Week 21.20 Community Forming

Here in the US, we are now officially in a new phase of the pandemic state. To quote them simply "Fully vaccinated people can resume activities without wearing a mask or physically distancing, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules, and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance."

After a year of lockdown, avoidance, and general isolation, it is time to get together with other people. It's been a while. It is often said that it takes 21 days to form a new habit. We just had 14 months in which we were removed from our old ways of interacting, how we treated other people when we were together, and how we interacted in community. In many cases, the communities were put on hold, or at least on ZOOM. We can hope that this is a once in a long time opportunity to reevaluate our relationships, and decide who is "post-pandemic worthy." Who are the people we have been thinking about and can't wait to see again, and who are the people who, come to think of it, it was pretty nice to have had a break.

 Perhaps a more exceptional opportunity is to make some decisions about how to remake communities. Think about it, when do you get the chance as a community to be apart for a year and then come together on new terms. Assuming the community wants to come together, here are some ideas you might consider implementing while everyone is still in a state of yearning and transition:

Start by Giving. Healthy communities grow when members think about what they can give before they think about what they can get. Imagine the community is like a beautiful pond with lots of stream running into it, bringing fresh water and nutrients, keeping it well-oxygenated, thriving, and alive. It becomes a place where there is new life and growth which attracts other life and growth, each interaction bringing something with it, and taking something away. The natural give and take can nourish the community and the more people bring to the community, the more it grows and thrives. Establish the culture of giving first to maintain the aliveness of your community.

Remove Barriers to Connection. Communities start when people come together with common interests and objectives. As they grow, there is a danger they can become silo'ed cliquish, and push people to the outside. Strong deep relationships are certainly important for creating a strong community culture and deep relationships. At the same time, it is also important to find ways to be open to new members and remove barriers to connection as the natural walls form. Be on the lookout to build open doors in the community so that it will continue to grow in size and perspective. Find ways for new members to come into quick contact with established members. Great communities institutionalize these practices and their members have lifelong connections to the individuals in the community, and the community itself.

Honesty. Integrity. Authenticity. Trust is the secret sauce of any community. If you can build it, then walls disappear, members give more freely, and the clear sharing of information advances and builds relationships. Honesty, integrity, and authenticity are cultural norms that are established by the community and modeled by its members. One of Warren Buffet's most famous quotes "It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently" has never been more true than it is right now. This is why it is so important and such an opportunity to establish trust in the community. Our post-pandemic clean slate enables us to re-commit to these critical qualities.

Community is the antidote to loneliness. It is how we can build things bigger than ourselves, and have fulfilling lives. Community builders can take this time to build the communities they want to see in the world. Strong leaders will see this as an unparalleled opportunity to change culture, and reinforce the positive attributes that create growth, success, and fulfillment whether the setting is in a family, an organization or a business.

Please share your stories of community building and what makes communities successful.

Week 24 of 52 Weeks of Giving: COVID relief in India

We have all seen the devastating news coming out of India as the pandemic rages out of control. Read more here: COVID in India. In an effort to support the ongoing humanitarian efforts our friends at CEO Works have vetted two charities for donations. Donations go to support food and medical supplies, Covid care treatment centers, shelter for orphans, construction of an oxygen generation factory, and vaccination camps. OBLF is building an oxygen generation factory for rural Taluk Hospital. AASRAA is focusing on providing food and medical supplies to children. 

Remote Work is Here to Stay (new study by Robert Glazer)

The data from the survey was pretty clear that most employees don’t want to return to the office every day, or even most days. While 52 percent of respondents worked in an office every day before the pandemic, only two percent want to return to the office full-time. In fact, 68 percent of respondents clarified they want to work from home either most of the time or every day.

As we approach the light at the end of our pandemic tunnel, it’s becoming clear that many employees want to continue remote work in the future. The companies that can execute this workplace model effectively are the ones that will attract and retain the best talent. The ones that are inflexible, or mandate 100 percent in-person work, are likely going to find a dwindling pool of talent looking for that value proposition. https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/how-do-employees-feel-working-from-home-i-asked-2000-people-glazer and pick up a free excerpt of How To Thrive in the Virtual Workplace https://www.amazon.com/How-Thrive-Virtual-Workplace-excerpt-ebook/dp/B094DRVLYV/

Adam Grant Summer Reading List Recommends Hubert Joly and Erica Dhawan (among other amazing authors)

"Reading a great book is a great investment: in two hours, you can soak up the lessons that it took the authors at least two years to digest and distill. Here are some of the exciting new books to kick off the summer: The Heart of Business by Hubert Joly. The inside scoop from the CEO who led the remarkable revitalization of Best Buy with a focus on people and purpose and Digital Body Language by Erica Dhawan A dynamic entrepreneur shows how we can avoid playing games of telephone and communicate more clearly over text, email, and social media.

Ron Carucci’s next book, To Be Honest: Lead with the Power of Truth, Justice and Purpose will be May 25th

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. 

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 https://www.amazon.com/Leading-Distance-Practical-Lessons-Virtual/dp/1119782449

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Tammy Jersey May 23

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

With love and gratitude

Scott