The LIFT® Institute: Real Results In Real Time
Jim Cathcart, one of the nation’s preeminent authorities on leadership effectiveness, and Leland Russell, a recognized innovator in fast-cycle strategic action, today announced the formation of The LIFT® Institute. The Institute has a singular focus: helping leaders achieve real results in real time.
Based on their extensive research and hands-on experience in working with hundreds of leaders in large and mid-size organizations, Cathcart and Russell have concluded that execution is the number one challenge facing leaders today. “Getting things done is the greatest concern in every organization. Unfortunately, this is where most organizations fall short,” says Cathcart.
Russell explains, “Many leaders are frustrated with the lack of results their organi¬zations deliver. They tell us that their problem is not clarity about what to do, but rather how to make it happen. They desperately want to improve execution speed and effectiveness, but they often don't know where to start.”
“Everyone seems to be studying ‘leadership’ and the subject certainly has no shortage of accumulated knowledge,” adds Cathcart. “Yet, when you review the available literature, you find that the leader’s role in driving results is generally not addressed. There is a knowledge gap. That’s why we are founding The LIFT® Institute—to help leaders meet their execution challenges with a proven path to success.
The LIFT® proven path was first introduced in the highly-acclaimed book, Winning In FastTime, which translated lessons learned from one of the most successful campaigns in military history—the Desert Storm air campaign—to the fast-changing world of 21st century business.
The execution approach described in this book has been enthusiastically endorsed by top executives from leading organizations, including McDonald’s, Texas Instruments and Motorola, as well as best-selling authors, such as Alvin Toffler and Marshall Goldsmith, and even senior military leaders, including General Norman Schwarzkopf and General Mike Dugan, former Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force.
Over the past five years, leaders of large cap, mid-cap, and startup companies in high-tech, finance, health care, and many other industries have successfully applied the lessons of Winning In FastTime to meet a wide variety of execution challenges. As a result, a comprehensive base of Best Practices for leading fast-cycle execution (“Leading In FastTime”) has emerged. This knowledge base is now available through The LIFT® Institute’s presentations and executive development programs.
Some of examples of the LIFT® Best Practices knowledge base include:
• Collective IQ – How to tap a diverse group’s experience and insight to improve plans and build commitment for fast, aligned execution.
• Good Enough Plans – How to create and adjust ‘good enough’ plans in real-time with the recognition that no plan survives its contact with reality.
• High-Velocity, Parallel Actions – How to orchestrate a critical mass of the right actions quickly and concurrently for maximum systemic impact.
• Collaborating Online – How to ensure better cross-functional alignment and decision-making with fewer time-consuming face-to-face meetings.
• Real Time Accountability – How to measure and report actions and results so that everyone constantly knows where everything stands.
• After Action Reviews – How to drive results-oriented learning during execution to improve organizational and personal performance.
Cathcart and Russell believe that every leader at every level needs to master the art of execution because “execution is the only thing that produces results. And, in the final analysis, results are the only thing that really counts.”
The LIFT® Proven Path for Rapid Results is a major source of their enthusiasm. “We all know about the time-value of money,” says Russell. “It’s almost always worth more now than later. So what about the time-value of results? What are the benefits of better, faster results? The benefits can be enormous.”
Cathcart also points to the personal value: “Results are the ultimate measure of a leader’s effectiveness. Leaders who are not getting real results in real time should consider exploring what we have to offer at The LIFT® Institute. You may be capable of much more than you are currently achieving. Let’s see how much better you could be.”
__________________________________________
*For more information contact: jim@cathcart.com 1-805-777-3477
**JIM CATHCART is one of the nation’s leading professional speakers and a best selling
author of thirteen books, including The Acorn Principle and Relationship Selling.
www.cathcart.com
***LELAND RUSSELL is a recognized innovator in large-scale change, online collaboration and fast-cycle strategy execution and co-author of Winning in FastTime.
www.geogroup.com
Thursday, January 05, 2006
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
A Comforting Thought for Boomers Approaching 60 (like me)
Here’s a comforting thought.
Turning 60 or 50 or 40 or 97 1/2...
In looking back on your life, take stock of all you have been able to achieve. When you add it up, there is a lot to be proud of.
Notice the obstacles you overcame and the goals you reached. Forget the ones you missed, just look at how much you have done!
Now, consider that all of that was done without any of the knowledge, skills, wisdom and experience that you possess today.
You were a newbie, just starting out in life and you had to find the way to get to the top of whatever you were climbing.
Sure you had more energy and maybe more drive to prove yourself, but you weren’t yet capable of pulling it off. You had to learn as you grew. And growth should continue as long as life does.
Now you are entering your Masters Category. You have wisdom, experience, perspective, connections, patience and resources that you never had before. What you can do starting from here is awesome compared to what you used to be ready for.
Stop to think about what matters to you. What lights your fires and what ticks you off? Think about what you would change in the world, if you could. Well, maybe you can!
Spend some serious time thinking about your dreams, concerns, values and interests. Now go and structure the next phase of your life around these things and bring all of your substantial resources to bear.
You are amazingly capable. So go and do some good, have some fun and enjoy the journey.
In the Spirit of Growth,
Jim Cathcart
Turning 60 or 50 or 40 or 97 1/2...
