Leadership from Reality TV – The Amazing Race

The Biggest Loser is in week 10 of the new season; Survivor has aired four episodes; The Amazing Race has completed week three. Being the reality TV nut that I am, I have watched with eyes toward leadership. Let me share a few insights so far. This post – The Amazing Race

The Biggest Loser keys in on the diligence and self-control of the contestants; the core of Survivor is team dynamics; and the central theme of The Amazing Race is decision making under pressure. The RACE is a wonderful reality show that reveals so many lessons in leadership as immense tension and anxiety are placed upon the teams in their efforts to finish the race in first place. The first three episodes of this season have eliminated three teams – all of which made critical errors in navigating the adventure.

Even in the initial leg of this race around the world, teams were faced with huge decisions that determined their effectiveness. Three keys, that seem to surface in just about every episode, reigned supreme in this premiere installment: 1) the awareness of one's surroundings, 2) specific attention to details, and 3) the correct interpretation of clues. All three of these elements are integral to good decision making within an organization.

The team that lost this first leg of the race and found themselves eliminated so quickly, had the finish line within their line of sight, but failed to look in the right direction. Instead, they turned their backs on the goal line and walked away from victory. The host of the show, Phil Keoghan, could see the contestants as they made the wrong decision and left the area only a stone's throw away from the pit stop.

Attention to detail cost several teams valuable time in the race. At one juncture in the game, each team had to make 120 empanada. However, several teams missed the detail that there were two distinct kinds of empanada to be made (60 of each) and each required a specific dough crimping pattern. After making 120 of the same kind, some couples realized that half of their effort was in vain. This same principle raised its ugly head during episode two when a very confused team failed to look at a picture on the side of the box while attempting to construct a solar dish – the picture was the only instructions provided in putting this project together.

Accurate interpretation of the directions of the game is critical for success. One team failed to bring their bags to a task - they left them at the taxi location. After completing the final challenge and getting the instruction to find the pit stop on foot, this team had to retrace their steps back to the taxi and gather their bags, losing valuable time.

In addition to these three keys to success in The Amazing Race, one underlying principle enables some teams to rise to the surface of victory: the ability to maintain a sense of calm in the midst of great pressure and deep frustration. Keeping your cool under unforeseeable circumstances can be the difference between victory and defeat. Episode two involved a bus breakdown moving several teams from the middle of the pack to the last group of players. It was interesting to see the reaction of the different teams (from panic to patience) as each dealt uniquely with a curve ball from left field.

Maintaining control under the pressure of the race is by far the most interesting part of this show for me. Pressure does not build character – it reveals character. The pressures of the game often cause team members to yell at each other, cry in frustration, enter into times of panic as they lose perspective, and become overwhelmed with despair and discouragement. The self-imposed pressure to complete the road block, to solve the clues, to get ahead, and to finish first sometimes derails a team to the point of tears, or anger or even giving up.

Episode three presented teams with two very difficult challenges to choose from – stringing a harp or stacking 100 watermelons. Many of the teams struggled at accomplishing the task they had chosen and had to decide if they wanted to switch tasks and try the alternative challenge. Emotions ran high as teams struggled to know when to persevere and when to change activities.

So many of these concepts have lessons for today's leaders. First, being keenly aware of the environment, paying close attention to the details of the organization, and interpreting the clues to success that are all around us are certainly important aspects to providing effective leadership. Second, maintaining control and keeping a cool head in the midst of pressure often defines a leader's impact – avoiding panic, frustration, and anger enables a leader to sustain proper balance and a positive perspective on the priorities of the mission. Third, the ability to rest and relax in the middle of a situation that is out of one's control, provides a leader with an advantage over those who fret or worry or try to fix someone else's problem with an irrelevant solution.

