Blog – Page 11 – International Performance Group (IPG) Social Impact

How Do Leaders Know if (vs. think) They “Get It”?

“Don’t let what you don’t know scare you, because it can become your greatest asset. And if you do things without knowing how they have always been done, you’re guaranteed to do them differently. ~ Sara Blakely, Founder & CEO of Spanx

I’ve been blessed to have a great number of interactions with a wide array of leaders. One of the key takeaways that I’m always looking for in leaders, is whether or not I believe they “get it”. Since “gets it” is a subjective observation, there is no universal agreement on what“gets it” actually is or whether someone has it. Thus; one needs to define “gets it” while quickly and accurately figuring out how to recognize it.

Language, I believe is a key to observing the “gets it” quality, followed by an ability to actually create new, positive outcomes associated with “getting it” and then surrounding yourself with others who also “get it”. Without all three of these attributes, new ideas simply die on the vine of “could-have-been”.

First; the language a leader uses demonstrates a wide-range of information about them to exceptional listeners. When “gets it” leaders are able to look at problems and see high potential solutions while most leaders don’t even see a problem, this is a great piece of information that helps determine if they’re a “gets it” leader. If you listen carefully, the language they use will contain more possibilities than realities. Further, “gets it” leaders will often volunteer their own shortcomings in the area of the potential new possibilities. Thus, demonstrating they’re often lifelong learners with their share of past failures.

Second; “gets it” leaders have the ability to visualize solutions that currently do not exist, see them actually implemented and are able to observe their impact being realized. They’re not focused on the numerous reasons why something won’t work; rather, they ask many questions on how to get new initiatives to work. Thus; they are humble, but highly inquisitive and passionately engaged.

Third; “gets it” leaders are not intimidated by the high odds of failure (given, they are doing something that others have said, “can’t be done”). They fully comprehend, the reasons something doesn’t exist, are because others have seen it as too difficult to visualize and actually get implemented. This is where the Laws of Attraction play out. The only ones willing to pursue the creation of “that which does not exist” are other “gets it” leaders. Thus; “gets it” leaders attract and surround themselves with other “gets it” leaders. This type of rare, top talent is needed to get “that which can’t be done … done!

So … how do you objectively know if you “get it”? Again, there is no definitive, objective answer. Nonetheless, you know it when you see it and others who “get it” will find you.

Who changes the world? I believe it’s almost exclusively the Top-7%. They are the only ones with the Talent Portfolios and social consciences needed to actually implement significant positive social impact. If you believe you’re one of these executives, we’d love to explore possible opportunities.

Get Making A Difference! ~ JR

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Why Do the Laws of Attraction Always Prevail?

“Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.” ~ Oprah Winfrey

I compare the Laws of Attraction to gravity; they are both undeniable and are constantly active. Why do so many leaders attempt to fight these natural laws when they’re building their inner circles of influence?

An interesting question was asked to me this week in regard to people wearing or not wearing makeup. In thinking about the question, since makeup changes our appearance (in multiple ways) to others, it can lead to temporarily attracting the wrong people into our professional or personal lives. However, long term, the Laws of Attraction always prevail and the wonderful people you ultimately attract, are simply amazing!

What does makeup look like in the business world? It can take the form of job titles, degrees, professional attire, etc. Our challenge is to see through the makeup to accurately observe the Talent Portfolios of professionals we’re hiring or people with whom we’re investing our time. I’ve met and hired talent that didn’t have degrees, that ran circles around many who had degrees. However, most of my top performers did have multiple degrees.

If you recall the non-exciting field of Statistics, correlation is a key variable. We use certain attributes that have strong historical correlation to future success in deciding with whom to surround ourselves. However, correlation does not equal guarantees. Similarly, the diamonds in the rough, who don’t have “traditional” backgrounds can be erroneously passed over, to your detriment.

I believe, it is only during the difficult times in business and life that you’ll be able to see others, professionally and personally, without their makeup. These “valleys” in life, are absolutely wonderful for solidifying, positively or negatively, the Laws of Attraction.

