Leadership

Is It You or Is It Me

There were protests today. They marched in the streets clothed in assuredness and self-righteousness, and like always it started peaceful…….. but someone triggered the madness. There were shouts and there was stuff thrown. The cops showed up. I heard they shut the place down because of the chaos. Their screaming and shouting turned into rhythmic chants…. it was disorganized, but then they found their wave…first quietly……then more forceful….then louder……. louder please……LOUDER…..the frenzy stirring a cocktail of action because of course they’re right and they must take action!!! We must take action now!!!

Wait, there’s a body! Or at least Facebook said there was? Someone died? Over this? Can you believe it? All of this rioting, what does it accomplish? How can it be worth a life? Those people are idiots and the ruining of our country and what it stands for!

Damn, I’m sorry, I forgot to tell you what political party they were or what color their skin is! It doesn’t matter. Your mind has already established that for you. So just go with white or black, or left or right, or whatever makes you feel justified. And if you can’t figure it out clearly enough so that you feel all cushy inside, simply go to facebook and type in “Protests in the US today result in…….” and the almighty social media will appreciate your sacrifice to them and fill in the blanks for you if for some reason you didn’t have a preconceived prejudice that already painted faces on the bodies in my speech.

It’s a beastly satisfying thing, having technology do in minutes what used to take years of generational ignorance and hatred. It really does make “Feeling Right” much more effortless and charismatic. (Dad please forgive me for that last sentence. It was for context and theatrical deliverance. You actually taught me to love people for how they behaved and for their character but that really would’ve ruined the mood if I went there.) Let’s be honest, algorithms show that I’m middle class successful so it’s impossible I love people simply for who they are. I have to have an angle. And trust me, the algorithms are never wrong, 14 ads popped up today for AR-15s and dooms day dehydrated food that will last for 67 years. Powder lasagna and apple cobbler in 2087 is going to be the bomb!!!! You’re all going to feel so stupid sitting their (freak out grammar police) munching on brain nuggets with your zombie friends. If that doesn’t convince you who I am, nothing will. I really hope the sarcasm is dripping by now. That’s my intent.

Whether it is to be Utopia or Oblivion will be a touch and go relay race right up to the final moment
Buckminster Fuller

I’ve become so exhausted with the climate of todays world that I’m seriously considering deleting my social media apps. But, is it actually todays world, or is it just a perception of a world force fed to me through a 6in. sq. iphone screen?

So before I hit the almighty “delete my avatar profile” button…… if I do because I’m addicted just like each of you and life will cease as I know it….., I’d like to challenge 50 friends to watch THE SOCIAL DILEMMA on Netflix. Yes I said 50, because you’re my friends and I roll with over-achievers. I just finished it. This isn’t something I copied and pasted from a chain post. This is something that weighs heavy on my heart. I love people……but I don’t love people on social media. I love this world….. but I don’t love the world I see on my phone. I love golf….. but I don… nevermind, Golf is great everywhere. And yes, they got that algorithm right. I’m 44 white, republican, executive, and play golf. I mean really, the intern from University of Alabama formulated that one to hook me with Advertisements on his first day at Google. I get it, I’m simple, but….. Geaux Tigers.

I really don’t believe democrats, or republicans, or left wing, or right wing, or a certain race has anything to do with the anger or frustrations in the world right now. I believe it is our perception of the other race, the other political association, or the other religion that is the cause. Who feeds us that perception of the other side? I’m a winner and I have won under Bush, Clinton, Obama, and Trump. Every day I had to get up and work no matter the President. Has man progressed as much as technology? No, not even close. Maybe, just maybe, technology may be showing you what you want to see, to feel right or justified, because we’re lazy and technology passed us up and we are now exhausted trying to keep up with the machine.

I’m what I consider an open minded conservative who is also as insanely committed to certain beliefs as anyone. I don’t waiver on them , but I don’t put those beliefs on social media because I try to simply demonstrate them in the real world, not the cyber world. Love they neighbor as thyself, do unto others, blah, blah, blah……. I love living in a world where I’m able to create jobs for people, or help my neighbor with their yard or fixing their house. Am I privileged, yes. I’m privileged to have become someone that can do good things for other people with my brains and my hands. Man, I hope I live up to that responsibility. It weighs on me daily and keeps me up at 2 AM writing stupid stuff on the interweb. God gave me a gift for building stuff and fixing stuff, so I try to do that for my neighbors. Out of curiosity, what color did you picture my neighbors and employees just now? I’m not going to tell you, you have to come over for coffee, or to have a cold one to find out. Face to face time between people brings joy and healing. Regular old reality is so much better than virtual.

