Saturday, May 28, 2011
Welcome to the Team
I would like to welcome Tracy Jackson to the F&B team at MCC. Tracy will serve as my Banquet Manager going forward. Tracy is a highly intelligent and capable individual who will help me grow and develop our banquet business in the coming months and years. She brings a wealth of knowledge and fresh ideas to MCC from her previous jobs and internships. While I will continue to book and sell events, Tracy will be right by my side making sure all the event details are taken care of the on the day of the event. Please welcome her as you see her throughout the club.
Leadership and Change
Leadership is one of my favorite topics. I love to read about it, talk about it and see it in action. I also enjoy quotes of all kinds that relate to success and leadership and I try to incorporate them into my daily life. I felt compelled to post about one of the books I am reading that is filled with unique insights into leadership and action. It is a must read for those of you who dig leadership. Managing People is Like Herding Cats is quickly become one of my favorite books.
Essentially, the books is a quick look at today's society. It reiterates that our concern with the bottom line is our biggest hurdle in creating change and moving forward. One of my mentors and I talk frequently about this very topic and the extent of our conversations always came back to a simple concept: Offense versus Defense. Are we playing with house money or our own?
Instead of playing to win and taking chances on failure, people are constantly playing not to lose. We constantly try to manage the factors we can control rather than seek the unknown. This can be seen throughout our daily lives. How is it that we take this step into the unknown and challenge the status quo? The answer: Leadership. Today's leaders are much different than the leaders of years past. Take, for instance, Dr. Martin Luther King. How was one man able to influence and inspire thousands to join him in his quest for equality? Dr. King could paint a picture so eloquently that everyone he spoke to could see his vision come to life before their eyes. It was easy to hop on the bandwagon because his vision was so clear and his confidence in the vision was infectious.
All it takes is one person to envision the unknown as something different and then believe it wholeheartedly. That's what makes leaders different. They don't sit around and talk about change. They act on it and sell change to everyone around them. The most important aspect in all of this is that their vision is unwavering. The same answer, the same picture, every time.
Being a confident person and an optimist, there are few challenges in this world I am not
willing to take on. I love ideation and futuristic thinking. One of my new favorite quotes from this book comes from E.B. White who once said "I wake up every morning determined both to change the world and have one hell of a good time."
I wonder how much further we would all go in life with that kind of attitude? To me, thats pretty powerful and the kind of attitude I wish more people had. There is always room for improvement, and it is unfortunate that so many folks out there are scared of what they might find by trying something different.
What is encouraging to me as a young manager is that leaders of change are out there. Fortunately enough several of them reside within the Private Club industry. Leaders who bring out the best in others with everything that they do. I have had the great fortune of working with a few of these leaders and embarking on their journey through the future. Not five minutes into a conversation with them have I felt so energized and motivated to achieve greatness. Highly intelligent, witty, organized, creative and humble. These gentlemen know what they want. They can paint their picture so clearly, everything they do just makes sense. It's as if there is no questioning their success.
Though I am new to this whole leadership thing, I am beginning to see things from a new perspective as I continue to learn. While I want to be my own person, I know who I want to model myself after. Decisiveness and belief in ones vision will help me get there. I definitely recommend reading Managing People is Like Herding Cats. After reading it, I think i'm ready to start painting pictures.
Essentially, the books is a quick look at today's society. It reiterates that our concern with the bottom line is our biggest hurdle in creating change and moving forward. One of my mentors and I talk frequently about this very topic and the extent of our conversations always came back to a simple concept: Offense versus Defense. Are we playing with house money or our own?
Instead of playing to win and taking chances on failure, people are constantly playing not to lose. We constantly try to manage the factors we can control rather than seek the unknown. This can be seen throughout our daily lives. How is it that we take this step into the unknown and challenge the status quo? The answer: Leadership. Today's leaders are much different than the leaders of years past. Take, for instance, Dr. Martin Luther King. How was one man able to influence and inspire thousands to join him in his quest for equality? Dr. King could paint a picture so eloquently that everyone he spoke to could see his vision come to life before their eyes. It was easy to hop on the bandwagon because his vision was so clear and his confidence in the vision was infectious.
All it takes is one person to envision the unknown as something different and then believe it wholeheartedly. That's what makes leaders different. They don't sit around and talk about change. They act on it and sell change to everyone around them. The most important aspect in all of this is that their vision is unwavering. The same answer, the same picture, every time.
Being a confident person and an optimist, there are few challenges in this world I am not
willing to take on. I love ideation and futuristic thinking. One of my new favorite quotes from this book comes from E.B. White who once said "I wake up every morning determined both to change the world and have one hell of a good time."
I wonder how much further we would all go in life with that kind of attitude? To me, thats pretty powerful and the kind of attitude I wish more people had. There is always room for improvement, and it is unfortunate that so many folks out there are scared of what they might find by trying something different.
What is encouraging to me as a young manager is that leaders of change are out there. Fortunately enough several of them reside within the Private Club industry. Leaders who bring out the best in others with everything that they do. I have had the great fortune of working with a few of these leaders and embarking on their journey through the future. Not five minutes into a conversation with them have I felt so energized and motivated to achieve greatness. Highly intelligent, witty, organized, creative and humble. These gentlemen know what they want. They can paint their picture so clearly, everything they do just makes sense. It's as if there is no questioning their success.
Though I am new to this whole leadership thing, I am beginning to see things from a new perspective as I continue to learn. While I want to be my own person, I know who I want to model myself after. Decisiveness and belief in ones vision will help me get there. I definitely recommend reading Managing People is Like Herding Cats. After reading it, I think i'm ready to start painting pictures.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Service to Leaders: How would it be if you had ten great minds to help...
Great Post by one of my mentors in the industry. Would love to start a P-10 group of my own sometime.
Service to Leaders: How would it be if you had ten great minds to help...: "Power-Thinking Times Ten: The Club Leadership Mastermind Group - How would it be if you had ten great minds working on the tough issues in y..."
Service to Leaders: How would it be if you had ten great minds to help...: "Power-Thinking Times Ten: The Club Leadership Mastermind Group - How would it be if you had ten great minds working on the tough issues in y..."
Monday, May 9, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)