Freedom - is it a disappearing ideal?

As I listen/read the news, I am increasingly frightened at how freedom seems to be a disappearing ideal. 

• Have the governments of our western countries forgotten they are here to serve the people and not the other way around? More of our taxes go to supporting our governements, who are getting bigger, not smaller. More and more laws are being created. Most of the laws create more and more restrictions on us. One piles on top of the other to justify even more people being hired by goverments to control it's people...  By the way... have you ever seen a socialist government that actually downsizes or creates more freedom?
• Have us, the people, forgottent there is only one person that can ensure we have a successful and happy life, and that is ourselves?  With freedom of choice - comes responsibility for the consequences  and morality of those choices. It is not the company that I work for, nor the government, or anything else that is responsible for my happy (or lack there of) life...  It is me and only me. There is also a civic responsibility that comes with freedom of choice. and most of us (me included) seem to have forgotten this..  
• Have our religious leaders forgotten that it is our personal choice in which religion we put believe .. or not...  And it is a huge sign of civil and moral responsibility to chose to respect others beliefs.   

I am not sure what to do with these thoughts. However.. they are bubbling around in my head, heart and gut... so, perhaps they just need a bit more time on the back burner of the "thought stove" to come together in some clear course of action. 

It is obvious there is a price for freedom, but the price of lack of freedom seems to me to be far greater.

The philisophical definition of Freedom: the power to exercise choice and make decisions without constraint from within or without; autonomy; self-determination. (From the dictionary.com)

Black Horses: Now we are free

Six Sigma Green Belt Certification in Switzerland!

I have had about 6-7 calls in the last month asking for Green Belt Certification in Switzerland.  This is rather strange as I have not had any such calls in years.  

If you are interested in attending a week long 6 Sigma Green Belt Certification program in Switzerland, please do let me know by responding below.

I personally do not run such courses but there is a LEAN Six Sigma company who would be interested in running such a course this year, if there are 8-10 participants.

Interesting discussion on motivation and engagement

Interesting video on you tube...  all about motivation.  Basically, once we have enough money where money is not a a major issue, we are motivated by three things.  These things also therefore drive up engagement...

1. Autonomy (self direction)
2. Mastery (becoming better at something)
3. Purpose (working toward some huge ideal - not only profit).

Dan Pink's speech on Motivation

Hmmm....  what might this mean for us individuall, as a team, as a company, as a society?

Interesting food for thought.

Changing your decision making style

Have just read " The seasoned executive's decision making style" published in the Harvard Business Review in Feb 2006.  Wow... how I could have used this insight when I was a manager. 

It basically states that when we are a first time supervisor, success is helped along by being very decisive and action orientated.  As we move up the ladder... there is a point where that style of deciding is no longer the most effective. Being flexible (adapting to the situation) and integrative (involving others more) becomes more useful. 

So, lesson to learn... when you are beign promoted - think very carefully about what got you promoted and then think about what you need to be successful at this new level and be very wary of answers that say "more of the same".

There is a lot in this article that could help in one own's career development, in hiring, and in developing leadership over time.

Rambling thoughts from Australia...

I am really gratefull to have been invited and to have been able to do this trip with my sister-in-law. Great experience all round and I met some fantastic people (in our group and in Australia!).

• Learning about other cultures is RICH if one is open (I really enjoyed learning about the aborigonal culture).
• The east is where it is at! Singapore is a solution place, not a problem place... If I was younger... I might want to work there for a few years (although it would be hard to ski tour from there...).

It does seem possible to combine a relaxed approach to work and productivity/value creation.

 

It is hard to take in Australia:  It is huge, it is really different, yet sometimes it is really similar to what we know.  We get lulled into thinking we know it!

 

The young person's working VISA is a great idea!  Wish I had taken advantage of something like this when I was young.

 

Bad health (at least the impression of it) does not disappear when one has a state run health system.. 

 

I was surprised at how EXPENSIVE Australia appeared to me.

 

I think we should all travel around the world as part of our education...  that would be a good part of globalisation. 

 

All airline staff should be made to travel on Singapore Airlines in Economy Class and then compare that experience to their own service... 

 



Link of space and communication

On one side, space is being reduced...

• The average m2 per employee is currently 8.5.
• This is expected to drop to 4.5 m2 per employee in the next 10 years.
• Studies show that the less space people have, conflict soars.

On the other hand,

• Studies show that closeness in offices increases collaboration and employee satisfaction

So how close is good and how close is too close?
Are we managing this proactively for ultimate results or are we victims of not paying attention?

Wow! A trully new approach to Performance Management!

Check out this product! It is really a super idea!  Do performance management all the time, instead of just once, twice and if you are really lucky, 3 times per year!  I think this would tackle many problems with performance management and motivation/engagement!

http://rypple.com/

If anyone has used it, would love to hear about how it works!

Overload! Our Choice to manage! TBT!

Here are some observations / thoughts..

• Last week on vacation, I saw 4 people were sitting at a dinner table in a restaurant. 3 of them were playing with their iphones/smart phones for almost the entire time they sat there over the course of the meal.  
• Michael Dell said that in 2020, we will be creating 35 times as much data as in 2010.
• Mark Hurd of Oracle said that more data will be created in the next 4 years than in the history of the planet
• Eric Schmitdt of Google says we create as much data now in two days as was created between the dawn of time and 2003. 
• Studies indicate 2.8 hours per day are lost to non-important interruptions and recovery time required to get back on track.
• Every time I do a time management workshop (called Time Choices), Email quantity, 24/7 availability with email and interruptions by others are perceived as the major time eaters that need to be addressed.
• And then there are the studies that show the quality of what we pay attention to is changing:  in 1970, 39% of the US TV news was global in nature, now it is 12%. 

Where are we going with all this?  Does all this data (and perhaps information) make us happier, more balanced and more successfull in our lives?

Thinking about this, makes me realise how careful I need to be:r (a) managing the input I receive; (b) managing the output I create for others..... Is another news letter really what is needed in this world ? (c) focus on this topic in the Time Choices workshop needs ramped up.

Thanks to the www.worklifebalance.com for bringing this up.

(TBT = Think before Tweeting)

Aagh!

Somebody else is using Joyful Voyager as a blog/name and their goal is not at all aligned with mine! Any ideas on how to handle are welcome!

Sent from my iPhone

When things come together...

3 things came together in my head this morning... rather a shock I must say..

(1) Friends of mine have been working on a project about leadership with heart. I liked the idea but was not comfortable with some of it and could not figure out my position towards this initiative.

(2) Read something about personal branding: Asking yourself 3 questions. Who have I been, who am I being now, and who do I want to be. Have been rolling those around in my head and some clarity has been coming around logicial, analytical, problem solver - who had heart, then lost it on the way in terms of answering the who have I been ...

(3) HBR arcticle on Mc Namarra (Head of World Bank, Sec. of Defense during Vietnam war, head of Ford for a while...) and how he was known for his facts and data approach and the lessons he learned in his life... that people are not logical decision makers, you have to take into account the non-logical, and have empathy for your enemies/others.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm Not ready to say how this crystallizes... but it is becoming clearer.