Coach Dan's Blog

"The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking." - Albert Einstein Leaders have worked hard to make their organization how it is today. It's a reflection of how they lead and what they believe. Is it any wonder that it's so hard for organizations to change? Changing an organization requires the leader to change how they lead.  Transformations fail because leaders fail to reimagine themselves. Do you want your organization to change? Start with yourself! 

I hear those words a lot.  "Hi!  My name is ... I report to ..."  I may have missed the part of orientation that taught us that standard introduction.  It's what we say when we meet someone new, or start working with a new team. Sometimes to me it feels like a security blanket of sorts.  Or a justification as to why that person showed up to a certain meeting.  Regardless of why it happens, it happens.  A lot.  To me, that phrase has become a symbol of why we as a company, still have a way to go with our transformation. At the risk of repeating myself over and over... I'd like to refresh us all on the "why" of this transformation we are all working on. Our customers matter.  They count on us to help them achieve their financial goals.  Without them, and their continued use of our services, we wouldn't have a company (and consequently jobs, which means we would not be a part of so-and-so's organization!)  Our customers matter so much ...

I'm not going to lie - I woke up this morning feeling a little depressed and worn thin.  North Carolina is on day 23 of our "Stay at Home" order - with other places being "cooped up" even longer.   While like everyone, my family has been making the best out of the situation.  Unlike untold other people, we've been blessed to be healthy, safe and relatively comfortable.  Others have it much worse than my family and friends.  All that said, I'll be honest... my nerves are wearing a bit thin.  Being used to doing things one way, and then suddenly being forced (or at the very least - strongly encouraged) to do things differently - well we're getting through it, but it's not without road bumps along the way.  The girls have adjusted to online schooling (although not without drama.)  We've adjusted to putting in a grocery order 5 days in advance rather than just running out and grabbing what we want on a whim.  We've all gotten really good at ...

Before I say anything else - I sincerely hope that all of you, your families and friends are all healthy and safe.  I know that this is a trying time for folks for a lot of different reasons, and I'm going to repeat one of my most overused phrases - we all win together.  That means we can rely on each other to share the load, to work through the unexpected, and to help each other out in any way that we can.  Never forget that before anything else, we are teammates, and that means we take care of each other the best that we can.  Please be sure to monitor the  CDC Coronavirus page for updates and resources. All of the health and wellness related stress aside - what a better time to be agile?  It's like our shared values and principle s were custom designed for times just like this... "But Coach Dan!  Whatever do you mean?"  Well, I'm glad you asked! Individuals and interactions over processes and tools.  I can't think of a more important time...