Time is another great predictor of Laws of Attraction. Professionals and people whom you haven’t talked with for more than a year, if the Laws of Attraction are strong enough, will immediately pick up right where you left off. The trust, integrity and attraction only strengthen over time, with or without interaction. This is where being a great person your entire life reveals itself.

Here’s the harsh side of the Laws of Attraction; if you don’t like who you’re attracting, change you. Don’t blame them for any shortcomings in the relationship. Professionally and respectfully jettison them. Keep getting better as a leader and you’ll attract even better professionals and personal relationships into your life.

If you’re a purpose-driven leader, you’ll attract (although not always) purpose-driven people into your life.

If you want to lead an amazing life, although it will be lonely at times because you’re in the small percentage of people who get the “game of life”, use my two basic rules for relationships.

Rule #1: You’re my #1 priority and I’m #2.
Rule #2: I’m you’re #1 priority and you’re #2.

Thus; we’re both working our tails off to make sure the other is successful in everything they are pursuing, professionally, personally or both.

Who changes the world? I believe it’s almost exclusively the Top-7%. They are the only ones with the Talent Portfolios and social consciences needed to actually implement significant positive social impact. If you believe you’re one of these executives, we’d love to explore possible opportunities.

Get Making A Difference! ~ JR

What Type of Leader Are You on Jugular Decisions?

“An individual has not started living until he or she can rise above the narrow confines of his or her individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.” ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

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Leaders who consistently rise above their narrow, individualistic concerns are extremely rare. This is why I often refer to them as the Top-7%.

There are two keys when evaluating this broad, ambiguous competency. First; is the leader consistent in seeking the broader concerns for larger, unrelated groups of people; not, just the people within his or her circles of influence?

Second, is the leader able to rise above his or her individualistic concerns on major, jugular issues? Many leaders have the ability to rise above their individualistic concerns on non-major issues, but often stumble when making larger, jugular decisions.

How does this competency, which is highly interconnected in both our professional and personal lives, expose itself?

Unfortunately, this complex competency isn’t easy to observe, until we travel through the “valleys” or “deserts” in our lives. Many leaders appear to have this competency (through the use of their language and actions on non-jugular decisions) during the good times or even the “not so bad” times.

This can all change during the tough times!

Imagine you’re in an oasis (an analogy for the good times in your life), you’re buying dinner, drinks, etc. for everyone and they just love you as a boss (professional example) or significant other (personal example).

Then, a jugular decisions needs to be made. If you take the individualistic concern route, you get to stay in the oasis; and basically say, “the hell with the rest of you, I need to protect myself”. However, you know, doing the right thing, will likely result in you being asked to leave the oasis. In which case, you’ll need to travel an unknown, likely to be unkind journey through a desert in life.

I believe, it is only during these “desert trips”, that we uncover who we genuinely are as leaders. More importantly, we’ll discover, with whom we’ve surrounded ourselves.

The laws of attraction always (yes, always) play out long-term. They seldom play out in the short or intermediate term.

The more deserts people are willing to travel with you, the more strongly the laws of attraction become evident.

Executive, jugular decisions are flat out difficult. If you’re able to do the right thing (despite the ramification to you or your organization) and stay in the oasis, you, your Board and the executives around you have built a first-rate culture. Unfortunately, this is quite rare. We routinely observe when negative news goes public about a company, often, leaders are asked to leave the oasis. They must begin travelling through a desert of unknowns.

Interestingly, since our professional lives are highly intertwined with our personal lives, deserts often appear simultaneously in our professional and personal lives.

Three key things happen during these desert trips:

1.We grow the most as a leader.

2.The laws of attraction intensify and the best people in our lives emerge.

3.The laws of attraction intensify and “oasis only” people soon part with you.

Which leader are you on the jugular issues?

Get Making A Difference! ~ JR

Why is Death so Important to Leadership?

