Week 21.19 The Other Pandemic

Sometimes, conversations happen that I have heard many times, and then they are startling and have a profound impact. I hope that the call I was privileged to be on this morning will be one of those conversations, that I will internalize its message, be motivated to take action, and change my behavior in meaningful ways. 

As we (in America) start to exit the physical toll of the pandemic, we need to be aware of the mental toll it has taken and reveal the flaws in our system. Marshall and Mark convened a call this morning with some exceptional individuals taking action to provide support, education, inspiration, and hope for those who have mental illness. I want to mention upfront that I recognize that this is an issue that touches everyone, and we all either directly or indirectly connected to someone who needs our support and kindness.

Dr. Ben Maxwell is the medical director of inpatient psychiatry, and the interim director of child and adolescent psychiatry at Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego focused the attention on two critical factors in the global mental health crisis. The first is social disconnection that we have heard a lot about, especially in our year of social distancing. Less frequently given attention is the second, but it is equally impactful, and that is the shift towards extrinsic motivation and away from intrinsic motivation. This can be seen in declining numbers in team sports participation and involvement in clubs, leagues, and collective activities. Rewards are prizes, purchases, and points which create momentary stimulation and little lasting value. Exacerbating both of these factors is declining social trust. Fewer people trust strangers. The old moments of connection - family dinners, sharing entertainment in theaters, and any number of other activities that weave together to form social fabric are in short supply. Collective activity and just being around friends, family, and strangers, the actions that bind us together, are all on the decline. All of these trends create an environment that is more isolating and brittle. 

Erica Dhawan shared her research that this has been particularly hard on Gen Z (10-25-year-olds) who are still forming relationships and how to be in a relationship in school and work are particularly hard hit. The pandemic has amplified the complexities and impersonal feeling of digital communication, made worse by the pandemic. When a connection is crucial for personal growth and satisfaction, they are particularly at risk during this time in their lives.

I am inspired because awareness is the first step in being to be helpful and make a difference. Gail Miller is the chair of the Board of Trustees of Intermountain Healthcare, an organization building a mental health wing, focusing more on the whole child, mental, physical, and emotional. She and Dr. Maxwell had some advice on what we can do to re-engage and support children who are suffering, perhaps silently.

And Dr. Sharon Melnick offered that how important it is to see children in their context, rather than the context you see them, or worse, want to see yourself. 

Most poignantly, Dr. Mark Goulston shared his insights from the trenches. Mark, a former FBI and police hostage negotiation trainer, is one of the world’s foremost experts on listening.

He identified the leading cause of suicide as des-pair, the feeling of not being paired with reasons for living.

He gives the advice to parents to ask four questions to start the connection process to support those in need. 

During the session, I was struck by how many people have been touched by tragedy or narrowly avoided it. CEO of Rady, Dr. Patrick Frias’ shared his final thoughts observing how emotionally vulnerable this group was able to be and how important being in an emotionally courageous group can be. He called out attention to how there is still too much shame attached to mental health. He appealed to us all to help break the stigma by breaking the silence.

There are signs that we are breaking through. Robin Lehrner, a great goalie in the NHL, broke the silence a few years ago about his struggles with mental illness and the toll it was taking on his life. Joe Biden's praise and support for his son's struggles with mental health, as expressed through his pride, love, and commitment, and Hunter Biden's willingness to share his pain and struggle serve to destigmatize a condition that we should all recognize is much more common than we are willing to admit. Mental health needs are most effective when addressed in childhood but any movement is movement and if there's one good thing to come from covid it is that companies and the general public are more open to acknowledging that trauma is real and mental health issues are real. Given the pervasiveness, we can all hope that one ray of hope from the pandemic is more recognition and recognition will help more people be their most productive.

Marshall softly offered, which I echo here, to be compassionate to yourself and others, to take the time to listen and give attention to people who need it, particularly children. And most importantly, just be human.