In looking back on your life, take stock of all you have been able to achieve. When you add it up, there is a lot to be proud of.
Notice the obstacles you overcame and the goals you reached. Forget the ones you missed, just look at how much you have done!
Now, consider that all of that was done without any of the knowledge, skills, wisdom and experience that you possess today.
You were a newbie, just starting out in life and you had to find the way to get to the top of whatever you were climbing.
Sure you had more energy and maybe more drive to prove yourself, but you weren’t yet capable of pulling it off. You had to learn as you grew. And growth should continue as long as life does.
Now you are entering your Masters Category. You have wisdom, experience, perspective, connections, patience and resources that you never had before. What you can do starting from here is awesome compared to what you used to be ready for.
Stop to think about what matters to you. What lights your fires and what ticks you off? Think about what you would change in the world, if you could. Well, maybe you can!
Spend some serious time thinking about your dreams, concerns, values and interests. Now go and structure the next phase of your life around these things and bring all of your substantial resources to bear.
You are amazingly capable. So go and do some good, have some fun and enjoy the journey.
In the Spirit of Growth,
Jim Cathcart
Happy and Prosperous 2006
Here is a link to one of my recent articles for the new year.
Its title is
http://www.cathcart.com/art_grow_business.html
(Cut and paste this link into your browser if the link isn't active on this page.)
Another article you might like is on my personal website, its title is
Here is the link: http://www.cathcart.com/art_expand_life.html
Have a great year. Let me know if I can be a resource to you this year.
Jim
Its title is
15 Ways To Grow Your Business This Year.
http://www.cathcart.com/art_grow_business.html
(Cut and paste this link into your browser if the link isn't active on this page.)
Another article you might like is on my personal website, its title is
11 Ways To Expand Your Life This Year.
Here is the link: http://www.cathcart.com/art_expand_life.html
Have a great year. Let me know if I can be a resource to you this year.
Jim
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
Make More Phone Calls
A good friend recently advised me to make more phone calls. I asked why he suggested this and he said, "Jim, you are really good as a speaker on the stage and you are also very good on the phone. I just know that by making more phone calls to your former clients, colleagues and friends, you will generate even more business." He was absolutely right. Though my business is doing fine and I send scores of emails every day, I could always use more business. So I decided to do as he suggested.
In my breakfast brainstorming that morning I listed the types of phone calls that I could make. I did this as a way of focusing my energies on the calls and identifying a number of purposes for the calls.
I hope this list serves as a stimulus for you as well.
Call with Praise for people. Call with Observations to share. Call with Insights & Ideas for others. Call with Questions. Call with Suggestions & Referrals. Call with Offers of Assistance or Resources. Call with Requests for Assistance. Call to Confirm details & agreements. Call to Gather a Quote to use. Call to Explore Possibilities. Call to Seek Guidance or Direction. Call for Recommendations.
Add your own "reasons to call" and carry this new list around with you for awhile. As you look at it daily, note the names of people you intend to call. Write down their phone number and when you get a flexible moment, give them a call.
It is a lot like the advice my son once gave me. When he was in college he worked at a MailBoxes, Etc. and he said, "If you ever want to receive more mail, then send more mail! I've noticed that is how it works for all our customers. Those who send the most always receive the most."
Now go call someone.
In my breakfast brainstorming that morning I listed the types of phone calls that I could make. I did this as a way of focusing my energies on the calls and identifying a number of purposes for the calls.
I hope this list serves as a stimulus for you as well.
Call with Praise for people. Call with Observations to share. Call with Insights & Ideas for others. Call with Questions. Call with Suggestions & Referrals. Call with Offers of Assistance or Resources. Call with Requests for Assistance. Call to Confirm details & agreements. Call to Gather a Quote to use. Call to Explore Possibilities. Call to Seek Guidance or Direction. Call for Recommendations.
Add your own "reasons to call" and carry this new list around with you for awhile. As you look at it daily, note the names of people you intend to call. Write down their phone number and when you get a flexible moment, give them a call.
It is a lot like the advice my son once gave me. When he was in college he worked at a MailBoxes, Etc. and he said, "If you ever want to receive more mail, then send more mail! I've noticed that is how it works for all our customers. Those who send the most always receive the most."
Now go call someone.
Thursday, June 23, 2005
Behavioral Economics: Every Action Has A Value or A Cost
When you apply the science of economics to the study of human behavior some wonderfully useful insights occur. For example; once you realize that there is a tangible and measurable value to behavior, you will begin to think about them differently.
This past Monday I addressed a group of about 400 Taxation Professionals, numbers people who work in a world of documentation, compliance regulations and statistics. When I presented this concept to them they instantly "got it" and, in fact, at the end of my speech they lined up to shake my hand and tell me how much they liked this way of thinking about behavior.
Here is the gist of the idea:
Every action we take or fail to take can be tracked sooner or later by measuring its value or cost, e.g. if we fail to prepare for an important event there will be a true cost to our lack of preparation. If we develop the habit of reviewing what we need to know just prior to meetings in which we will use the knowledge, then we will be able to participate in the meeting more spontaneously and usefully.
Behavioral Economics has three main components:
1. How we Think
2. How we Relate
3. How we Act
If people in an organization understand and embrace the purpose, vision, mission and values of the organization then they "embrace its genetic code." These people bring more value to their work than their counterparts who think differently.
