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Small Dog Wisdom — Part 2 — The Big Dog Lie

Have you ever spent much time with a small dog? Did you notice the air of self-confidence they exude? To them, external measures are meaningless, as Ed Gungor says in his book One Small Barking Dog. And this, I can say was unequivocally true, at least for one of my two small dogs.

Bean-dip came first. She actually belonged to the neighbors when I bought my first house. They left her alone in the yard, all the time, regardless of the weather, with no suitable shelter. She would find ways to escape the fence and run to my doorstep, where she would sit and whine until I heard her and let her in. And let me tell you, once she was in, she OWNED the place! And after a few “visits” the neighbors decided she didn’t need to come home anymore. She was brash and ferocious and assertive; afraid of nothing. I remember vividly the day she chased a full-sized garbage truck through the neighborhood barking up a storm as she ran…presumably saving the neighborhood from the foul-smelling, giant contraption. She was a Chihuahua-terrier mix, weighing a solid nine pounds on a good day. I don’t have a picture of her with me today, but if you want a visual, think “Taco Bell dog” from the late 1990’s!

Contrast her to Houdini, who I mistook for Bean-dip one rainy evening on my way home from work, silhouetted in the lights from on-coming traffic as he scurried across the road in front of the cars. I thought she had escaped the yard, only to discover this dog was male, an inch or so taller, and thinner than Bean-dip. Same short buff fur, and although according to the vet, he was a Basenji-Terrier mix, they looked like siblings. He was the quiet, gentle small dog, also confident in himself, but more interested in a cozy spot to nap than he was in taking on the world.

One lesson they reminded me of, frequently and in a variety of situations, was that small wasn’t less important or valuable than big, it was just different. But we live in a world that seems to compel us to continuously compare things, and sometimes one thing in that equation will be deemed of lesser value. Often it’s the smaller thing, isn’t it?
Just look at our cars and houses, our drive to accumulate more things, consider the so-called “value meals” in restaurants with ever-increasing portion sizes (of food that’s not necessarily good for us to begin with!)…but tell me, do these things equate to happiness, contentment, satisfaction, joy, and increased self-confidence?

I can speak for only myself, and my answer is “no.” Sure, I enjoy having nice things; I work hard, I buy quality, and I take good care of my things. But I have no misconception about what they are and what they represent. I need to be the right kind of person with a good heart and a giving spirit regardless of how I dress or what stuff I have and no amount of “stuff” is going to make me happy.

When I was working on my Master’s degree, there was a young man in my program. He was from Europe, very nice looking guy and smart. I soon learned he was also missing something significant. He was constantly buying things and when I say things, I don’t mean $10, inconsequential things (although he bought that kind of stuff in excess, as well), but I mean high-end expensive items – electronics, watches, clothing – and the labels and logos were very important to him; he bought whatever was considered the best at the time. One day, he was supposed to stop by to help with a house project. He pulled into the driveway in a brand new Jeep, one of the sportier models, fresh off the lot! He already had two other (not inexpensive) cars, and a motorcycle, if I remember correctly. He was bored, he said. Stopped by the car lot just for fun, and voila! He was now the proud new owner of this Jeep…that he couldn’t afford (his debt was staggering, and his compensation no match for what his monthly payments must have been)…and the next week, he was on a quest for the next thing, that next acquisition he was sure was going to make him happy.

As Ed Gungor says, on page 31 of One Small Barking Dog, “It’s what’s inside that counts most. And there’s another problem (with the big-dog lie): when externals matter too much, it makes you weird.”

Well put, Ed!

What do you think about the power of the small dog? And how does the “big dog lie” play out in your life?

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Trumpeting the Vision — D4, W3, M1 — Intentional Leadership — Vision

As we near the end of the week, let’s work on the communication plan you began to think about yesterday.

If you haven’t gotten that far, why not start with a plan for the next month?

Again, you’ll need to define the key messages — what do your people really need to hear, know and understand?

When do they need to know? Creating key messages tied to your key milestones will help you lay out your timeline.

What vehicles can you use to spread the word? Remember, anything printed or visual needs to be a secondary or even tertiary form of communication — reinforcing messages you’ve already shared in person. After all, if something is really important, shouldn’t your team/organization hear about it first from you? Then you can use memo’s, newsletters, posters, and other visual communication tools to reinforce what you have shared in person.

Define how you will reinforce the actions and behaviors you need your people to take and demonstrate.

Give some thought to the celebrations you will have (they don’t need to be super-spectacular spectacles!) as your team/organization reaches those critical, initial milestones.

Be sure to put all of these things on your calendar. As you know, if you haven’t made it a priority and blocked out the time to take care of it, all that other daily stuff will become your priority. It will be easy to get to the end of the month and realize you haven’t accomplished all you wanted to — so take the time to schedule your actions now.

Create your vision.

Articulate it simply.

Share your passion for it.

Demonstrate your own commitment to reaching it.

Reinforce the behaviors you see in others striving for it, as well.

Drive to completion.

Celebrate along the way.

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Organizational History — Intentional Leadership — W2, Day 4 (M1) — Vision

It’s Thursday already — Wow! Time for a little reflection.

As you’ve taken some time this week to consider your organization’s history and vision, and to talk with and listen to your employees’ thoughts about the history, its significance, and how it relates to your vision, what did you learn?

Do you see any gaps or inconsistencies?

Did you hear something that left you questioning commitment levels to your organization’s vision?

What could you be doing to encourage higher levels of engagement and commitment among your employees?

How could you help them to see and understand the organization’s vision more clearly?

What do you think it would take for them to take greater ownership?

After you’ve spent some time on these questions and their answers, spend some time considering the vision you have for your team.

Have you articulated it clearly to them?

How committed to it do you think they are?

If you think there’s a gap in their commitment to your vision — either for your organization or your team — keep this in mind: They have to buy-in to you first, before they will buy-in to your vision.

Plainly speaking, have you established yourself as a true leader — are you:

  • Mature — knowing it’s not about you.
  • Intentional — your service to them is thoughtful, not an accident!
  • Consistent — you’ve demonstrated over time that people can count on you and know what to expect from you.

In short, you have demonstrated yourself to be a person of integrity. If you’ve done this, and your vision is intriguing to them, they are all the more likely to commit to helping you achieve it.

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