“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet, death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it, and that is how it should be, because death is very likely the single best invention of life.” – Steve Jobs

Jobs had a special way of communicating the obvious that other leaders struggle to communicate at all. Death is the “elephant in the room”, that most leaders seldom, consciously incorporate into their professional and personal decision making. Why is this, when we all know death is the only undefeated franchise in history? How do we incorporate this present, yet possibly distant concept into our day-to-day life; both professionally and personally?

I believe the first step is to comprehensively acknowledge and respect, but not be intimidated by, the fact that we won’t be leaders forever. Reach your hand outward, to acknowledge and respect the concept of death, while letting it know you’re not intimidated by it, just as you would a respected professional. Embracing this belief helps clarify the importance of our decision making, both professionally and personally.

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Since time is truly a finite resource that lacks any reasonable level of flexibility and doesn’t come with a fuel gauge; decisions need to simultaneously be aligned with short, intermediate and long-term plans. I submit, the choices we make professionally and personally are so naturally intertwined, that we should not even attempt to separate them.

How do we intelligently make big decisions in life?

“Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.” – Steve Jobs

Follow your heart!? How scary is that when you have a great leadership role in a great company or are living a great personal life, but your heart wants you to pursue a different course?

Leadership starts and ends with the choices we make for ourselves personally and professionally. When leaders pursue causes greater than themselves, rather than taking the most traveled, safe routes in life, the journey can range from brutally difficult to tremendously fulfilling.

“Take the slower, bumpier brick road, built by you and held together with blood, sweat and tears produced from a lifetime of effort. Further, tile it together with a “splash of attitude”, one brick of execution at a time!” (Source: Get MAD! 7 Keys to Being an Admired, Kick-Ass Leader – page 17.)

The best leaders embrace their intertwined professional and personal roles to simultaneously excel at both, regardless of which specific role they are in, at any specific moment. The best leaders are driven by a genuine appreciation for life, a respect for time as a finite asset and able to simultaneously leverage their professional and personal leadership to create positive change in both areas of their lives.

Intelligently, with an abundance of perseverance, follow your heart, only when you’ve surrounded yourself professionally and personally, with those that share the unquenched passion in your heart. Otherwise, the journey will likely be lonely and come up short!

Who changes the world? I believe it’s almost exclusively the Top-7%. They are the only ones with the Talent Portfolios and social consciences needed to actually implement significant positive social impact. If you believe you’re one of these executives, we’d love to explore possible opportunities.

Get Making A Difference! ~ JR

Who’s Responsible for the World’s Happiness?

“The Paradoxical Commandments”

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.

Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.

Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.

Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.

Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.

Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.

Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.

Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.

Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.

Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you’ll get kicked in the teeth.

Give the world the best you have anyway.”

― Kent M. Keith, The Silent Revolution: Dynamic Leadership in the Student Council

I believe, only the best leaders and human beings will follow these often, painful commandments. In light of knowing your efforts are likely to be underappreciated at best, only the rarest leaders will persevere. Their Vision for Possibilities drive their deeds.

Bringing positive change or happiness to your community or the world, appears to be everyone’s responsibility; yet, simultaneously, nobody’s responsibility.

So, which is it?

The answer is quite simple: It depends on the leader’s view of their roles in the holistic game of real-life.

Top-7% leaders realize, they have rare Talent Portfolios enabling them to run their organizations exceptionally well and bring positive change or happiness to their communities. Most leaders, unfortunately, will not see positive change to others with fewer opportunities, as part of their leadership responsibility.

In the business world, long-held beliefs about the role of organizational leaders have been ingrained into traditional thinking on strategies, tactics and outcomes.

These beliefs are primarily structured in an independent, serial-myopic pattern vs. a holistic view. Thus; desired outcome “A” comes before outcome “B”, which comes before outcome “C” and so on.

What if organizations could optimize “A”, “B”, etc., by seeing them as truly interconnected, in such a way, as to elevate all performance outcomes?