When you find meaning in what you do, you bring more value to how you do it.
This is merely one component of How we Think.
The ways in which people communicate or "Relate" to each other has a measurable value as well. Coworkers who don't communicate openly and freely often operate with incomplete information and erroneous assumptions. This can have disastrous consequences financially.
There are three essentials for any relationship, whether it is with customers, colleagues or supervisors. These are: 1. Both parties must be committed to making the relationship successful. Nobody can bear the full burden alone. 2. Communication must be open and frequent. The truth must be told always and bad news must travel fastest of all. 3. Both parties must know what the others expect from them. Clear agreements are essential.
The ways in which we relate to each other have a tangible economic impact.
How we act both on and off the job will ultimately show up in our productivity. Bad health has an impact of clarity of thought, ability to perform and on attitude. Lack of organization produces unnecessary errors plus a waste of time and resources. Certain work habits have more value than others. There is a cost to each of our habit patterns.
In short, if we think about our behavior as having an economic impact, we will be more motivated to change unproductive behaviors and adopt profitable ones. It's time the "human factors" in business were placed at the TOP of our priority list, where they belong.
In the final analysis, "it's the people, stupid!"
This past Monday I addressed a group of about 400 Taxation Professionals, numbers people who work in a world of documentation, compliance regulations and statistics. When I presented this concept to them they instantly "got it" and, in fact, at the end of my speech they lined up to shake my hand and tell me how much they liked this way of thinking about behavior.
Here is the gist of the idea:
Every action we take or fail to take can be tracked sooner or later by measuring its value or cost, e.g. if we fail to prepare for an important event there will be a true cost to our lack of preparation. If we develop the habit of reviewing what we need to know just prior to meetings in which we will use the knowledge, then we will be able to participate in the meeting more spontaneously and usefully.
Behavioral Economics has three main components:
1. How we Think
2. How we Relate
3. How we Act
If people in an organization understand and embrace the purpose, vision, mission and values of the organization then they "embrace its genetic code." These people bring more value to their work than their counterparts who think differently.
When you find meaning in what you do, you bring more value to how you do it.
This is merely one component of How we Think.
The ways in which people communicate or "Relate" to each other has a measurable value as well. Coworkers who don't communicate openly and freely often operate with incomplete information and erroneous assumptions. This can have disastrous consequences financially.
There are three essentials for any relationship, whether it is with customers, colleagues or supervisors. These are: 1. Both parties must be committed to making the relationship successful. Nobody can bear the full burden alone. 2. Communication must be open and frequent. The truth must be told always and bad news must travel fastest of all. 3. Both parties must know what the others expect from them. Clear agreements are essential.
The ways in which we relate to each other have a tangible economic impact.
How we act both on and off the job will ultimately show up in our productivity. Bad health has an impact of clarity of thought, ability to perform and on attitude. Lack of organization produces unnecessary errors plus a waste of time and resources. Certain work habits have more value than others. There is a cost to each of our habit patterns.
In short, if we think about our behavior as having an economic impact, we will be more motivated to change unproductive behaviors and adopt profitable ones. It's time the "human factors" in business were placed at the TOP of our priority list, where they belong.
In the final analysis, "it's the people, stupid!"
Wednesday, June 08, 2005
The Ability To Actually LEAD Is Lacking Among Leaders
As a member of various boards and committees in my community and industry I attend scores of meetings each year. And I can count on one hand the number of those meetings that are well conducted!
Meeting chairs and organizational officers don't control the meeting, they simply follow the strongest personality in the group. If someone persuasive wants to abuse the meeting's time frame or get off track onto subjects not relevant to this meeting, they let them.
One of my colleagues said the other day, "Joe (not his real name)sure runs a long meeting. I don't attend very often because so much of the time is wasted."
Now notice that he didn't say that to "Joe", he said it to me, a fellow member. I wonder how many people are saying similar things about you and me?
A meeting represents a huge investment of time, attention and talent. Every person in that room could be doing something else and probably earning money for it. All of them have other priorities in life. All of them have shown the leader the courtesy of showing up and doing nothing else during this time. The LEAST the leader could do is run a tight meeting!
Another area of leadership weakness is organizing projects. Plenty of people are willing to step up and get things started but not as many are skilled at making them happen. I remember when I was in the Jaycees many years ago, we were all required to learn a project planning process. We used a tool called "The Chairman's Planning Guide." It was a simple outline for organizing. It consisted of defining the primary purpose of the project, showing how it fits in with other priorities, setting specific goals, etc. It was such a good tool that I had my son memorize like a poem and recite it often. He was under ten years old at the time, but he still remembers the "7 Step Planning Process" today, in his thirties. And he has used it to accomplish goals. These "steps" are pretty much universal and all planning processes cover them, but we need more people to know and use them...daily.
A third area of leadership lack is motivating volunteers. Anyone can motivate another person when the motive is a paycheck or avoiding pain, but not so many are good at getting people to voluntarily commit to a goal. This involves accessing the part of a person that is totally under their control, something known as "discretionary effort." That is where the true value of one's involvement shows most. When they are giving it their full commitment instead of mere token effort.
