Is change always about DOING something?

Some content in today's newsletter was published April, 2019.

Want to rent a movie tonight?

If you happen to live in Bend, Oregon put down that remote and head to your local Blockbuster. 

That's right! The Last Blockbuster is still open for business and it is, in fact, the very last one of its kind in the world. 

Jeff wrote an article about the demise of Blockbuster and visited the store in Oregon back in 2019. 

We decided to go back (virtually) to see if the store is still there. And, it is!

The Last Blockbuster (as it has been coined) survived the COVID pandemic without laying off any of its employees. 

This store’s epic survival was depicted by a cockroach in a Super Bowl ad earlier this year. We can't think of a better compliment!

At this point you might be wondering, "what's the point?"

Change.

And how, in a world of constant change, our businesses and organizations can survive and thrive. 

Consider the fact that in 2004 there were 9,000 Blockbuster stores worldwide, and in 2011 Dish Network bought Blockbuster for a “bargain price” of $320 million.

By then Blockbuster had shrunk to 300 stores and filed for bankruptcy in 2010.

But beyond being an iconic pop culture curiosity, what does this mean for contemporary leaders?

All organizations whether corporate, non-profit, public service, governmental, etc. want to be “innovative”, and their leadership seek to create a climate that encourages this.

Peter Drucker, a renowned leadership consultant, educator, and author, observed that innovation is “change that brings on a new level of performance”.

How do you bring on a new level of performance in your organizations?

Check out Jeff's article AND video about fixed vs. free energy to learn more!

He breaks down how change can ruin an organization and how understanding fixed vs. free energy can help you keep up with inevitable change. 

Dealing with a "bad boss?"

In October 2022, about 4 millions Americans, left their jobs. A trend that started back in 2021. 

Workers have cited low pay, no advancement opportunities or feeling disrespected as the reasons for quitting. 

So you don’t like your boss, or maybe your boss doesn’t like you.

Either way, you two aren’t getting along and communication is breaking down. You’re starting to feel like the odd man or woman out on all the work that you once found fulfilling.

Before you start heading toward the exit, perhaps you ought to reconsider.

Having a bad boss can be an excellent opportunity to sharpen your leadership skills, so that you can lead everyone — even your boss — in the workplace.

All that this requires from you is a proactive spirit and a desire to make the best office space possible.

One of the most common reasons for leaving a job is an incompetent or haughty supervisor, so let's flip that proposition on it's head and refuse the easy surrender. 

The most gratifying jobs can sometimes force us to interact with difficult people, so consider this an opportunity to get some practice in. 

This article addresses four things to consider before leaving that bad boss behind. 

1. Figure out if they're really a bad boss. 
2. Identify their motivations. 
3. Don't back down from your ideals. 
4. Take the high road. 
5. Avoid future bad bosses.

CLICK HERE to read more!

This is the biggest call for help we could make.

Jeff recently helped us make the biggest call for help we could have hoped for. 

If you have participated in any of our workshops in the last 10+ years, read our newsletter, or follow us on Facebook you know the news. 

Our dear friend and colleague, Lily Woo, is still in search of a living kidney donor. 

She is currently on dialysis for 10 hours every single day. 

The average lifespan of someone on dialysis is five to ten years. Lily has been on dialysis for nearly 5 years. 

We have been at a loss of what else we could do to spread the word about Lily. 

And then Jeff had an idea! 

Jeff reached out to his contacts at WCBS in NYC and they recently did an interview with Lily. 

This is where having media connections is invaluable!

We hope and pray that many people were inspired by Lily's story and have decided to start the donor screening process. 

This first step can help Lily or one of thousands of others in need of a kidney find a life-saving match. 

Lily has shared her 9/11 story of protecting the children of her school with hundreds of our workshop participants. Her story of love, leadership, professional challenges and successes have inspired so many of us. 

You can learn more about Lily, her story, and how to start the donor screening process here. 