What if organizations could simultaneously increase both Net Income and donations to Non-Profits?

I believe most people acknowledge that war, poverty, disease, homelessness, mental illness, etc. bring unhappiness to more than a billion people worldwide. Further, society in general, does not appear to believe that fixing these challenges is part of the responsibilities of private sector companies.

Thus; without leaders changing their view, from companies not being responsible for positive social impact or the world’s happiness, new possibilities for positive social impact will merely die on the vine of wishful thinking.

Do we need change? This is for each leader to determine.

Are you simply a leader of your organization; or, are you a leader without leadership boundaries?

When you reflect back on your life and leadership, do you see a purpose-driven leader who excelled professionally while simultaneously bringing significant, positive social impact and happiness to millions of people with fewer opportunities?

Question – Think – Reflect – Act – Appreciate!

Get Making A Difference! ~ JR

(Now Available on Amazon

Search: “Get MAD! Roncevich”)

Written by IPG Social Impact's President

How Strong is Your Vision for Possibilities?

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever.” – Steve Jobs

I believe, one of Steve’s greatest gifts was his Vision for Possibilities. His uncanny ability to see what could be, and then get talented people around him to see and believe in that vision strongly enough, to commit their time, money and resources into that vision, was simply amazing.

In researching past Jobs’ information, his quote reminded me of an invaluable piece of advice I received from a leader whom I had the privilege to work with for 15+ years at two Fortune 100 companies. Our company had just invested a chunk of money in me, as part of its succession planning. A long report was created and I asked Jeff, if he would be willing to read it and annotate his thoughts on their findings; good, bad or ugly. In one key part, he wrote (summarized):

“This paragraph is great, because it indirectly addresses one of your greatest weaknesses: You don’t leave enough bread crumbs. I’m sharp, listen to your ideas on what could be, and sometimes it takes me 2 or 3 days to realize what an amazing idea it is and how we can implement it to save millions of dollars. But, I know you, and I’ve seen the success you’ve had, even when nobody else, at the beginning of the vision, could “see what could be”. Thus, I always take the time to understand you. But, others whom you haven’t built a foundational relationship with, won’t take 2 to 3 days to figure out the vision, except the very few who don’t need very many bread crumbs like yourself.

At the time, “ouch”; but, this advice has been very helpful to me. It’s incorporated into everything I’ve done since that “bread crumb moment”.

As an executive, how many “bread crumbs” do you need to leave to get your team engaged? This may appear to be an easy question to answer … at first. However; I believe it is very, very difficult to answer. Why is it important to know the number of bread crumbs needed per vision?

Too few bread crumbs, and the pathways to the possibilities are lost.
Too many bread crumbs and you’re micromanaging. Thus, the best talent won’t stay with you and the possibilities are lost.
Enough bread crumbs and you’ve hired / you’re associated with the wrong talent; the possibilities will never come to fruition.

It’s only when your Vision for Possibilities, Talent Acquisition Index, Execution-Excellence, Leadership and knowing how many bread crumbs to drop are exceptional, that possibilities previously never thought doable, bear fruit in abundance! These are attributes of the Top-7%.

Who changes the world? I believe it’s almost exclusively the Top-7%. They are the only ones with the Talent Portfolios and social conscience needed to actually implement positive social impact. If you believe you’re one of these executives, we’d love to explore possible opportunities.

Get Making A Difference! ~ JR

Possibility or Dream: Can You Change the World?

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It’s Super Bowl Sunday, which reminds me of another battle. In the battle between “talk” and “action”, “talk”, I believe, has a 93-7 winning record. Why? It’s been my observation, only about 7% of leaders actually create disruptive, positive change.

Many leaders say they, “want to change the world”; but, how many actually have the Talent Portfolio to change it? Is positively changing the world too much to ask of a generation? Is it just a dream?