These skills for: Running Meetings, Organizing Projects and Motivating Volunteers are not difficult to learn. But to learn them, we must do two things; Teach them well and Require their use. We must require those who lead our meetings to get better at it. We must speak up and demand that projects be organized and followed through to closure. We must teach each other how to discern the truth about what works and what doesn't in motivating us.
Only when MOST organizations start requiring their leaders to be effective at leading will we get better results and at the same time produce a new crop of good leaders each year.
Effective leadership is not about being in charge. It is about getting the job done well.
Meeting chairs and organizational officers don't control the meeting, they simply follow the strongest personality in the group. If someone persuasive wants to abuse the meeting's time frame or get off track onto subjects not relevant to this meeting, they let them.
One of my colleagues said the other day, "Joe (not his real name)sure runs a long meeting. I don't attend very often because so much of the time is wasted."
Now notice that he didn't say that to "Joe", he said it to me, a fellow member. I wonder how many people are saying similar things about you and me?
A meeting represents a huge investment of time, attention and talent. Every person in that room could be doing something else and probably earning money for it. All of them have other priorities in life. All of them have shown the leader the courtesy of showing up and doing nothing else during this time. The LEAST the leader could do is run a tight meeting!
Another area of leadership weakness is organizing projects. Plenty of people are willing to step up and get things started but not as many are skilled at making them happen. I remember when I was in the Jaycees many years ago, we were all required to learn a project planning process. We used a tool called "The Chairman's Planning Guide." It was a simple outline for organizing. It consisted of defining the primary purpose of the project, showing how it fits in with other priorities, setting specific goals, etc. It was such a good tool that I had my son memorize like a poem and recite it often. He was under ten years old at the time, but he still remembers the "7 Step Planning Process" today, in his thirties. And he has used it to accomplish goals. These "steps" are pretty much universal and all planning processes cover them, but we need more people to know and use them...daily.
A third area of leadership lack is motivating volunteers. Anyone can motivate another person when the motive is a paycheck or avoiding pain, but not so many are good at getting people to voluntarily commit to a goal. This involves accessing the part of a person that is totally under their control, something known as "discretionary effort." That is where the true value of one's involvement shows most. When they are giving it their full commitment instead of mere token effort.
These skills for: Running Meetings, Organizing Projects and Motivating Volunteers are not difficult to learn. But to learn them, we must do two things; Teach them well and Require their use. We must require those who lead our meetings to get better at it. We must speak up and demand that projects be organized and followed through to closure. We must teach each other how to discern the truth about what works and what doesn't in motivating us.
Only when MOST organizations start requiring their leaders to be effective at leading will we get better results and at the same time produce a new crop of good leaders each year.
Effective leadership is not about being in charge. It is about getting the job done well.
Sunday, January 09, 2005
Is the US Generous or Stingy?
There has been a wave of criticism of the United States as being "stingy" re: our government's initial pledge of support for the tsunami victims. Ironically, the criticizers are people who are not personally making substantial contributions, they are commentators and spokespeople.
How dare them judge the US on the topic of generosity!
We are the most generous nation in the history of the world!!! Both our government and our citizens give more than any other entity on earth. Even though Australia and some others have made larger government pledges than the US government, check the real results, the actual monies and services being contributed to all the main charities, e.g. The Red Cross. Then look at the resources we have committed, like helicopters, ships, and information services.
What you will find is that you can be proud once again to be an American. We are leading the world and probably always will. We are the most compassionate and generous people in existence.
We help people whether we agree with their politics or not.
Besides; look at how much we are contributing to the future welfare of the people of Iraq. Our presence there is not to destroy but to build. WE are diminishing the threat to the Iraqis and building a base for them to be free and self sustaining.
Let's remember that we are a good people. We care about human life and even when we go to war it is to advance human life and personal freedom. Nobody else aside from our allies is similarly committed.
I'm very proud to be an American!
How dare them judge the US on the topic of generosity!
We are the most generous nation in the history of the world!!! Both our government and our citizens give more than any other entity on earth. Even though Australia and some others have made larger government pledges than the US government, check the real results, the actual monies and services being contributed to all the main charities, e.g. The Red Cross. Then look at the resources we have committed, like helicopters, ships, and information services.
What you will find is that you can be proud once again to be an American. We are leading the world and probably always will. We are the most compassionate and generous people in existence.
We help people whether we agree with their politics or not.
Besides; look at how much we are contributing to the future welfare of the people of Iraq. Our presence there is not to destroy but to build. WE are diminishing the threat to the Iraqis and building a base for them to be free and self sustaining.
Let's remember that we are a good people. We care about human life and even when we go to war it is to advance human life and personal freedom. Nobody else aside from our allies is similarly committed.
I'm very proud to be an American!
Thursday, December 09, 2004
Macy's Blew It This Time
To Macy's executive officers and board of directors;
It has come to our attention that Macy's is actively discouraging the acknowledgement of Christmas and Christianity as being central to this holiday season. "Happy holidays" and "trying to make all religions feel welcome" is a lame token gesture and it disrespects the primary American faith, Christianity. The honoring of Christianity does not exclude other faiths.
Please register our extreme disagreement with your position. My wife and I have been loyal Macy's customers for years and we're proud to be such.
Your legacy with the celebration of this sacred season has been an important part of what makes America such a wonderful place to live.