Just look at the Presidential election. It was almost 50/50. It’s not possible to have an election so closely decided, and there actually be the divide in our country that is presented to us by the media. IT WAS ALMOST A TIE!!! Our country is almost perfectly balanced, not divided!!!! That is a beautiful thing that makes the world work and keep us from going tilt-a-whirl on toads magic carpet ride!!! Please, let’s not try to change that. If we see elections 75% to 25%, then we have a major problem. If everyone was like me, we’d only drink monsters for breakfast and we’d spontaneously combust one day into an unrecognizable pile of goo. Nobody would chill. My kids just explained to me that chill doesn’t mean what it used to. That would suck! I really need friends who know how to just chill so that my wife doesn’t cash in on that bounty, ummmmm I mean life insurance policy too soon. Many of the things we love are 50/50. Marriage, yin/yang, partnership, friendship, peanut butter and jelly, and cookies and cream. People…….TRUMP AND BIDEN were almost cookies and creme, and the media says we should be fighting? Yeah, we should be fighting to get some more of that!

So please watch The Social Dilemma, check yourself and your apps, and them PM me. Please don’t comment on my post. PM me, your friend from high school, your cousin, your golf buddy, your boss, your employee. Whoever the hell I am to you, reach out and let’s talk. I miss you. Send me your number, or call me if you already have it. Let’s do lunch together…….let’s do life together. Remember, that if you’re on my social media and seeing this, YOU WERE MY FRIEND BEFORE YOU WERE MY FACEBOOK FRIEND……no matter what Zuckerberg says, Greg Bauer loves his friends unconditionally.

So I’m not deleting Facebook just yet…….change my mind……..help me change the algorithm.

The Plans that Didn’t Work Out

It was 3 in the afternoon and I was stopping to catch my breath from pushing that mower as fast as that little motor could keep up. I don’t bother with self-propelled because they can’t move in “Greg Speed’ and I won’t buy a riding mower because I refuse to admit that mowing a little subdivision yard is actually work, regardless of what my tendinitis says. So as I was watching my man card slip away through the stinging sweat in my eyes I noticed an image in the rear-view. It was my family laughing and chasing each other around the living room. By family I mean my cute fun loving wife, my four kids, and two standards. For the less cultured in the audience, I’ll clarify… Standard is short for Big Poodle. I try to act snobby about them because I know deep down, any ounce of tough lumberjack-type man-characteristics I still had were mercilessly put to death when my wife informed me that I own poodles.
As I sat there for a minute, half appreciating and half recuperating, I couldn’t help but think about how great it was that my teenage plans never worked out. You see, the curly headed brunette I’m married to is my childhood crush. We grew up houses from each other but never dated, only to end up married at forty after divorce. Two of the four kids are mine, so I’ll take my credit there, because they are wonderful and nearly raise themselves. The other two are hers, equally as wonderful and by favor or fate, adore my children. They also tolerate me which is quite a bit to ask of anyone. I’ll credit that to their youthful innocence. When they learn to know better I’m out of luck!
It’s mid-June, and aside from the heat and humidity, the common topic of conversation seems to be centered around people’s plans. Plans about family vacations for the summer or everyone’s plans to fit into that new swimsuit. But one common theme this time of year seems to be us discussing with new graduates what their plans for their future are. Because you should have life figured out by 18 or you’re going to be a failure, right? I wonder if we’re not screwing them up more than helping them. We act like they have to a road map to success by the time they can vote. I wonder how many of us are still on the same exact path that we chose in high school? Sure, I ended up in the desired destination by keeping my dream in the windshield, but trust me the GPS led me through the unexpected while taking a couple rest stops in crazyville. I believe we could be of greater help to the next generation if we spent less time giving advice on whether they become a Doctor or Lawyer and more time making them aware of the impact they can make on other people’s lives along the way. What if we put priority on coaching them on where they should end up as a person and not as a professional? The latter will take care of itself if the first is advanced. I’ve yet to find many unsuccessful people that Walked with Integrity and Worked with Discipline.
So let’s make it a mission to quit telling kids that they need their Plan figured out just yet. Let’s help them focus on having “A” Plan, not “The” Plan. A plan to advance as a person. To become disciplined in a lifestyle of education, and generosity. To do right when no one is looking, and defer praise to others when everyone is looking. To have A Plan for each day like Mr. Franklin, “What good shall I do Today?”. If they continue to move forward in that manner their careers will be good ones and their lives will be great ones.
I am most definitely one of the fortunate ones and I don’t take that for granted. I am sitting about where I would be in my career had I sacrificed all and focused only on career. I personally believe the detours in life helped me be prepared when I arrive here more than a straight line ever could have. Had I kept blinders on and stuck t to my 18 year old greg-plan, I would merely hold the title of VP. Looking back, I’m so happy that VP came well after holding the title of Son, Friend, Daddy, Husband, & Step-Dad. Boy would life had been a disappointment if only my plans would’ve worked out!