Leadership from Reality TV - Survivor

The Biggest Loser is in week 10 of the new season; Survivor has aired four episodes; The Amazing Race has completed week three. Being the reality TV nut that I am, I have watched with eyes toward leadership. Let me share a few insights so far. This post – Survivor

Survivor – One World (Season 24). This season's game is starting out as a competition of men against women. I wasn't sure that I was even going to tune in this season – I did a quick preview before the February start. The characters did not seem very interesting and most of the contestants appeared to be jaded and morally neutral or negative. I decided to watch a few episodes before deciding my viewing commitment. After four installments, my concerns have been realized, but the dynamics of the personal relationships has piqued my interest once again.

Several leadership lessons have surfaced quickly and I am confident that the show will continue to provide negative examples of poor leadership.

Episode one captured the women's tribe (Salani) filled with animosity and chaos. A “cat fighting” attitude permeated the tribe and rendered them powerless and confused. During their first immunity challenge, Courtney injured her wrist (a severe break) and had to leave the game. No other team member had to eliminated from the tribe, but tension and harsh words were exchanged among the women. Week two was not any better for the Salani tribe. They lost the second immunity challenge demonstrating a lack of organization, coordination, teamwork and leadership. Alliances within the tribe clearly defined themselves and the majority of the women voted out one of the older members of the team.

Leadership Lesson: Teams often go through a standard sequence of emotions. This reminds me of an older article by Bruce Tuckman (1965) who first came up with the memorable description of team dynamics: "forming, storming, norming and performing" as he explained the path to high-performance teamwork. Teams initially go through a "forming" stage in which members are positive and polite. In this episode of Survivor this stage was incredibly quick. While the women were walking to their campsite they were already forming alliances and separating themselves into groups. As Tuckman (1965) would suggest, some members of the team are anxious, as they hadn't yet worked out exactly what the game was all about. While others were simply excited about the task ahead. As the tribes arrived on the island and I listened to the initial conversations, these are exactly the ideas being expressed.

Soon, reality set in and the tribe moved into a "storming" phase. Members of Salani began to jockey for position and authority. They desperately tried to clarify their roles and find out how to relate to one another. Some of the ladies began to feel overwhelmed while others became uncomfortable with the approach being used within the group. This is the stage, according to Tuckman (1965) when many teams fail, and even those that stick with the task may feel that they are on an emotional roller coaster. Many in the tribe became very frustrated as they tried to focus on the challenges at hand. There was no support of established processes and their relationships with their tribe members became fractured and fragile.

Episode three brought major change to the game. The women won both an awards challenge and immunity sending the men to tribal council. Stability began to materialize. The tribe selected a leader and team confidence began to build. They entered into the next stage: "norming," as a hierarchy was established; team members began to respect one another; and goals were accomplished.

Tuckman (1965) notes that there is often a prolonged overlap between storming and norming behavior: as new tasks come up, the team may lapse back into the typical storming-stage behavior, will need to work through periods of disagreement, and will often experience times of unproductive behavior. This explains Week 4, as again, the women began to self-destruct and point fingers at each other for the failure to win immunity. Fortunately for Salani, the men's tribe (Manono) imploded. After a strong start, the men began to plot and plan and form strong alliances. One the members (Leif) betrayed his alliance and caused the tribe to make Survivor history – they gave their team immunity to the women and chose to go to tribal council and vote out one of their tribe members. The crazy part was that they did not vote out Leif but blindsided another player, Bill. This crazy twist is too involved for this blog posting. Maybe another day....

The final stage of teamwork is called "performing." The group begins to work hard toward shared goals that are supported by the structures and processes that have been set up. In the game of Survivor, this stage is rarely reached and if it is, it is most difficult to maintain for any extended period of time. Tribe members are having to vote colleagues off the island causing extreme angst and frustration.

This is a great reality show to study the dynamic of teamwork.

Another great insight from Survivor involves the application of the Leader-Member Exchange, but that is the subject for another blog....

Tuckman, Bruce W. (1965). Developmental sequence in small groups. Psychological Bulletin, 63, 384-399.

