The boys and I got out of the house early to let the expectant mother get some extra sleep. What to do from 7am until 10am? Waffle House, of course. After finishing the meal, we went train hunting with a video camera (Beware: Cobb County police don’t like when you drive and film.)

But the hit of the morning was stopping in Atlanta at the midtown Marta station, forking over $1.75 (children under 5 are free), and taking a ride on the Marta rail line. Atlanta’s public transportation system might not be the best in class, but it certainly makes good entertainment for a 3 year old boy, a 1 year old boy, and a child-at-heart father.

Fast Company does a great job talking about the millenials (born 1978-2000) in the Jan/Feb issue. For all mature organizations, it is a must read (pages 73-77.)

Millennials aren’t interested in the financial success that drove the boomers or the independence that has marked the gen-Xers, but in careers that are personalized.

These folks wants feedback daily, not annually. And in case it’s not obvious, millennials are fearless and blunt. If they think they know a better way, they’ll tell you, regardless of your title.

The author addresses the gen-Xers and baby boomers regarding the millenials, but falls short of giving insight to the millenials. As a millenial, I know that although the traits described should be considered assets, they must be tempered. The boomers have the money. The gen-Xers are typically the boss. And the millenial cannot succeed without having the favor of both.

Acting only the way of the millenial will rub many of the boomers the wrong way. Gen-Xers are more likely to acquiesce, but it will be at a slower pace. Have the heart and passion of a millenial, but consider acting and relating like a gen-Xer or a boomer. With their favor, life will be smoother and success will come quicker. I write out of my own experience.

Our third son is due to arrive into the world in the next couple of weeks. Our OB treated us to seeing the baby on his new GE 3d/4d ultrasound machine. It was incredible. I only wish that I had the video. In the meantime, check out the photo:

I don’t think any of us want to be an arm chair quarterback. We simply want to help. But, we look into a process to learn or to understand the output of the process better and we see opportunities for improvement. I know I’d love to jump in to help out with the situation, but typically I really cannot. To help would be to join in the game, to be in the three-point stance on the line with the other players. That takes time and commitment, sacrificing the ability to live up to the responsibility of my position. The best, quickest way to help is to provide insight or feedback to those in the game, in the process, on the line. But, at that point, I am the arm chair quarterback.

Solution: build the trust and favor of the team so that we can help each other. Then, when I spot something that can help them, they will be more likely to listen. And when they sot something that can help me, I will be more receptive. Instead of arm chair quarterbacks just watching, we link our mutual success and become players on the same team.

Talking to a trusted colleague today about sticky situations where the full court press may be on against you, I garnered some good advice. Full court press? That’s a situation where extra pressure, scrutiny, or investigation may be conducted. Although I believe these situations are good and make us better, there are times when a bad result can be devastating to a person or an organization.

He relayed his experience to me: spend some time getting to know the other person. Or, simply shoot the bull with them. "If a gorilla is hungry to eat you, go ahead and feed it something else for a while and make it happy. Then, the gorilla probably will forget he wanted to eat you."

If I can show genuine interest and care in the other person, the likelihood that they will make it tough on me diminishes because a name, a face, a story is now associated. Without this context, the full court press will be done by an investigator who doesn’t care what the ramifications of his actions are because no one he knows will be affected. In context, the investigator will be careful to help and not to hurt his friend.

On the flight last week, I thought about these random things that I need to act on:

1. When building business, always see the buyer and the developer/creator.
2. Always collaborate – thinking I have all the answers can kill the opportunity for new ideas.
3. Listen to wise counselors.
4. Stop. Ponder. Remember. Be thankful for the blessings in my life.
5. Deliver. Or they won’t ask me back.

While sitting by the outside fire smoking your pipe, have you ever pondered what life would be like if people dreamed but never did anything about it?

Our VP of technical affairs and I sat across the aisle from each other on a plane discussing opportunities. They are like dreams. They are there, but don’t mean anything if you don’t capture them. In that sense, we both agreed that a sense of urgency surrounding opportunities is critical for us. For every day that we dream about an opportunity but don’t act on it, the opportunity slowly slips from our grip. Our position grows weaker while our competitors’ positions grow stronger. And revenue and margin opportunity flows not through our ledger but through someone else’s.

Acting on the opportunity can be expensive (equipment purchases, new talent, selling costs). Not acting reduces the risk of failure to nil. Failure on that opportunity. But what about for the business?

While meeting with a friend for breakfast this morning, I pondered about the life of Jesus. He held a vision that if he died on a cross he could provide freedom. It was a huge risk. Literally, his life was on the line. The vision was there. What if he never implemented the vision? Would there be hope in our world today?

Consider Stephen Fairley‘s questions:

Are you an entrepreneurial dreamer? Are you the kind of successful entrepreneur who seems to have an almost innate ability to dream bigger than your experience, history or environment allows? Do you have the desire, the passion and the power to keep on going even in the face of insurmountable odds?

A dream, an opportunity, or a vision is only worth anything if the holder can implement it. If it isn’t implemented, it is like stock in a failed dot-com: worthless. Only the brave, only the persistent, only the Realizor assume the risk and act on the dream. They stick their necks out, risking that failure might result in the chopping block (usually in the court of public opinion), but knowing if they never act, they will never realize the dream.

