Destination Unstoppable (eBook)

The Journey of No Teammate Left Behind

Maureen Electa Monte (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2020 | 1. Auflage
285 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
978-0-9974648-0-1 (ISBN)

Infos

If the world runs on teams, why do so few reach their full potential? The road to greatness is littered with talented people who could not manage the 'we' of winning. This fast and fun story focuses on actions that leaders and coaches must take to get the most out of their team. Does your team have a trust bank? A success statement? A commitment to let no one fail? If not, then this book is for you.

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If the world runs on teams, why do so few reach their full potential? The road to greatness is littered with talented people who could not manage the "e;we"e; of winning. This fast and fun story focuses on actions that leaders and coaches must take to get the most out of their team. Does your team have a trust bank? A success statement? A commitment to let no one fail? If not, then this book is for you. When a struggling high school hockey team reached out to team consultant, Maureen Electa Monte, she took them from dysfunctional to hoisting the state championship trophy - in six weeks. 'Destination Unstoppable' is the story of a team rallying around a shared goal. It is a road map for leaders, coaches, and teams to unite and succeed.

Textauszug

Chapter 1: Valued for Being Valuable

“Try not to become a man of success.

Rather become a man of value.”

Albert Einstein

* * *

It was not the result I had hoped for.

I tugged my headset off, tousled my hair, and sighed. My eyes ran down the scribbles on the page. They mirrored the awkwardness of my conversation, for I had just completed my annual performance review with My Boss. For the third year in a row I was left crumpled and bruised on the side of the corporate highway, a sad case of emotional road kill.

I glanced at my notes again, equally irritated by my rating and the performance review process itself.

Creative…

Star performer…

Your partners love you…

Visibility has gone up…

Sales have gone up…

Your strategic partners have won awards…

Scope of your role isn’t big enough to justify a higher grade…

If you want an A, you’d have to get a new job…

Brimming with disappointment, I leaned back in my chair and stared blankly across the galley of my colorful kitchen. Comprised of hues one might find in a Tuscan garden, it was warm and vibrant, a place where I had enjoyed many “What does success look like for you?” strengths conversations with family and friends.

It was where Moira, gifted with strengths that made her one of the most amazing relationship builders I have ever known, had shared that she had discovered the perfect volunteer role. My mind instantly imagined all sorts of things that Moira would be great at – helping kids learn to read or helping high school teens avoid the perils of drugs, alcohol, and smoking. But those activities were for mere mortals. What did Moira do? Moira chose to go to the hospital one night a week and sit with people who were dying but had no family to visit them. When she told me, I felt a tightening of my gut and a rising sense of terror.

“I really like it,” said Moira.

“Why?” I asked, still wrestling with the idea.

“It makes me feel like I’m helping someone who really needs it.”

“What do you do there?” I asked, not sure I really wanted to know.

“I hold their hand if they’d like that,” said Moira, with a gentle smile. “If they want to talk, we talk. I read to them. I get them water. Many times they are asleep, and I just sit next to them and read my own book. I want to be there in case they wake up and are frightened.”

“Oh my God,” I involuntarily muttered under my breath. I studied Moira’s face across the span of my kitchen table to see if I could find a selfish chink in that mantle she was carrying, but there was nothing but pure joy. I glanced at her StrengthsFinder profile. Her number one strength was Empathy, and it was followed by six other relating talents that made her a leader in the Kindness Special Forces unit. Moira was wired to feel and give. She had found a place in the universe that valued her special gift and allowed her to do what she does best.

I could not imagine myself in her shoes. However, I had infinite admiration and respect for Moira’s ability to flourish in that role. I will treasure that precious conversation forever, and she remains one of the people I love to spend time with.

I had experienced dozens of similar strengths coaching sessions with immensely talented people over the years. Those remarkable discussions were human, joyful, and a celebration of all that was right about us. My kitchen was made for those kinds of moments. It was incongruent with the one I had just completed with my Boss.

My Boss lived near London, so this was not the first time I had received my annual performance review via some intergalactic satellite bouncing bits and bytes of voice data across the Atlantic. A conference call was not exactly ideal for important conversations. Morse code would have been less painful. An old-fashioned ham radio system would have been more fun. My mind, at its creative best when it is unhappy, dropped me right into the middle of that imaginary conversation.

“What’s that, Boss? Over!”

“You got a B!” My Boss would shout into the microphone. “Over!”

Crackle, crackle, crackle… Squawk.