Leadership from Reality TV - TBL

The Biggest Loser is in week 10 of the new season; Survivor has aired four episodes; The Amazing Race has completed week three. Being the reality TV nut that I am, I have watched with eyes toward leadership. Let me share a few insights so far. This post – The Biggest Loser.

I have already posted a few times on this year's season of The Biggest Loser (season 13). But one of the Biggest Insights (or should I say Blunders) in the last few weeks falls on the head of one of the trainers, Bob. In week 7, one player from the black team (Daphne) became quite upset when her brother was voted off the ranch by his team (the red team). The next week, she found herself in a one-on-one competition with Conda, a vocal member of the red team and the major voice in eliminating her brother.

Bob, the coach of the black team, used these bad feelings to motivate his player (Daphne) to beat her counterpart (Conda). He not only acknowledged and encouraged her attitudes of revenge, he also fed the flames of her vendetta in every training session. Daphne's constant thought was to lose more weight than Conda so that she could rub it in her face when they both stood upon the scale. At the weigh-in, she accomplished her goal - she defeated Conda, forcing the black team to vote out one of their team members (they chose to send Roy home).

The next week - each member of both teams is faced with a temptation to eat sweets. The player who decides to eat the most calories, wins the opportunity to mix up the teams any way he/she chooses. Daphne see this as a way to control the game so she eats a large number of calories and manages to win the challenge. The realignment of the teams was supposed to be anonymous, but it did not take long for the players to figure out who made the changes.

Daphne chose to change only Conda and her brother. Conda moved from the red team to the black team and her brother, Jeremy, flipped from the black to the red team. I cannot understand Daphne's strategy other than an attempt to frustrate Conda and throw her exercise program off kilter with another trainer. Every member of both teams resented the changes and failed to see the rationale for the switch. In my opinion, it was just a continuation of Daphne's negative attitudes of revenge.

Then, Daphne is confronted and asked if she was the person to mixed up the teams. She denies her involvement and ends up adding lies to her misjudgment, resulting in her alienation even from her own team. At the end of the week, black lost the weigh-in and Daphne was unanimously voted off the ranch. Emotions were high and bad feelings prevailed. And, in my opinion, it all transpired because Bob did not address the destructive attitude of revenge in Daphne's thinking. Bob had lost the opportunity to bring healing into Daphne's experience two weeks earlier; and then had the lack of insight by blaming Daphne for “losing control of the situation” and “making poor choices.” Bob's lack of leadership as the trainer really backfired in the life of one of his followers.

Revenge is never appropriate for a leader. “Pay back” always results in self-destruction. Anger, that buries itself in a vendetta or grows deep with the roots of bitterness, will one day bring forth a harvest of words that will bleed with poison, wounds that will destroy the character of the embittered, emotional hardness that will calcify the heart, and spiritual drought that will not be satisfied. “Getting even” is never pleasing. “Striking back” ends up causing self-inflicted injuries that can be devastating to one's physical, emotional, social, and spiritual health.

Revenge is natural; forgiveness is supernatural......Getting even is man's way; blessing is God's way....Pay back is so much easier than restoration. Christ followers are called to supernatural responses as we die to our human nature and become alive to the power of God in our lives.

I Peter 3:9 “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you are called so that you may inherit a blessing.”

The List of a Visionary

I have written often of the importance of vision in the life of leadership. The Bucket List is a movie about two terminally ill men who escape from a cancer ward a vision of completing a wish list of to-dos before they die. But, John Goddard (pictured to the left), a real-live individual who stands at the top of my list of forward thinking visionaries. He composed his bucket-list at age 15. One rainy afternoon in 1940, he sat down at his kitchen table with a yellow legal pad. He decided to make a list of life goals – he ended up listing 127 specific goals to accomplish in life. Many of the targets were not simple or easy goals. They included climbing the world's major mountains, exploring the longest rivers of the world, flying the world's fastest aircraft, and reading the entire Encyclopedia Britannica. Now, over seven decades later, he has fulfilled 109 of these quests.

