essays” and push on.

I want to end this by letting everyone know how much I value your attention, your engagement and your time. It is not something that I take for granted, and it makes the investment on my part all worthwhile. Thank You!

About Steve Diedrick...

Steve is the founder of Redmond, a global executive search firm whose clients include world renowned brands and start-ups that are shaping tomorrow's world. As a highly respected authority and pioneer in the field of human capital with close to three decades in the space, his progressive ideas on search-excellence reflect a profound understanding/passion for the global economy and the ever-evolving mindset of the unique talent that propels companies forward. He has personally reached out to more than 100,000 professionals and interviewed over 35,000 potential candidates throughout his career. His personal drive, perspective, discipline and focus is a culmination of his life experience living abroad and the 27 years spent mastering the Martial Art of Qi Gong. His Mantra: There is nothing like direct experience that takes you from knowledge - to knowing.

Email me at: [email protected] or Text me at: 947.222.9200 and let's discuss how Redmond can help you.

? Redmond Research, Inc. 2020