When they Shut the Doors

I recently had the pleasure of handing in my keys and closing the doors to my office. An office that I had helped start from scratch just some years ago. It’s not an easy thing to do when you’ve vested so much of your blood sweat and tears into a venture. The business world is a shifty opponent. You can hit the mark only to find the mark moved during flight. In the challenging hunt of profit, catching the elusive quarry doesn’t even guarantee you as a feature to the mold they plan to cast in the future.

I can say these things without bitterness because I’ve always had a logical approach to working for a company where someone else is writing the checks. I owned my own company in the past so I get it. Longevity to a location truly is their choice and it doesn’t mean you’ve failed when their vision goes elsewhere. More leaders should spend time making sure they align with their company’s vision rather than their company’s industry. I must also admit that it’s easy to write these things because I was fortunate enough to quickly land a position with a company that has me so excited I stay up at night thinking about how to hit the ground at full speed.

This late night reflection is what has me inspired and rejuvenated. I’ve always tried to carry myself with integrity and a true respect for others. I know that I have failed miserably at times, but overall I feel like I’ve put the good of others above myself and it has paid off in my young career. (I’m 41 and am convincing myself daily that I’m young regardless of what the mirror shows!) When people ask how old I am I always respond “in normal years or contractor years?”

How often in our careers do we get these re-starts or new-starts? And when they do come around, do we make the most of them? That question has followed me most of my career. “Am I making the most of this opportunity for my family, my team, and me?”

I’ve come up with these few challenges to myself to ensure that I’m staying true to the journey of growth and improvement and I thought I’d share them with you.

What is my purpose statement and am I still in alignment?

If you don’t have a purpose statement, get one. What is it that inspires you? What was it that you admired about a childhood hero before someone told you it wasn’t realistic? I have a couple that I live by but in general it’s about mentoring leaders so that I make an impact in the future lives of people I don’t even know. Take a moment for self-reflection and make sure that you haven’t abandoned your principles at the bottom of that ladder you are so rushed to climb.

Be honest about my failures in my past experiences.

My mistakes have been the greatest teachers of all time. In the construction world, our safety rules are written in the blood of our brothers. It helps to make a honest and brutal list of where you have failed and what your plan is to avoid these pitfalls this go round.

Spend quality time getting to know your team.

Put into action the easy items first. Start weekly conference calls. Go on monthly ride-a-longs with your managers. Then step it up a notch and get out of your comfort zone. Call first thing in the morning with no agenda other than to find out how their weekend was. Learn the names of their children and pets. Some of the greatest relationships you may form are when you find out a 300 lb iron worker has a 5 lb lap dog named precious. Invest your time in caring about their well-being. The return on investment is exceptional.

Analyze your Mentors and adjust if necessary.

Any great leader has a few partners or advisers that are sought out when tough decisions are to be made. If your recent transition has led you into greater responsibility or a different area of expertise, make sure that you have the trusted advisers in place to make you successful in your new journey.

The vehicle that carried you to the mountain may not be the best choice to make the climb

Habit #4 – Reflection

Take Time to Reflect

We have all made mistakes in our pasts, and if you’re like me, it was recent enough to remember the taste. We can make mistakes out of pure ignorance or by attempting to conquer new challenges. There are time when screwing up is just a risk we have to accept if we want to succeed. But, if you’ve tried enough times, you’ve likely enjoyed a few successes along the way as well. Each one of these moments, the ones of regret and the ones of rejoicing, are necessary in our quest of continual growth. They each can offer us nuggets of wisdom. But, what they have to offer can only be of benefit if we take the time to reflect upon the experience, soak it in and learn from it.