According to his personal website,(http://www.johngoddard.info/), Goddard was “the first man in history to explore the entire length of the world's longest river, the Nile, in a 4,160 mile expedition which the L. A. Times called 'the most amazing adventure of this generation.'" He also became the first man to explore the entire length of the Congo. John climbed the Matterhorn in a raging blizzard; established numerous records as a civilian jet pilot; visited 120 countries, and studied 260 primitive tribes; Goddard has been bitten by a rattlesnake, almost drowned twice in running rapids, charged by an elephant, experienced several earthquakes and was trapped in quicksand.

John graduated from the University of Southern California with a majors in anthropology and psychology. He has researched obscure cultures and learned many global languages. He currently lives in California with his wife and two of his five children. Goddard used his list not as motivation to seek frivolous thrills, but rather to pursue experiences that would achieve a worthwhile end.

Just to give you a quick look at some of the items, I will provide an abbreviated list. For a complete list of his goals check out his website.

On the following list, a check mark indicate a successful completion and an “x” marks a failure to finish the task (so far!) John wanted to explore, so his list is filled with places to explore:

EXPLORE:

Nile River(√) Amazon River (√) Congo River (√)


Colorado River (√) Yangtze River, China (x) Niger River (x)


Orinoco River, Venezuela (x) Rio Coco, Nicaragua (√)

STUDY PRIMITIVE CULTURES IN:

The Congo (√) New Guinea (√) Brazil (√) Borneo (x)

The Sudan (√) Australia (√) Kenya (√) The Philippines (√)


Tanganyika (√) Ethiopia (√) Nigeria (√) Alaska (√)

CLIMB:

Mt. Everest (x) Mt. Aconcagua, Argentina (x) Mt. McKinley (x)

Mt. Hauscaran, Peru (√) Mt. Kilimanjaro (√) Mt. Ararat, Turkey (√)

Mt. Kenya (√) Mt. Cook, New Zealand (x) Mt. Popocatepetl, Mexico (√)

The Matterhorn (√) Mt. Rainier (√) Mt. Fuji (√)

Mt. Vesuvius (√) Mt. Bromo, Java (√) Grand Tetons (√)

PHOTOGRAPH

Iguacu Falls, Brazil (√) Victoria Falls, Rhodesia (√) Sutherland Falls, New Zealand (√)


Yosemite Falls (√) Niagara Falls (√)


Retrace travels of Marco Polo and Alexander the Great (√)

EXPLORE UNDERWATER:

Coral reefs of Florida (√) Great Barrier Reef, Australia (√) Red Sea (√)

Fiji Islands (√) The Bahamas (√)

VISIT:

North and South Poles (x) Great Wall of China (√) Panama and Suez Canals (√)

Easter Island (√) The Galapagos Islands (√) Vatican City (saw the Pope) (√)

The Taj Mahal (√) The Eiffel Tower (√) The Blue Grotto (√)

The Tower of London (√) The Leaning Tower of Pisa (√)

Climb Ayers Rock in Australia (√) Follow River Jordan from Sea of Galilee to Dead Sea (x)

SWIM IN:

Lake Victoria (√) Lake Superior (√) Lake Tanganyika (√)

Lake Titicaca, S. America (√) Lake Nicaragua (√)

ACCOMPLISH:

Become an Eagle Scout (√) Dive in a submarine (√)

Land on and take of from an aircraft carrier (√) Fly in a blimp, balloon and glider(√)

Ride an elephant, camel, ostrich and bronco (√) Skin dive to 40 feet (√)

Catch a ten-pound lobster (√) Play flute and violin (√)

Type 50 words a minute (√) Make a parachute jump (√)

Learn water and snow skiing (√) Go on a church mission (√)

Become a ham radio operator (x) Build own telescope (√)

Write a book (On Nile trip) (√) High jump five feet (√)

Broad jump 15 feet (√) Run mile in five minutes (√)

Perform 200 sit-ups and 20 pull-ups (√) Learn to fence (√)