For you to take such a destructive and politically correct posture related to Christmas and Christianity is a cowardly act in our estimation. You are bowing to the hypersensitive few who believe that freedom of religion should mean freedom FROM religion. We find that outrageously offensive!
Our future as Macy's customers is being seriously reconsidered. You have many worthy competitors. Perhaps it is time you watched “Miracle on 34th Street” once again.
Don't forget what made you great.
Merry Christmas,
Jim and Paula Cathcart
PS we will be copying this message to all our friends who might shop Macy's.
PPS Please do not send us a form-letter reply justifying your actions. Nothing can justify this insult to Christianity.
It has come to our attention that Macy's is actively discouraging the acknowledgement of Christmas and Christianity as being central to this holiday season. "Happy holidays" and "trying to make all religions feel welcome" is a lame token gesture and it disrespects the primary American faith, Christianity. The honoring of Christianity does not exclude other faiths.
Please register our extreme disagreement with your position. My wife and I have been loyal Macy's customers for years and we're proud to be such.
Your legacy with the celebration of this sacred season has been an important part of what makes America such a wonderful place to live.
For you to take such a destructive and politically correct posture related to Christmas and Christianity is a cowardly act in our estimation. You are bowing to the hypersensitive few who believe that freedom of religion should mean freedom FROM religion. We find that outrageously offensive!
Our future as Macy's customers is being seriously reconsidered. You have many worthy competitors. Perhaps it is time you watched “Miracle on 34th Street” once again.
Don't forget what made you great.
Merry Christmas,
Jim and Paula Cathcart
PS we will be copying this message to all our friends who might shop Macy's.
PPS Please do not send us a form-letter reply justifying your actions. Nothing can justify this insult to Christianity.
Monday, November 08, 2004
Politics: We must come together they say
The election is over and both sides are saying we must "come together" as one country. They promise to "reach out" to the other side and to "do (their) part to work together." Nice words, but let's watch for the actions that back it up.
It is easy to say you will do "whatever it takes" to get something done. But the speaker of those words often is found recanting with an "except for" statement.
I think it is time we started holding people accountable for what they say. How can a person be "a man of his word" if his words don't serve as official notification of his commitments? If you say you will do it, then do it. Period. If you say you won't, then don't. Period.
We just witnessed a campaign filled with sound bites many of which we treated as if they didn't count toward or against the person who said them.
In our society it used to be that a person's word was their bond. They were bound to (committed to, with consequences) do or not do what their words had indicated. I just want to scream "tell the truth dammit!"
If you call someone a liar, be prepared to PROVE they lied. If you claim you did something, or didn't then be prepared to document that fact.
Why don't we trust politicians? Because they keep changing their words.
A big reason I didn't vote for John Kerry and still wouldn't is that he is not a man of his word. If you wish to find documentation of that let me know. I have seen volumes of published direct quotes. They are easy to find, in fact one of his opponents published a radio ad with about twenty first-person recordings of Kerry's contradictory statements.
On the other hand, I did not find this to be the case with George Bush. Though one could argue about technical inconsistencies in his choice of words, there was no contradiciton in his stated messages. He kept saying the same things and then doing them. People say he lied about WMD. Horsefeathers!
He and the rest of our leaders including Kerry and Clinton, believed that Saddam had them.
They say he was fighting this war as a personal vendetta or just to secure riches from oil. Give me a break! How shallow do you think our leaders are? We have a full compliment of representatives and legislators to keep a president from such selfishness.
In order for us to come together, somebody has to agree to broaden their position. Two parties who continue to disagree fully cannot find a common ground. There must be compromise. Both parties need to do this but MOSTLY the Democrats. They lost. The voters they wanted to win over, weren't won over.
For them to assume that a three million person majority is a group of uninformed or unenlightened people is absurd. The Democrats were not right in determining what the people of America want. Continuing to sell the same unpopular message will not "bring us together."
That's like saying, "we obviously disagree, so I will keep on selling until you finally agree with me." What're you nuts? That won't work.
Now is the time for the Democratic Party to elect new leadership. Terry McAuliffe and his mean-spirited cohorts must go...totally. They are not capable of effecting change in the party. They won't change.
The Democrats need to reimbrace the principles that Zell Miller talked about at the Republican convention. Their party needs to be a party of encouragement, not entitlements. People want hope. Reagan gave them that after Carter had removed it. And Reagan, not Carter, is regarded as the finest president in several generations. Clinton claimed to offer it, but his hope was tied to his ability to ride the empty shell of his economic policies through an "irrational exhuberance" tech boom and its inevitable crash. Short term solutions always have corresponding payback time.
To come together the Democrats must determine how to be optimists again. Kerry ran a "what's wrong with America (under Bush) campaign." There was no cause to get excited about having him as our leader, he only enticed us to remove Bush. He claimed to be an optimist but showed no evidence of it. His was a campaign of blame and despair. That is what divided us. Just as Gore did in 2000. And what has happened to Gore!? Ohmigod, that guy has gone radical. Pity.
