Actions speak louder than words
How often do you find yourself applying skills you learned at work to solve a delicate problem at home? To use the leadership skills of action rather than words so you can preserve the dignity of someone else and gaining respect in the bargain.
Late in my career I was a warehouse manager responsible for two locations including a small one in downtown Chicago. It was filled with computer parts for our largest customer. I was so busy at our suburban location that six months in I had never been there. This was about to change.
Late one afternoon my boss called me saying we had a problem. His voice was measured; his tone grim, hushed from grave concern. He had just been to the downtown warehouse. He told me the entire loading dock was filled with freight. So no new freight could be unloaded. This was a logistical nightmare. FedEx and UPS were double parking out front!
Even worse, he went on to tell me that the first floor was a total cluttered mess. He was afraid that if either a city inspector or our customer saw this, we would be in real trouble. He apologized but told me I had to get this cleaned up pronto. We both knew I was the only one available for this full scale project. I was there the following morning.
Sizing up the situation, I had one customer agree to move their freight to our larger warehouse. This solved the loading dock issue within 48 hours. I then took apart two unused desk workstations and moved them downstairs for the staff. Since we averaged 30 to 50 visitors a day we needed to create an environment that was inviting and organized. When our customer's regional manager showed up unannounced days later, I was told he stood speechless gazing around the room, stunned by the transformation.
The next task was to teach the our site manager and his clerk the skill sets of maintaining order during the course of their day. Focusing on time management, I introduced him to the concept of a daily To Do list.
By initiating my "This Old House" project and doing the work myself, I gained the respect of Ron. This led to his buying into my ideas of how to improve his daily productivity. He admitted that no one had ever taught him this. He said this made his job a whole lot harder and a lot more stressful.
One of the first things I explained was that no one always gets their entire list completed. Life can intrude. The trick was prioritizing so that the most important things get done first. "This," I told him," is the most important 10 minutes of your day."
The warehouse makeover took 3 weeks. By the time I left, Ron was preparing his To Do list at the end of the previous day. Doing this reduces stress resulting in better sleep. It takes 21 days to create a new habit and reprogram the subconscious. He was much calmer, more self confident and was now asking questions and offering suggestions. His body language had changed. He now walked with purpose. He took pride in having a work space designed around his needs. He saw his world differently.
This morning I was reminded of this experience, comparing it to a new roommate situation. Since my arriving two weeks ago, this apartment was a scene out of Animal House. The bathroom was filthy. The kitchen was stacked with dirty dishes. Food splatters on the wall behind the stove, no available counter space. This was Delta House meets Covid -19.
One of the crippling aspects of clutter is the visceral reaction it provokes upon entering a room. The negative reaction from the sudden reminder of something that hasn’t been done can be jarring. It still needs doing. Just not now. The longer this goes on, the worse it becomes ruining one’s mood and festering deep physical stress. Clutter does stare back at us and in doing so, it drains our battery.
So to walk into a kitchen to a make something to eat only to be confronted by a dirty grimy mess assaulting the senses will take away anyone’s appetite. Celebrated business author Brian Tracy is fond of a time management saying that says “In order to do something new, you often have to do something else first.”
So I went to work. After buying cleaning supplies and tools like sponges, a scrub brush, rubber gloves, even a tooth brush, I bided my time. Once I had the place to myself, I got busy. Like someone detailing a car, I cleaned every surface large and small removing decades of grunge right down to the exterior of the refrigerator, the toaster and especially the microwave. As the years of goop came off, the room began to pop. You should have seen the handles on the fridge, the toaster and the microwave. Yuck! (Oven cleaner is my tip for fast cleaning of metal surfaces. No scrubbing!) The devil is indeed in the details.
The warehouse experience reminded me that if you take the emotions out of the equation and focus on the task, one can set an example and make a difference. This week it is now a pleasure to make coffee in the morning, starting the day with a clean slate and a counter free of yesterday's reminders. That the two roommates climbed on board suggests that others too see value of a clean uncluttered kitchen.
A great boss I used to work for, Paul Jasko had a phrase for situations like this. "Challenges and opportunities," referring to the latest project at work. That’s what I had here. My anger and seething upset turned to excitement. I saw an opportunity to affect change for everyone's benefit.
After first doing his dishes each morning before my host had woken up, I wanted to provide a glimpse of the benefits of a proper kitchen. The problem wasn't so much dishes but people not putting things back when they were done. There was stuff everywhere. My day began as a detective at a crime scene observing the trail left behind by the perpetrator.
Things actually got worse before they got better. Others began to take advantage of my efforts. So I stopped. I went on strike. This was my Cuban Missile Crisis. Who would blink first? Well, it wasn't me as someone got the message. Not a shot was fired and no one said a word. A bloodless coup.
Once I did the scrub down, the reaction was immediate and profound. Whatever his motivation, my new host now saw his kitchen differently. After all, he does love to cook. Just not cleaning after himself. I confess that this lack of consideration rankled me. But not long after he began to see himself differently.
A week into my project, I found my host addressing his clutter not only in the kitchen but his dining room office as well. Stacks of correspondence that covered the table since I arrived are now gone. He was very industrious and worked all morning while I was writing this article today. He worked with purpose. He turned a large hepa air filter on full blast and ran it for hours. No more musty odors. Actions do speak louder than words.
Now the place is clean and tidy and everyone is on board. A small price to pay. My mind is clear and I am content. While the term "leadership in action" gets overused, it feels good to have avoided a confrontation or let this continue to eat away at me. “Curse the darkness or light a candle.” More importantly, "Bad habits are easy to form but hard to live with. Good habits are hard to form but easy to live with."
A clean kitchen makes one excited about making something to eat. That’s called opportunity. What would I like to eat? What am I in the mood for? A blank canvas allows for possibilities. Be it a warehouse, an office or a kitchen. Perhaps I will celebrate tonight by watching Animal House.