Teach a college course (√) Watch a cremation ceremony in Bali (√)

Read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica (x) Read the Bible from cover to cover (√)

Explore depths of the sea (√) Appear in a Tarzan movie (x)

Own a horse, chimpanzee, cheetah, ocelot, and coyote (yet to own a chimp or cheetah) (x)

Bag camera trophies of elephant, lion, rhino, cheetah, buffalo and whale (√)

Visit birthplace of Grandfather Sorenson in Denmark (√)

Visit birthplace of Grandfather Goddard in England (√)

Study dragon lizards on Komodo Island (Boat broke down within 20 miles of island) (x)

Compose music (√) Play Clair de Lune on the piano (√)

Light a match with .22 rifle (√) Visit a movie studio (√)

Climb Cheops’ pyramid (√) Learn to play polo (√)

Circumnavigate the globe (four times) (√) Visit the moon (“Someday, if God wills”) (x)

Marry and have children (√) Live to see the 21st century (√)

Travel through the Grand Canyon on foot and by boat (√)

Milk a poisonous snake (bitten by diamondback during photo session) (√)

What an amazing list and what an incredible number of accomplishments in this man's life!

John has written a couple of books. One is Kayaks down the Nile. I have reserved it at the library and will give you a review when I finish reading of his adventures.

Photo of John found on his website www.johngoddard.info/

Seven Principals of Success

Let me take an opportunity in this blog to quickly share seven reasons why my job is so exiting and rewarding. These seven reasons vary greatly and can only be explained by sharing some of the differences between them. These sources of excitement are people – they are the seven principals that I work with every day. I work with three separate schools, each of which has a set of principals that provide outstanding leadership to their faculty and staff.

Because of a major shift in the structure of our organization during this past school year, four of the seven principals find themselves in brand new positions. These fours are now completing their first full school year as principals, although all of them have been part of the system in some other role. It has been special to see these leaders come to the plate and suit up into the uniform of the principalship. The new clothes fit them well and they have filled big shoes without missing a step.

Both of the high school principals are new, as is the only assistant high school principal in the system. One of these new principals is Brent - a teacher in the system and an assistant high school principal for several years. His transition to the principalship was seamless as he worked closely with the retiring principal the last half of the 2010-2011 school year. He has brought with him innovated ideas and a zeal for excellence. His love for technology has brought many new ways of assessment, curriculum presentation, creative parent communication, and faculty motivation. He is a blue chipper and a top shelf administrator.

Not only having a new principal in Brent, the school was faced with a transition for his old position – assistant principal. After much prayer and consideration, the perfect replacement was found. Jenny brings a sense of freshness and yet experience to the office; she was a former faculty member that had the respect and admiration of her colleagues; she possesses a common zeal with Brent for technology and a thirst for excellence both academically and spiritually. How important it is for the principal and the assistant to be on the same page. These two seem to write every other word on each line of the page. There is a balanced, sharing of responsibility - Brent and Jenny provide a united front that creates a stability and confidence needed at the high school level.

The other high school in the system also has a new principal, Joe. Joe took over the reigns of the school in January of 2011. Joe is very effective as a leader although he provides oversight in a much different approach than Brent. Joe's sensitivity for people and his desire for a family-oriented culture allows him to use his giftedness in unique ways. His easy going personality and calming effect in the midst of tension has enabled him to bring a sense of peace to the faculty, students and parents. He is able to delegate responsibility to others and provide them with proper empowerment to get the job done. Joe grants trust and builds trust in others.

The fourth new principal is the head of our homeschool program. Tara is the least experienced of the new principals but she has such a teachable spirit and wonderfully contagious enthusiasm for what she is doing. I have been amazed to see her growth as a professional. Her confidence has risen...her direction has sharpened...her vision has focused... and her passion for homeschooling has increased. Her drive toward excellence is exciting to watch and her humility makes her such a joy to be around. The homeschool parents appreciate her, the homeschool students love her, and the homeschool coordinators respect her. I am expecting her program to explode with additional enrollment in the coming year.