Kerry betrayed his countrymen upon return from Vietnam. His actual words and deeds were quoted and shown by the North Vietnamese to our POWs to break their spirits. He, Jane Fonda, Tom Hayden and a few others worked vigorously to betray our efforts and demonize our troops. It worked, a whole generation looked down on them and ridiculed them when they returned "home." Now Kerry has tried it again. He spawned such films as Farenheit 911 just as he spawned Apocalypse Now and Platoon from the Vietnam Era. Kerry claimed he was a war hero. But he didn't own up to being a traitor too. Heroism isn't permanent, nor is betrayal. But betrayal requires contrition and retribution. He never did admit his betrayal.
It is interesting that Kerry spoke for only one minute in his acceptance of the democratic nomination about his twenty years in office, but he spent plenty of time reminding us of his four MONTHS of service in Vietnam.
In contrast, Lots of people have accused Bush of draft dodging while ignoring his volunteering for fighter jet training, knowing that he'd be among the most likely to be called to active duty. His dad flew 50+ combat missions and was shot down twice in WWII. So he chose to follow the same path in his military service. He did not volunteer for Vietnam but he served honorably, as I did, in the National Guard and fulfilled his service.
Then he went on to serve his country rather than betray it.
And, by the way, when someone accuses another of draft dodging and cowardice for having joined the reserves or national guard, they are insulting all of us who served in those armed forces. I, Lt. Jim Cathcart, USAR and USNG, deeply resent that.
People accused Bush of being ignorant or non-intellectual, while ignoring his Yale MBA and his years of success in running businesses and serving impressively as the governor of Texas. What is it that people are missing? Do they think that debating skill is the best indicator of presidential capacity? If so, why don't they hold the master debater to his words?
This has become a rant more than a commentary, sorry for that, but please don't interpret the rant as being all emotion and no substance. I've thought long and hard about what I'm saying here, and I am willing to be held accountable for my words.
In closing, yes we must come together, but we won't be doing that on the margins. People come together closer to the middle. America is an English speaking, Christianity-based, heterosexual, free enterprize society based on personal freedom and personal accountability. Our society is built upon the family unit as its basic building blocks. This is where the middle is. A church going, straight Christian is not "the radical right." They are the mainstream.
Mainstream Americans believe in the right of people to determine their own sexual preferences but not in their ability to impose that preference as an entitlement of special minority status. Mainstream Americans believe that everyone should be able to practice their chosen religion. But freedom of religion must never become freedom FROM religion. Our country is built upon the assumption that people will have strong beliefs, not avoid and criticize beliefs. Church and State are inseparable. You can separate parts of them but Statecraft will always reflect our beliefs. Always. No matter what our beliefs are. A society that doesn't teach values and character is doomed to spend eternity in a courtroom fighting over technical definitions of laws. Trust only grows where integrity is cultivated and required.
There is no freedom without being accountable. We can't use entitlements as our nation's success strategy. Freedom and being held accountable for what you do and SAY are the key to our society. Let's mean what we say.
It is easy to say you will do "whatever it takes" to get something done. But the speaker of those words often is found recanting with an "except for" statement.
I think it is time we started holding people accountable for what they say. How can a person be "a man of his word" if his words don't serve as official notification of his commitments? If you say you will do it, then do it. Period. If you say you won't, then don't. Period.
We just witnessed a campaign filled with sound bites many of which we treated as if they didn't count toward or against the person who said them.
In our society it used to be that a person's word was their bond. They were bound to (committed to, with consequences) do or not do what their words had indicated. I just want to scream "tell the truth dammit!"
If you call someone a liar, be prepared to PROVE they lied. If you claim you did something, or didn't then be prepared to document that fact.
Why don't we trust politicians? Because they keep changing their words.
A big reason I didn't vote for John Kerry and still wouldn't is that he is not a man of his word. If you wish to find documentation of that let me know. I have seen volumes of published direct quotes. They are easy to find, in fact one of his opponents published a radio ad with about twenty first-person recordings of Kerry's contradictory statements.
On the other hand, I did not find this to be the case with George Bush. Though one could argue about technical inconsistencies in his choice of words, there was no contradiciton in his stated messages. He kept saying the same things and then doing them. People say he lied about WMD. Horsefeathers!
He and the rest of our leaders including Kerry and Clinton, believed that Saddam had them.
They say he was fighting this war as a personal vendetta or just to secure riches from oil. Give me a break! How shallow do you think our leaders are? We have a full compliment of representatives and legislators to keep a president from such selfishness.
In order for us to come together, somebody has to agree to broaden their position. Two parties who continue to disagree fully cannot find a common ground. There must be compromise. Both parties need to do this but MOSTLY the Democrats. They lost. The voters they wanted to win over, weren't won over.
For them to assume that a three million person majority is a group of uninformed or unenlightened people is absurd. The Democrats were not right in determining what the people of America want. Continuing to sell the same unpopular message will not "bring us together."
That's like saying, "we obviously disagree, so I will keep on selling until you finally agree with me." What're you nuts? That won't work.
Now is the time for the Democratic Party to elect new leadership. Terry McAuliffe and his mean-spirited cohorts must go...totally. They are not capable of effecting change in the party. They won't change.
The Democrats need to reimbrace the principles that Zell Miller talked about at the Republican convention. Their party needs to be a party of encouragement, not entitlements. People want hope. Reagan gave them that after Carter had removed it. And Reagan, not Carter, is regarded as the finest president in several generations. Clinton claimed to offer it, but his hope was tied to his ability to ride the empty shell of his economic policies through an "irrational exhuberance" tech boom and its inevitable crash. Short term solutions always have corresponding payback time.
