Figuring out "what matters"
This weekend the Tigers won the pennant. Okay, calling it "the pennant" dates me somewhat, because it's now a honking great gold-plated trophy with a rampant eagle on top. But they won it. And in style!
On Sunday morning, I went to church -- I sing in the choir at St Paul's Episcopal Cathedral downtown -- and when I walked into the choir room a few minutes before rehearsal, grinning like a moron, one of the other adult singers asked me what I was so happy about. When I told her "the Tigers!" she rolled her eyes and said she was tired of seeing sports on the front page of the newspaper.
On the other hand, I was immediately surrounded by boy choristers aged about nine who were all dying to describe that final inning, that wonderful home run. None of us needed to be told, of course. But we needed to talk about it. I needed to tell the boys about leaping from my seat when Ordonez's ball headed for the stands, my dog waking up and starting to bark and the two of us charging around the room like madmen. I mean, here was a scenario -- score tied, two out, bottom of the ninth, guy comes up to bat who's never had a hit off the pitcher on duty -- how likely is a home run, for crying out loud?
Similar encounters kept happening all day. A guy in the supermarket check-out lane -- he looked like a retired cowboy from Texas, but was obviously a die-hard Tigers fan -- we talked about Jim Leyland and the way he's shaped this winning team by making every single player feel valued. Even when they screw up. Even when they lose. Leyland may have wanted to be Yogi Berra, but his genius is that of understanding each player in his locker room, and of knowing what will help them think beyond their own needs and ambitions and put the team first, put winning first. Casey Stengel, move over. Joe Torre, make room.
I think this baseball season has been important, not just for the obvious reason -- that it has brought us together, helped us share an experience and be proud of who we are and where we come from. The success of the Super Bowl gave us the same experience. We know it's probably fleeting -- we won't be feeling like this in February. But it sure is great while it lasts.
But there's another reason. It's that glimmer of hope, that sense that there are leaders out there who know what it takes to create a winning season out of dust. Who can take a bunch of guys that were about as low as they could go and persuade them that anything is possible. Who was willing to be in that locker room every day, joking and cajoling and listening to his players. Who understood that the most powerful loyalty is not to an idea, but to other human beings -- and that the most powerful motivator is the determination not to let those human beings down. Play back the post-game comments by the players, and listen to how many of them mentioned Leyland. I think they all did.
I can't understand why anybody would get tired of seeing good news on the front page. I think that, with the right leadership, we can see a lot more of it. I'm hoping that more of our captains of industry, politicians and civic personages will take a few minutes to think about Jim Leyland.
Leadership isn't about getting together with other important people and deciding how things should be. It's not about having a flair for public speaking, or for getting your face on TV. It's about working with your team, being with them every day, building loyalty, getting people to think beyond their own needs, keeping your head down, focusing on one thing at a time, getting the job done. It's about making it personal, knitting people together so tight that the connection between them goes beyond happenstance and becomes intentional. Being a leader means being the sort of person others want to follow. It's not a title, it's a gift. It's about results, not promises.
Without Jim Leyland, sure, Magglio Ordonez could have hit a home run -- but would he have had the chance to do it with the game tied in the bottom of the ninth and the championship at stake? I doubt it. Would his homer have mattered to anybody but him? Probably not.
Virginia Blankenhorn
Grants Manager
United Way for Southeastern Michigan
On Sunday morning, I went to church -- I sing in the choir at St Paul's Episcopal Cathedral downtown -- and when I walked into the choir room a few minutes before rehearsal, grinning like a moron, one of the other adult singers asked me what I was so happy about. When I told her "the Tigers!" she rolled her eyes and said she was tired of seeing sports on the front page of the newspaper.
On the other hand, I was immediately surrounded by boy choristers aged about nine who were all dying to describe that final inning, that wonderful home run. None of us needed to be told, of course. But we needed to talk about it. I needed to tell the boys about leaping from my seat when Ordonez's ball headed for the stands, my dog waking up and starting to bark and the two of us charging around the room like madmen. I mean, here was a scenario -- score tied, two out, bottom of the ninth, guy comes up to bat who's never had a hit off the pitcher on duty -- how likely is a home run, for crying out loud?
Similar encounters kept happening all day. A guy in the supermarket check-out lane -- he looked like a retired cowboy from Texas, but was obviously a die-hard Tigers fan -- we talked about Jim Leyland and the way he's shaped this winning team by making every single player feel valued. Even when they screw up. Even when they lose. Leyland may have wanted to be Yogi Berra, but his genius is that of understanding each player in his locker room, and of knowing what will help them think beyond their own needs and ambitions and put the team first, put winning first. Casey Stengel, move over. Joe Torre, make room.
I think this baseball season has been important, not just for the obvious reason -- that it has brought us together, helped us share an experience and be proud of who we are and where we come from. The success of the Super Bowl gave us the same experience. We know it's probably fleeting -- we won't be feeling like this in February. But it sure is great while it lasts.
But there's another reason. It's that glimmer of hope, that sense that there are leaders out there who know what it takes to create a winning season out of dust. Who can take a bunch of guys that were about as low as they could go and persuade them that anything is possible. Who was willing to be in that locker room every day, joking and cajoling and listening to his players. Who understood that the most powerful loyalty is not to an idea, but to other human beings -- and that the most powerful motivator is the determination not to let those human beings down. Play back the post-game comments by the players, and listen to how many of them mentioned Leyland. I think they all did.
I can't understand why anybody would get tired of seeing good news on the front page. I think that, with the right leadership, we can see a lot more of it. I'm hoping that more of our captains of industry, politicians and civic personages will take a few minutes to think about Jim Leyland.
Leadership isn't about getting together with other important people and deciding how things should be. It's not about having a flair for public speaking, or for getting your face on TV. It's about working with your team, being with them every day, building loyalty, getting people to think beyond their own needs, keeping your head down, focusing on one thing at a time, getting the job done. It's about making it personal, knitting people together so tight that the connection between them goes beyond happenstance and becomes intentional. Being a leader means being the sort of person others want to follow. It's not a title, it's a gift. It's about results, not promises.
Without Jim Leyland, sure, Magglio Ordonez could have hit a home run -- but would he have had the chance to do it with the game tied in the bottom of the ninth and the championship at stake? I doubt it. Would his homer have mattered to anybody but him? Probably not.
Virginia Blankenhorn
Grants Manager
United Way for Southeastern Michigan
Labels: Employee Voices
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