Three veteran principals serve in the system. They provide a great sense of history and a platform of stability on which we continue to build toward the fulfillment of our mission. Rita, who is retiring after this school year, has been an elementary principal for many years at one of the campuses. Her expertise in early childhood education has laid a foundation of leadership that will last for years to come. Her understanding of preschool requirements and regulations has resulted in a strong feeder program for the K-12 system. Her wealth of experience and professional background brings a richness to the administrative table.

Natalie also serves as an elementary principal in the system. Having formerly served as an elementary teacher in her building, she brings such a tender heart for the classroom. She understands and empathizes with the day-to-day challenges that face her faculty members. Her heart beats for the students that enter the doors of the school every day. Natalie possesses such a keen sense of fairness and her demeanor always reflects her balance between discipline and mercy... between rules and grace...between structure and exception. Her boat is always ship-shape, but her sails are continually filled with the fresh air of enthusiasm and cooperation.

Rich, the middle school principal, has been part of the school system for over 30 years. He has a deep love for his teachers and tries to bring their perspective into every discussion we hold at an administrative level. He possesses those special qualities that one must have in order to work with middle school students: a strange sense of humor, a genuine love for the pre-adolescent mind, patience that is measured in gallons, and a consistency of law-enforcement mixed with large doses of encouragement.

These seven reasons (Brent, Jenny, Tara, Joe, Rita, Natalie and Rich) are part of why my job is so exiting and rewarding. They are my friends, my co-workers, my colleagues and my kindred spirits. I am so happy to run the race with these great people. So many of the qualities of excellent leadership are found in these seven principals.

Santorum's Visit

I had an interesting experience today. One of the Republican presidential hopefuls, Senator Rick Santorum, came to my school as part of his campaign in Ohio. He spoke in our cafeteria and many of our students were able to hear his message of hope and encouragement. I was invited to sit on the platform and hear his speech. I enjoyed his presentation and found his positions quite interesting. But, I enjoyed even more the activity surrounding the visit.

I was entertained by the various dignitaries trying to impress those around them with their importance. I had been given a seat on the platform… in the front row… right behind the podium (a chair that I would have happily given to someone with more interest than I). As I sat there waiting for the event to begin, I thought to myself how thankful I am not to be politics.

The cameras were all in place, the lights were focused on the stage, the crowd was enthusiastic, the secret service men/women were straight-faced and alert, and mood was electric. I was, however, rather irritated with the media – about half way through the Senator’s message, they crawled on hands and knees in front of the first row in order to get close up photos (the lenses on those cameras could capture the nose hairs of a fly from 50 yards away). I felt they were distracting and rude.

I was fascinated by the secret service personnel. There are somewhat like the guard at Buckingham Palace that are not allowed to smile or interact with people. Their faces mirrored a total concentration on the crowd and the eyes of the agents constantly moved, piercing the multitude for strange movement or unusual gestures.

Prior to Senator Santorum’s address, several individuals provided some words of endorsement. One of the speakers was a sheriff of a neighboring country. The major point in his passionate exhortation was that Rick was committed to protecting our borders… how this sheriff had visited the borders several times and how many of the US residence at the borders are afraid to leave their homes… how we need a candidate who will keep our borders strong. As a sheriff in Ohio, I wasn’t sure if he meant the border between Ohio and West Virginia or between Ohio and Kentucky. I am not trying to minimize the difficulties we have with national border security, I just thought it was strange that a local police official was making such a heartfelt appeal on this topic.

Senator Santorum had many good things to say about the values I hold as important. He shared about family and the need for solid homes in America. He did not give explanation for his family’s absence at the event, although there were four chairs reserved for them on the platform just down the row from where I was seated. His words seemed genuine and his position well founded…I would have just liked to have seen his family at his side.