To come together the Democrats must determine how to be optimists again. Kerry ran a "what's wrong with America (under Bush) campaign." There was no cause to get excited about having him as our leader, he only enticed us to remove Bush. He claimed to be an optimist but showed no evidence of it. His was a campaign of blame and despair. That is what divided us. Just as Gore did in 2000. And what has happened to Gore!? Ohmigod, that guy has gone radical. Pity.
Kerry betrayed his countrymen upon return from Vietnam. His actual words and deeds were quoted and shown by the North Vietnamese to our POWs to break their spirits. He, Jane Fonda, Tom Hayden and a few others worked vigorously to betray our efforts and demonize our troops. It worked, a whole generation looked down on them and ridiculed them when they returned "home." Now Kerry has tried it again. He spawned such films as Farenheit 911 just as he spawned Apocalypse Now and Platoon from the Vietnam Era. Kerry claimed he was a war hero. But he didn't own up to being a traitor too. Heroism isn't permanent, nor is betrayal. But betrayal requires contrition and retribution. He never did admit his betrayal.
It is interesting that Kerry spoke for only one minute in his acceptance of the democratic nomination about his twenty years in office, but he spent plenty of time reminding us of his four MONTHS of service in Vietnam.
In contrast, Lots of people have accused Bush of draft dodging while ignoring his volunteering for fighter jet training, knowing that he'd be among the most likely to be called to active duty. His dad flew 50+ combat missions and was shot down twice in WWII. So he chose to follow the same path in his military service. He did not volunteer for Vietnam but he served honorably, as I did, in the National Guard and fulfilled his service.
Then he went on to serve his country rather than betray it.
And, by the way, when someone accuses another of draft dodging and cowardice for having joined the reserves or national guard, they are insulting all of us who served in those armed forces. I, Lt. Jim Cathcart, USAR and USNG, deeply resent that.
People accused Bush of being ignorant or non-intellectual, while ignoring his Yale MBA and his years of success in running businesses and serving impressively as the governor of Texas. What is it that people are missing? Do they think that debating skill is the best indicator of presidential capacity? If so, why don't they hold the master debater to his words?
This has become a rant more than a commentary, sorry for that, but please don't interpret the rant as being all emotion and no substance. I've thought long and hard about what I'm saying here, and I am willing to be held accountable for my words.
In closing, yes we must come together, but we won't be doing that on the margins. People come together closer to the middle. America is an English speaking, Christianity-based, heterosexual, free enterprize society based on personal freedom and personal accountability. Our society is built upon the family unit as its basic building blocks. This is where the middle is. A church going, straight Christian is not "the radical right." They are the mainstream.
Mainstream Americans believe in the right of people to determine their own sexual preferences but not in their ability to impose that preference as an entitlement of special minority status. Mainstream Americans believe that everyone should be able to practice their chosen religion. But freedom of religion must never become freedom FROM religion. Our country is built upon the assumption that people will have strong beliefs, not avoid and criticize beliefs. Church and State are inseparable. You can separate parts of them but Statecraft will always reflect our beliefs. Always. No matter what our beliefs are. A society that doesn't teach values and character is doomed to spend eternity in a courtroom fighting over technical definitions of laws. Trust only grows where integrity is cultivated and required.
There is no freedom without being accountable. We can't use entitlements as our nation's success strategy. Freedom and being held accountable for what you do and SAY are the key to our society. Let's mean what we say.
Friday, November 05, 2004
Develop Leaders BEFORE You Need Them!
For the past year I've been working with leaders and educators throughout the highway 101 corridor here in California to develop a new Leader Development initiative called "The 101 Leaders Institute."
This is an alliance of organizations concerned about the future of this area, all of whom are committed to the idea of developing leadership talent. Too often we educate people in how to lead and then expect them to get the needed experience on their own. I believe that a system needs to be provided to help assure that those in leadership roles do in fact have the skill to lead.
I've seen numerous civic and business meetings where well-educated leaders were in charge, yet, despite their education, they couldn't run a meeting well, or organize a project or motivate people to volunteer their time or resources.
Our solution is to network the resources of the universities, training companies and community resources so that people at all levels of society have a path to follow to gain the needed experience while practicing what they have learned.
Many years ago I was on the national staff of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, the US Jaycees. My role was Senior Program Manager of Individual Development, in other words, the guy in charge of Leadership Training.
We had 356,000 members at the time and what I did was; write training programs, manage four chairmen in each state and fly around the country giving convention speeches to get everyone to use our training programs. Not dissimilar to what I do in my own company, Cathcart Institute, Inc. today. The purpose of Jaycees was Leadership Training through community service. (lower case intentional.) Our job was training leaders. Doing service projects in the communities was simply our medium for training. We wanted our "graduates" to be prepared to move into business, civic and social leadership with real-world experience in making things happen. It worked. And it continued to work for generations.
Today the Jaycees have deteriorated significantly from the 1970s. They have much less than 100,000 members and are not in all communities as before.
But then, our society's needs have evolved too. It is not just the young people who need to learn to lead now. Adults need it too.