Below are 5 benefits of taking the time to reflect on your experiences.

It allows us a chance to evaluate where we are against where we want to be: Giving ourselves an honest evaluation of our own progress is one of the most efficient ways to make the changes necessary to continue growing as leaders.
It provides a moment to hit “pause” and make sure that where we think we want to go is where we need to go: Sometimes during the rush of everyday life and chasing success we don’t stop to make sure that the prize we’re chasing is truly one that we should win.
It allows us to make sure we have our priorities in order: By reflecting on what has happened in our past and how it has affected those around us we can evaluate if we are holding true to our priorities, and if not, it gives us a chance to reorganize. This holds true for our daily tasks at work as well as our personal lives
Replaying our yesterdays better equips us for our tomorrows: As we successfully navigate different scenarios in life we should mentally and manually record those choices that proved successful and have them at our disposal to better take advantage of the opportunities of tomorrow.
It gives us the courage to be better: By not sticking our heads in the sand and pretending that nothing happened, we become stronger people. We learn to face our fears and become proactive in planning our own future.

If we all start the habit of reflecting on our daily decisions it can prove to make us more effective leaders and simply more effective people. As you review your daily decisions you will surely find certain mistakes rearing their ugly head on a regular basis. All of us need help with certain things in our careers. Reach out to someone you trust and respect to ask for help.

“What was good enough to get you here, may not be good enough to get you where you’re going!”

Let’s learn something new each and every day.

Habit #3 – Fill Your Well

Once again I’m staring into the distance as if nothing could be important enough to catch my attention. Another business trip and another morning of viewing the world through the looking glass of a window seat. Reflective vests and blinking lights will soon be overpowered by the breaking of the dawn. If you fly regularly at all, this is a common experience, and more than likely you zone out like I do during preflight check and the safety announcements they give at the beginning of the flight. Normally I would have my earphones in and a book open. For some reason this morning was different. I was actually paying attention and as they started directing us on how to use our oxygen masks if they are needed. Like always the steward stated that if you are traveling with someone that needs assistance make sure to put your mask on first before you assist those around you. What a real world example of Habit #3 on the list. It is impossible to help those around you if you are not taking care of yourself, or for the sake of our lesson, Filling Your Well. We are called upon daily by our friends, family and employees to fill a need. Heck, even random face to face meetings throughout the day deplete you of resources. In order to fulfill these responsibilities placed upon us, we must replenish our resources by means of routine maintenance.

Below you will find 3 “R”s that if practiced daily can ensure you are equipped with the tools needed when life calls on you.

Read

It’s so simple yet so ignored. Reading is a must for any leader. We must feed ourselves with the experiences and knowledge of those that have gone before us is we want to reach our personal best and help those around us fulfill their potential.

“Reading is essential for those who seek to rise above the ordinary. We must not allow anything to stand between us and the book that could change our lives.” – Jim Rohn

Benefits of Daily reading

Starts a process of achieving self-mastery: We may not retain 100% of the knowledge that we take in through reading but through the repeated process of digesting data we both expand and sharpen our skill set. It’s a means of equipping and developing.
It’s the quickest method of gathering valuable information: Through reading we are awarded the opportunity to live multiple lifetimes in the pages of one simple book. Reading does not replace the knowledge we gain through experience but instead ,if applied properly, it multiplies our life knowledge exponentially.

Rest

This word means different things to different people. It may mean nightly sleep, vacation, golf with the boys, or all of the above. Regardless of your definitions, you need to find the time to take a break. Some time to just take a deep breath and relax. You can not stay in production mode all the time. It is a mandatory practice amongst successful people to take a moment to heal form the stress of life.

Benefits of taking a break.

Improved brain function – Fatigue or stress can make it difficult for you to concentrate and retain information. How many times have you said “I don’t know where my head is?” when you’re stressed or tired? When you relax, your brain gets a chance to process the activities and impressions of the day which is important for memory formation and problem solving.
Overall health – The human body needs adequate rest to heal and rejuvenate itself. Even the most fit of individuals can benefit from a day of leisure.
Reduces stress – Rest has beneficial effects on your emotional health as well. Starting off the day well-rested makes you feel more capable of handling what life has to offer. If you’re exhausted before you get started, you will never catch up.