I was impressed with his words of leadership as he addressed some of the critical issues facing our great land: the Economy and Taxation, Healthcare, and International Relationships. He expounded upon the importance of vision and the leader’s ability to see the realities of the present. He made some promises and announced some plans that sound encouraging and positive.

No campaign speech is complete these days without slamming the opponent. The current President was the topic of negative comments and Mitt was mentioned in the context of his weaknesses. I have heard so much worse in political speeches and the amount of mud and dirt that was slung was less than I anticipated. I appreciate, however, a candidate who shares his/her beliefs, positions, plans and dreams without having to slam the ideas of others.

This is not meant to be a political blog nor am I trying to raise the banner of any candidate in this writing. But, the experience of being part of the event was quite interesting. The school had a difficult decision to make in housing the event. It was not designed to be a political endorsement but rather an exposure of the democratic process to our students. Allowing them to be “up-close-and-personal” with a national figure and to experience a “live” political speech, gave them a memory not soon to be forgotten that made the whole political process personal and relevant. For this, I applaud the school’s initiative.

Margin

Building margin into one’s life is critical as a leader; but I have found myself struggling with this imperative. During this past week, the tyranny of the urgent has dominated my schedule. All of the activities that have filled my calendar have been good, beneficial, positive events, but the accumulation of all the tasks, appointments, commitments, responsibilities, and demands has eliminated any real time to relax, to think, to enjoy my home, to communicate with my wife, or even to reflect on the significance of the busyness. So many hats were required this week – the fireman’s helmet was needed to address several burning emergences; the counselor’s fedora was required in dealing with several sensitive issues; the speaker’s beret was worn when leading staff devotions; the hat of the musician was donned for evening rehearsals; and the cap of discussion was firmly in place for a series of meetings that seemed like a revolving door from whistle to whistle. Meals were rushed, sleep was less than normal, and fatigue was a close friend.

I wish I could say that this kind of week was a rarity due to my careful discipline not to overextend my commitments. However, like a boy looking at a box of doughnuts, my involvement eyes are so much bigger than my calendar stomach. My inability to say “no” is only eclipsed by my lack of common sense. George the Pig (one of my favorite books from childhood) ate so many doughnut that he exploded (rather violent – but I laughed and laughed at that book as a little boy). Sadly, I have grown up to be that pig, sometimes. My commitments can tend to crush me – no matter how good the doughnuts might taste.

One of the important roles in my professional position is to fly above the trees in an attempt to view the mission from the 30,000 foot level. Thinking ahead and spending time in long-range planning is critical for the health of the organization. This week, I failed to get much above the bottom branches. Sometimes I was crashing into the tree trunks and doing hand-to-hand combat with the squirrels. I felt a little like Charlie Brown in the musical, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” who tried but couldn’t get his kite in the air. During a recent jog around the neighborhood, I saw three little siblings trying to get their kite to catch the breeze. In my short run past their house, they had managed to get the kite up about ten feet only to have it crash into the tree in the front yard. As I continued to jog, I contemplated my failed attempts to rise above branches.

Margin…. Breathing room…. Space to stretch…. Time to think…. A moment for meditation…. Intentional gaps built into the day that allow for reflection, reading, and refueling; imagination, ideation, and “iPad”ing; projecting, planning, and playing… without these respites the calendar becomes a curse, the schedule becomes the slave-master, and the details of life destroy the dreams of the leader.

I really enjoy my study Bible that has wide margins. As I read the Scripture and a good insight floods my mind, I jot down that thought in the margin. Being able to write down my idea right beside the passage helps me to remember that insight the next time I visit that page of truth. This needs to be the picture of my day-to-day experience - having enough margin to write down insights instead of zooming from one meeting to the next without enough time to process the first one. By the end of a series of appointments, the day seems more like a blur than several significant points of accomplishment.

The week is over. May I take some time to learn. May I take some time to guard against kind of crush in the future. May I take some time to ensure margin. Oooop’s…. I forgot…. got to go, catch you soon!