On Saturday, I asked myself whether I fit Jim Collins’ description of a level 5 leader. Two statements resurfaced today: "Acts with quiet, calm determination…" and "Demonstrates a compelling modesty…" If you ask someone who knows me whether or not this is me, chances are pretty good that they will say, "No, not really. Yes, he is determined. He’s not really arrogant, but compelling modesty…I don’t know**. But, I wouldn’t first describe him with those two statements."

Does the leader of an organization need to act in a quiet and calm manner and with a modesty that is compelling? Will this level 5 leader transform a company (start one from nothing/go from okay to great or even okay to good) or be better suited to steadily increase the value of an established enterprise such as Walgreen’s or Wells Fargo?

Consider this review by Freda Turner:

Collins uses Lee Iaccoca as an example of a Level 4 Leader. During the first half of his term as CEO of Chrysler, he was totally focused on Chrysler’s success. A stock market analyst called him the greatest turnaround CEO in history. Then Iacocca started appearing on The Today Show and Larry King Live sharing his turnaround story. He personally starred in over 80 commercials and entertained the idea of running for president of the U.S. He once made the comment that he could handle the national economy in six months. He wrote two books that sold 7 million copies. In the meantime, the stock of Chrysler fell 31% behind the general market.

I keep asking myself if Iacocca was a level 5 leader until he started doing the interviews. Suppose Collins had only said, "During the first half of his term as CEO of Chrysler, he was totally focused on Chrysler’s success. A stock market analyst called him the greatest turnaround CEO in history." Based on Collins description, I would have to say he probably wouldn’t have qualified. But wasn’t the first half of his term good? Needed? Beneficial? Could the first half of his term be described as level 5 something else?

At first, I was very concerned that I might not fit the mold of the level 5 leader as Collins defined it. But, I don’t think I really want to be. I don’t think it’s who I was made to be.

*Realizor: A Leader Whose Goal is to Help a Company and its Employees Realize Their Full Potential Value
**"…If he had a compelling modesty, how would he sell our products to new customers?"

A simple change in vantage will change one’s opinion of the subject matter. (Consider these two vantages of my home.) In my life, my actions can be perceived differently than the motive behind them. A good friend passed on this nugget, "We judge people on their actions, but we want to be judged on our motives."

It is so difficult to take a different vantage point to view my own actions before I actually do them. However, I have received some gutsy feedback from different people this week both inside and outside the company that have given me new perspective on some past actions.

I believe that my motives have been in line with Jim Collin’s description of a level 5 leader:

1. Demonstrates a compelling modesty, shunning public adulation; never boastful.
2. Acts with quiet, calm determination; relies principally on inspired standards, not inspiring charisma, to motivate.
3. Channels ambition into the company, not the self; sets up successors for even greater success in the next generation.
4. Looks out the window, not in the mirror, to apportion credit for the success of the company—to other people, external factors, and good luck.

However, I believe that from someone else’s vantage point, my actions do not reveal level 5 leadership. I am not sure how often, but I heard recently that 1 negative comment equals at least 18 positive comments. Similarly, one post here with any apparent arrogance can shatter others’ perspective instantly; and for a long time.

LAD. Minimize unnecessary damage before it happens: consider more than the obvious vantage point before acting.

The COO and I dialogued what topics would be appropriate for discussion in my annual review and he gave me some timely feedback. It reminded me of a story found in the recent book I read by Johnny Cash, Man in White. This is a story on knowing when to keep your mouth shut and I think it provides an excellent example:

"Look to Mt. Taurus. Its craggy peaks reach nearly a mile into the sky. In the lofty crags of the peaks of Taurus, many fierce eagles nest.

"Beyond the mountains, in the fertile valleys…great numbers of geese feed through the summer and autumn. With the onset of winter, the geese know that it is time to migrate southward to the warm rich delta land of the Nile in Egypt.

"In the darkness of night, the eagles in the rocky peaks of Taurus listen for the flocks to fly over. They plan to attack the honking geese, kill them, and take them back to their nests. But surely it must be the hand of God which compels the geese to do what they do.

"Before they leave the ground for the long flight which takes them over Taurus, each goose goes to the river bed and in its beak takes a smooth stone, not too large, but large enough to fill its mouth. Then they fly southward, climbing slowly but untiringly in the darkness. By the time they fly over Mt. Taurus where the vicious eagles await to kill them, they are thousands of feet above its summit. With stones in their mouths, they fly silently and are not likely to make any noise that will attract the killer eagles. Then, having safely passed the eagles, they open their mouths and drop the stones. Then, they fly safely on to Egypt.

"Remember the geese and the eagles," Zeno had said. "There is a time to speak and a time to be silent."

Speaking when one should be silent can be as near suicide for a person’s rapport within an organization as the goose who chooses to fly without a stone in its mouth. This is wisdom most of us "young bucks" know, but tend to find very difficult in consistently applying. Consider the Straw Man in The Wizard of Oz who said, "Some people without brains do an awful lot of talking, don’t they?"

I urge you to read more in the RBC Bank August 1969 letter, Time to Talk Things Over.