Thank you for all the love and support you've shown Lily thus far. Let's keep it up!

A journey to the edge of war and peace

We recently learned about an article and story directly from Ukraine. We knew immediately that we must share it with you. 

The article is by a daughter. The story comes from her mother. 

Mariana Budjeryn a senior research associate at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center, Project on Managing the Atom, and the author of “Inheriting the Bomb: The Collapse of the USSR and the Nuclear Disarmament of Ukraine.”

At the end of 2022 Mariana traveled to Ukraine to visit her mother and friends. Her article details her travel from the U.S. to her mother's kitchen via plane, car, and by foot. 

What caught our attention was the stark contrast Mariana describes between life in Lviv where residents are living relatively "normal" lives while in other parts of the country men are fighting for their lives. 

As Mariana puts it; 

"They promise not to let us down?! They, who are knee-deep in trench mud, a Russian bullet, mine, grenade, missile away from death, promise not to let us, who are sipping flat whites and getting shot by cameras, down?! How is this logical construction even possible, I wonder?"

We highly recommend you read Mariana's article, Bri. 

It provides a human insight and perspective into this war that no tv report or newspaper article can. 

And then there's boxer shorts....

At the beginning of the war Mariana's 76 year old mother was looking for a way to help. 

She started sewing underwear for soldiers at the front. It's what she could do, and her work has been received with such gratitude as we can see in the image above. 

Such an important reminder that when something feels insurmountable, doing just one small thing can make a big difference. 

Her mothers sewing can be seen as support for her country's soldiers and as resistance to the war. 

Mariana write; 
 

"....the whole Ukrainian society, its every member, regardless of age, region, and wealth, has been affected by the war and is engaged in the resistance of some kind, whether that will make the return of these soldiers home different. Whether the people who make varenyky by the hundreds, donate for long johns and generators, open doors to refugees, repair damaged electricity lines, or just work to keep the Ukrainian economy and culture alive despite missile strikes and power outages, and those mud- and blood-covered soldiers at Bakhmut, Soledar, and Kreminna, are connected by invisible bonds of solidarity and common purpose, the bonds that will persist long after the war is over."

CLICK HERE to read Mariana's full article.

About Inkstick

Mariana's article is published on Inkstick Media, a website with reporting, commentary, stories, and a podcast focused on foreign policy. As they put it, Inkstick "breaks down the news you want and need to know without droning on. When it matters, it also dives deeper to show you the people behind the policy and the stories they have to tell." Check them out!

What a mentor is, and is not.

(This article was originally published in 2015). 

I lost two people who were very, very important to me last fall. They had both been my mentors.

The first was my mom who has been my personal mentor throughout my life. She guided me from birth and sacrificed enormously on my behalf.

There is absolutely no doubt I would have never accomplished the things I have done without her wise counsel and assistance.

The second was a senior officer who took me “under his wing” when I was a young cadet at West Point.

Don was a professional mentor I could always turn to for guidance and counsel specifically about my military career. He also provided critical advice and analysis for many of the national security issues that I became involved in while working in the Pentagon, National Security Council Staff in the White House, and other efforts that I have been involved in since retiring from the military.

I always knew that he was only a phone call away despite the fact that we were not frequently assigned to the same location and might not see each other for several years.

I could always call him day-or-night to seek his advice and assistance.

But what exactly is “mentoring” and why is it important?

Mentoring has been described as a dynamic relationship in which a more experienced person (the mentor) acts as a guide, role model, teacher, and sponsor of a less experienced person (the mentee). It is based on several distinct elements including:

• Reciprocity, collegiality, authenticity, and mutuality.

• Intentional role modeling

• A “safe harbor” for self-exploration (disclosure)

• Transformation particularly of the mentee’s professional identity

• A connection that endures

CLICK HERE to read the full article!

In it Jeff share....

• What makes a mentor effective

• The transition from mentee to mentor

• Creating a mentoring culture