People, Process, Progress: Leadership from Critical Care to the Boardroom

A poem to pay homage to all that contributed to America and the hardships that lead us to Labor Day.

When considering our communications strategies we should think about what we want to push to people, what we want to set up as a pull of information that people can go to and look at how we are interacting with folks virtually and in person.

Finishing out the 'Foundational 5' series with a definition of 'communication', importance of vertical and horizontal comms, the C.U.D.C. concept, active listening tips and guidance for IMTs and Project Teams.

Reminders of the concepts of resource Kinds, Types and CSALTT for resource ordering. Resources to help U.S. Military families and our Afghan allies. Taps to honor the fallen.

Sharing tips on how to effectively request, coordinate, care for and release resources for Incident Management Teams (IMT), Project Teams and more!

Without the logistical planning for stuff, facilities and transportation, none of our plans can be realized.

Whether functional, geographic based or a combination of both, pulling together a working organizational structure is key to meet program objectives and ensure alignment with leader's intent.

Providing SMART Objectives is critical for teams to be able to plan tactics to achieve them.

Sharing background, guidance and tips to create S.M.A.R.T. objectives for response, special events or projects

Pulling out three key elements of Leaders Intent from NWCG discussed in PPP81.

From Commander's Intent in the U.S. Military to Leader's Intent applied by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group and Lean teams, this first of the 'Foundational Five' is the key to setting teams in the right direction to accomplish the mission.

Just as Superman faces his enemies when they have his weakness kryptonite as a weapon, we as normal people can face our own weaknesses every day.

Sharing 5 lessons learned from a family trip to Mt. Rogers, Virginia that can be applied to the professional world.

The benefits of getting into nature and disconnecting from work and technology for a bit are many. In this week’s episode I share my feedback on my opportunity to have done just that.

Our children, our fire engine crews and our project teams are filled with people that have various strengths. As leaders we have opportunity to leverage the best in each of these people and build cohesion amongst them.

Inspired by the movie “Glory”. Sometimes as parents and as project managers we need to let our people face a little bit of adversity so they can come out better on the other side.

We can follow a process and plan all day long, but we cannot control all the variables. So let's embrace the "Butterfly Effect" and lessen the impact of potential disaster in the later stages of a project.

Whether you are briefing a team to go into the field or a project team that’s deploying new software, let them know up front the reality of the situations they may face.

Using the 'Foundational Five' structure to share intent, objectives, organization, resources and communications to help brand new Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) intro students through BJJ White Belts on the cusp of earning their Blue Belt to survive.The principles:INTENT: Help White Belts from intro class to those on the cusp of Blue Belt to survive the initial BJJ stormOBJECTIVE: Try an intro class, arrive ahead of time, accept…ORGANIZATION: Professor, Instructors, BJJ belts of…RESOURCES: Athletic tape, mouthpiece…COMMUNICATION: Tap early and often, Let folks know…Get up. Go train. Keep showing up. Godspeed.

As leaders we should always be aware of the emotional health of our team. This will always be more important than data points and tasks.

Inspired from a recent Jiu Jitsu session as I helped some brand new folks learn about frames and shrimping, but also thinking about how we can help our teammates on projects and public safety responses

Sharing inspiration from the Netflix show 'High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America' and how we as Project Managers need to keep our plans and planning dynamic just as African Americans did with their foods in the 1800s-1900s.

Sharing the devastating loss of life of American Servicemen and Servicewomen and some advancements that came from the terribleness of war. Pause and remember them on May 31, 2021 at 1500. Godspeed all.

Sharing a sentiment from Simon Sinek's 'Leader's Eat Last' about the importance of giving our attention and being present, not locked into the world of our smartphones.