Reorganize

At some point during the day you had to handle something that disrupted your schedule or priorities for the day. Take a few minutes to place your priorities back in order and plan the following day.

Benefits of Reorganizing

It stops the snow ball effect: Taking just a few minutes to put the pieces back in place can keep any chaos that happened during the day from continuing or at least not pick up momentum going into the next day. Don’t fall into the habit of ignoring issues and hoping they’re better tomorrow.
It keeps your priorities in order:
It makes us more capable: If we have pre-prepared plan for each day, we feel confident that we are back in control. By knowing the next step you’re taking you are much more likely to be successful at it. We owe it to ourselves and those under our watchful eye to put forth the effort to always look ahead.

Learning to give to others is a building block to becoming a better leader, but creating the habits necessary to make sure there is always something to give is what sets you up for success. Make sure you are taking care of yourselves so that you can take care of the ones you care about.

Habit #2 – Take Action

Another habit that separates leaders from the pack is their ability to replace intent with action. You should never procrastinate when it comes to your future. This may be the most important of all the habits. There is no way to measure the impact of taking your plan and acting upon it each and every day of your life.

I was brought up in a family of doers. I can remember Mom telling us on any given weekend that we needed to get out of the house. She would say “I don’t care what you do but you better go do something, you’re not just going to sit around!” In general, both of my parents had a distaste for idleness. They instilled a belief in me from an early age that in order to reach any milestone in life, you first had to get moving. Many people have no chance of crossing the finish line because they can’t seem to leave the starting line.

During Habit #1 of Taking Responsibility for yourself, you are in the planning phase of life. Those plans must be put to action to be of any real worth. After this step, each of the remaining four habits will deal with physical practices of one form or another. However, what Habit #2 is referring to is the actual transformation from just planning to doing. It’s a lifestyle that must be practiced until it’s second nature.

It’s at this crossroad of changing how we think that we have choices to make. Below are 5 Choices to make so that you can become a person of action.

Choose to be a positive thinker – More than any other poison that you can let into your personal life and career, negativity is the most-deadly. Every morning you must choose to think positive thoughts about your life and your career. After making positive thoughts a routine part of your day, you will find that you actually begin to expect things to go “right”. That is one of the biggest differences between mediocre and exceptional people, the exceptional ones expect to win.
Choose to Educate yourself – Don’t wait on the timing to be right. Pick up a book and read it, even if only a few pages a day. Subscribe to a blog that is relevant to your current circumstance. Attend seminars or spend your travels listening to podcasts, you’d be surprised what small bits of wisdom you can gain from these practices. The plan is simple yet effective. Learn something today that you didn’t know yesterday.
Choose to Do Good – Just as Benjamin Franklin practiced for most of his life, ask yourself every day those two famous questions as he did. “What good shall I do today?” and “What good did I do today?”. These two questions can change your life. Start your morning off with the wonder of how you may help someone and end the day with the accountability needed to ensure you continue this practice. Look for opportunities to help those around you daily and you will find the true reward of a purposeful life.
Choose to Do Right – John Maxwell states – “Managers do things right, but LEADERS do the RIGHT THING!”. You can make a personal decision to carefully assess each situation throughout the day and do what is fair and honest. In the long run, walking with integrity will always pay off. People will respect you and your family will take notice. Learn to live life without any grey areas. Try to find the line between right and wrong, don’t ignore it. When it comes to your character, ignorance is not bliss.
Choose to Be Accountable – It’s not comfortable to be exposed with all our flaws. It’s even less comfortable to volunteer that information to people in an effort to improve upon our shortcomings. This, however, is a necessary practice in the quest for self-improvement. Choose people you trust and that have had a level of success you hope to achieve. Once you have these partners, make your plans known to them and be transparent in your actions. This act of accountability will help prevent you from straying too far from the path to success. They can help you avoid the pitfalls that lie off the beaten path because they have traveled that road before.

These choices will help you build a lifestyle of action. All the greatest intentions and ideas aren’t worth anything if we don’t manage to get the wheels turning.

“What we do on some great occasion will depend on what we are. And what we are will be the result of previous years of self-discipline.” – H.P.Liddon