Week 23 of 52 Weeks of Giving: Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego

In gratitude to Dr. Maxwell for his inspiring conversation this week I draw your attention to Rady Children's Hospital. Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego is a 505-bed pediatric care facility providing the largest source of comprehensive pediatric medical services in San Diego, southern Riverside, and Imperial counties. Rady Children’s is the only health system in the San Diego area dedicated exclusively to pediatric healthcare and is the region’s only designated pediatric trauma center. In June 2020, U.S. News & World Report ranked Rady Children’s among the best children’s hospitals in the nation in all ten pediatric specialties the magazine surveyed. Rady Children’s is a nonprofit organization that relies on donations to support its mission. For more information, visit www.rchsd.org. (thank you Pamay Bassey for inspiring my 52 weeks of giving)

Erica Dhawan. Digital Body Language. Releases today!!!

I can’t believe it, but Erica's new book, Digital Body Language launches today! If you’re one of the many people who have already ordered, received her exclusive set of free resources, and are eagerly waiting for your copy of the book to arrive, thank you so much for your support! If not you should get it today at https://dblbook.com/

After you order the book, share your order confirmation HERE and Erica will send you these great resources for FREE!

1. Digital Body Language Toolkit: A “style guide” to help you become a standout collaborator over email, chat, phone, video calls, and more.
2. Digital Body Language Quiz: Discover whether you’re a Digital Native, a Digital Adapter, or a Digital Chameleon with this quick quiz!
3. Guide to End Digital Burnout: Say goodbye to Zoom fatigue and transform your team into a focused, accountable, innovation-driving unit with actionable steps.

But wait... there's more! DANCING. SINGING. TIPS AND TRICKS YOU CAN USE!

Tomorrow (May 12) at 3:15 pm ET, Marshall will be hosting a LinkedIn Live with Erica Dhawan (Erica or Marshall's LinkedIn profiles) to support the book launch. During this event, they will have a dialogue around how to decode the new digital signals and cues of trust and connection in a hybrid world. In real life, we lean in, uncross our arms, smile, nod, and make eye contact to show we listen and care. Online, reading carefully is the new listening. Writing clearly is the new empathy. And a phone or video call is worth a thousand emails. Invite others by tagging and sharing on your social media accounts—this includes other MG100 members! Come early, stay late. Knowing Erica and Marshall, there will be dancing and singing, you will not want to miss it. We would like to make this event as big as possible so spread the word and see you there!

Leading at a Distance: Practical Lessons for Virtual Success by Jim Citrin Releases May 25th

Leading at a Distance is a timely, research-based, and highly practical guide for developing and implementing strategies for conducting high-impact virtual work, building trust, and enhancing team unity. Designed to help leaders shape organizational culture remotely, this must-have resource demonstrates how to conduct virtual onboarding for senior leaders, build top teams from a distance, manage accountability in the new virtual environment, and much more. Leveraging the authors' in-depth research and consulting experience, Leading at a Distance is required reading for anyone needing to adapt to a virtual way of working and develop their virtual leadership skills to maximize organizational effectiveness and performance. Pre-order here 

Ron Carucci’s next book, To Be Honest: Lead with the Power of Truth, Justice, and Purpose will be out later this month. 

Please help it launch well and pre-order it now! Based on a 15-year longitudinal study of more than 3200 leaders, the book is full of riveting and inspiring stories of leaders and organizations that create environments in which people will tell the truth, treat each other with dignity and fairness, and together, serve a greater good. Featuring the stories and voices of several of our MG100 colleagues like Hubert Joly, Sanyin Siang, and Bernard Banks, the book can help you and your clients create environments rich with purpose, joy, and integrity. Join Ron & Marshall on a Linked In live conversation on Wednesday, May 26th at 4:00 pm ET as they discuss the book, and how leaders earn and keep the trust of their people. You can also check out Ron’s TV Series Moments of Truth here at www.ToBeHonest.net and watch his interviews with Hubert, Sanyin, and other great thought leaders like Amy Edmondson, Jonathan Haidt, James Detert, and others. 

From Start-up to Grown-up featured in Publisher's Weekly

Alisa Cohn is honored to share that her book - From Start-up to Grown-up (coming out in October) - was featured in Publisher's Weekly out as a top business book of 2021 alongside Reid Hoffman's new book! You can read the article here: https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/new-titles/adult-announcements/article/86283-out-here-on-my-own-business-personal-finance-books-2021.html

And, as always, thank you, Marshall, for making all of this possible.

With love and gratitude

Scott