That is where 101 Leaders comes in. We want to use a project-based system to allow people to develop their abilities and make their marks in society.
The structure is this:
1. Hold a Leadership Summit at a place like the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and offer a powerful lineup of speakers and influential presenters. Have each university or firm sponsor a portion of the program and provide a "track" of learning for certain types of leaders, according to their own unique resources and interests.
Civic leaders would go to one institution, non-profits to another, business leaders to another, entrepreneurs to another and community leaders to another. Even private citizens with no affiliation would be able to enroll in the system.
2. When one "signs up" with 101 Leaders they will fill out a profile and be assigned to a coach or guide. That person will register them into the courses and experiences that are indicated and help monitor their progress throughout the year. (The course would be one year long.)
3. As phases are completed there will be quarterly Leader Roundtable events to interact with others in the system, hear featured speakers and interact with existing leaders.
4. www.101leaders.org will become the website home for those in the system. They will have resources there, be able to track progress, report results and ask questions.
5. A yearbook will be published annually to list all those who are making a contribution in this region. It will be laced with leadership lessons and personal profiles. A virtual who's who for this region with a "and you can too" element to it. Sponsors and providers will have ads throughout the publication as well.
Much is yet to be determined for this project but all input is welcomed. If you have some thoughts, challenges, questions, etc. please let me know. This model will be portable once proven. It can be duplicated in any distinct region where providers are available and leaders are needed.
We must develop our leaders constantly and intentionally lest we find a crisis that lacks the folks to lead us beyond it.
Thanks for reading.
Jim
This is an alliance of organizations concerned about the future of this area, all of whom are committed to the idea of developing leadership talent. Too often we educate people in how to lead and then expect them to get the needed experience on their own. I believe that a system needs to be provided to help assure that those in leadership roles do in fact have the skill to lead.
I've seen numerous civic and business meetings where well-educated leaders were in charge, yet, despite their education, they couldn't run a meeting well, or organize a project or motivate people to volunteer their time or resources.
Our solution is to network the resources of the universities, training companies and community resources so that people at all levels of society have a path to follow to gain the needed experience while practicing what they have learned.
Many years ago I was on the national staff of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, the US Jaycees. My role was Senior Program Manager of Individual Development, in other words, the guy in charge of Leadership Training.
We had 356,000 members at the time and what I did was; write training programs, manage four chairmen in each state and fly around the country giving convention speeches to get everyone to use our training programs. Not dissimilar to what I do in my own company, Cathcart Institute, Inc. today. The purpose of Jaycees was Leadership Training through community service. (lower case intentional.) Our job was training leaders. Doing service projects in the communities was simply our medium for training. We wanted our "graduates" to be prepared to move into business, civic and social leadership with real-world experience in making things happen. It worked. And it continued to work for generations.
Today the Jaycees have deteriorated significantly from the 1970s. They have much less than 100,000 members and are not in all communities as before.
But then, our society's needs have evolved too. It is not just the young people who need to learn to lead now. Adults need it too.
That is where 101 Leaders comes in. We want to use a project-based system to allow people to develop their abilities and make their marks in society.
The structure is this:
1. Hold a Leadership Summit at a place like the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and offer a powerful lineup of speakers and influential presenters. Have each university or firm sponsor a portion of the program and provide a "track" of learning for certain types of leaders, according to their own unique resources and interests.
Civic leaders would go to one institution, non-profits to another, business leaders to another, entrepreneurs to another and community leaders to another. Even private citizens with no affiliation would be able to enroll in the system.
2. When one "signs up" with 101 Leaders they will fill out a profile and be assigned to a coach or guide. That person will register them into the courses and experiences that are indicated and help monitor their progress throughout the year. (The course would be one year long.)
3. As phases are completed there will be quarterly Leader Roundtable events to interact with others in the system, hear featured speakers and interact with existing leaders.
4. www.101leaders.org will become the website home for those in the system. They will have resources there, be able to track progress, report results and ask questions.
5. A yearbook will be published annually to list all those who are making a contribution in this region. It will be laced with leadership lessons and personal profiles. A virtual who's who for this region with a "and you can too" element to it. Sponsors and providers will have ads throughout the publication as well.
Much is yet to be determined for this project but all input is welcomed. If you have some thoughts, challenges, questions, etc. please let me know. This model will be portable once proven. It can be duplicated in any distinct region where providers are available and leaders are needed.
We must develop our leaders constantly and intentionally lest we find a crisis that lacks the folks to lead us beyond it.
Thanks for reading.
Jim
Monday, November 01, 2004
Welcome to my new web log!
Let me know what you would like to learn more about or comment on. My home site www.cathcart.com shows you my areas of expertise and more can be learned about me and my ideas by visiting www.relationshipselling.net, www.professionalspeaker.com and www.101leaders.com .
In this site I will occasionally comment on a number of issues and ideas. Your input is welcomed and I will do my best to respond on a timely basis.
If you need a quicker reply, my management office is at info@cathcart.com and they can reach me each day.
Best wishes for a George W. Bush second four years.
Jim
In this site I will occasionally comment on a number of issues and ideas. Your input is welcomed and I will do my best to respond on a timely basis.
If you need a quicker reply, my management office is at info@cathcart.com and they can reach me each day.
Best wishes for a George W. Bush second four years.
Jim
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