“Boss, is the weather in London foggy or just your mind? Over!”

“All clear here, Maureen! A ‘B’ is a GREAT grade! Congratulations! Over!”

“Boss, I thought we agreed that…”

“The Company isn’t issuing many As this year. Keep up the good work! Over!”

“But Boss…”

Static, static, static…ffffft.

“Over and out.”

The Company I worked for had proudly transitioned to a mostly virtual workforce which saved a gazillion dollars in real estate costs. Many employees worked from home, with a computer and a phone being the only contact with colleagues and customers. After four years in this role, it felt like death by isolation. Social connections to colleagues were lost because in-person interactions of any sort were few and far between. It was hard, even for me, a certified thinker and introvert. Our days were long because our work was global. A noon meeting in Germany was held at 6 am my time.

“Ugh,” I said aloud. “I hate this frickin’ company!”

I rose wearily from my chair, thinking for the millionth time that sitting in front of a computer all day long was going to kill me, and walked to my front window.

It was frigid. It was a cold winter, even by Michigan standards.

“Forget it,” I said. “I’m going for a walk.”

Then, I hesitated. My sense of responsibility kicked in, and I knew I could not miss a meeting, no matter how unhappy I was. I walked back to my computer, opened my calendar, and checked the date. Thursday.

What? I was even more annoyed with myself. I did not work on Thursdays! Why had I agreed to conduct a performance review on my day off? I shook my head in disgust. This was a pattern I needed to break this year. I was free to go for a walk. I would run out of warmth before I would run out of time.

I pulled on my heavy winter gear and thought about my situation.

Six months prior, when I hit 55 years old, I received an innocuous corporate email from The Company, which basically said: “Hey Maureen, we want you to retire, and here’s how you can do that! You can work part-time for 18 months and then leave!” The program was a “transition to retirement.” One could work three days a week and have the other two days to work elsewhere, start a company, or do nothing. I read the email twice, thinking it was too good to be true. Once I had confirmed its validity and double checked my qualification to participate, I was all in.

The program, in theory, was perfect for me. I had wanted to focus on my very-part-time strengths-based success business for a while. However, launching a new business while working 60 hours a week in a demanding role for The Company is not exactly the best strategy for successful entrepreneurship.

I immediately sent My Boss an instant message (IM) asking if I could retire. He replied with a simple, “No.” It became an entertaining exchange as I explained the program via IM. The Company was not offering this program in London, where My Boss works, so he was naturally a bit skeptical. I promised that if he let me do it, I would not let him down. In the end, he said yes. I will forever be grateful.

Here’s the rub: I moved to three days a week and took a considerable pay cut, but there was no corresponding reduction in my responsibilities. Once I was on the program, I typically worked three 12 hour days (6 am to 6 pm), and then had Thursday, Friday, and the weekend, to launch my business.

This, I soon realized, was a great deal for The Company. They got at least 36 hours out of me, I did not drop a single ball, and they paid me a lot less money! But, because I was time-poor in terms of creating my future, those extra two days of the week were like precious gold.

The payoff associated with my decision slowly emerged. My strengths-based success clients included a few high-tech startups, and I had just landed a wonderful opportunity to help increase the success of an executive leadership team that was part of a regional bank. I had another large and challenging engagement on the horizon. It was not easy because I worked most days of the month, but it felt like progress. Projecting my vision like a movie on a big screen, I wondered if I could truly make a decent living by pursuing my dreams and doing what I do best. I believed it, but I could not see it. Like that mythical island that cannot be seen unless you believe it exists, the future eluded me.

I snapped up my winter boots, stomped down the stairs, and shoved the side door open, overcoming the resistance posed by six inches of new snow. The cold wind slapped my cheeks. I emitted an involuntary groan, lowered my head, and kept going. It felt good to be out of the house and away from the office.

My mind frolics on these thought walks. That’s why I need them. I even measure my thinking time on my personal well-being tracker. Freed from the tortuous confines of a computer screen and a telephone headset, my mind replayed the conversation with My Boss.

“Let me start by saying how great it is to have you on my team,” he began in his delightful British accent.

I truly loved My Boss because he was one of the few people at The Company who appreciated my ability to build strong strategic partnerships with the small software companies we worked with.

My role had an element of David and Goliath about it. I worked for Goliath, and it was my job to identify and build...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 1.5.2020
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Sport
• ISBN-10: 0-9974648-0-1 / 0997464801
• ISBN-13: 978-0-9974648-0-1 / 9780997464801