In attempting to answer these types of questions, I’m often bombarded with the many, many legitimate reasons why we can’t change the world. Roughly 93% of leaders appear proud, to demonstrate their vast knowledge and experience by stating what they believe to be intelligent reasons on why we can’t change the world. Unfortunately, such reasons are the easy part of the equation.

Top-7% leaders start with possibilities. Possibilities do not equal success; rather, they’re merely a vision of what could be. Where are these possibilities generated? Why do so few leaders see possibilities, while others are dwarfed solely by what they call, “realities”?

Possibilities come in many shapes, sizes and colors. If your family didn’t have clean drinking water and you’ve already lost one child to a water-borne illness, do you think it’d be possible to consistently acquire clean drinking water? Why is basic, clean drinking water for nearly every child in the world, still just a dream?

If you’re an executive with an elite Vision for Possibilities; yes, you can change the world! No; it’s not a dream!

Why not combine new, sustainable Net Income streams at your company with new donations to Non-Profits pursing positive changes in the world?

Would you want other companies to create new income streams that would help your children or family if they didn’t have clean water, food, a home, educational opportunities, etc.?

Consider being that purpose-driven leader!

If you have an empty table in your office, and our team collaborated to put $10M on it, why wouldn’t you give $1M (10%) of the “new found” monies to a social cause? These are tiny numbers relative to the possibilities when Top-7% leaders in business across a country or the world, collaborate to bring positive change.

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Can the current generation of leaders change the world? Yes.

Will it be easy and without calculated risks? No.

Can executives justify not doing more, since their companies already have a formal giving plan? Yes and No.

No; because these types of leaders do not have the Vision for Possibilities needed to commit to creating greater change.

Yes; because Top-7% leaders see others suffering, oppressed and with very few resources.

Yes; because Top-7% leaders know they can do more at their company than some, insensitive, justifiable mathematical giving formula.

Yes; because Top-7% leaders know, they did not choose where to be born nor the socioeconomic status of the family to which they were born.

Yes; because Top-7% leaders are holistic thinkers, doers and positive changers who holistically live a purpose-driven life.

Who changes the world? I believe it’s almost exclusively the Top-7%. They are the only ones with the leadership, Talent Portfolio and social conscience needed to actually implement positive social impact. If you believe you’re one of these executives, we’d love to explore possible opportunities.

Get Making A Difference! ~ JR

A Financially Intelligent Way to Make A Difference

There are a number of amazing leaders investing time, effort and ideas into helping to bring positive change to their communities and throughout the world. The constraint of time, seems to be the most commonly shared frustration expressed by executives, in trying to create “enough” positive social impact.

While contemplating my own 24 hours per day limitation, I too, grew frustrated. This frustration can be significant, for more socially cognizant leaders, particularly as they become more and more emotionally aware of the numerous good people, both children and adults, in need.

Which social needs are most important? Which social needs have hit-at-home, personal connections? Which social needs can you commit to allocating your finite time?

How do you handle, often 60+ hour workweeks, travel and family while allocating time for social causes?

I believe there are at least two ways to see this and most challenges; 1) Serial Myopically; and, 2) Holistically. First; serial myopically, is in simple terms, a way of seeing things primarily as “sequential, independent units” that can be assembled to create “whole outcomes”. This is similar to putting an automobile together on an assembly line.

Second; holistic, sees the whole picture first, along with interconnected possibilities, and then searches for the most effective ways to assemble and optimize “whole outcomes”.

When we look at our lives, often we segregate professional, personal and community into predominantly independent units. When we view our lives holistically, we can see how integrating these three roles, can be done more effectively, efficiently and with a much more rewarding purpose. This is the essence of my new book, “Get MAD! 7 Keys to Being an Effective, Kick-Ass Leader”. MAD! is an acronym for Making A Difference!

Holistically viewing our lives, enables us to leverage our time at work to positively influence our communities and families. The IPG Social Impact model enables executives to leverage their talents and time to create new, sustainable Net Income streams for their companies, while peeling off a small percent to the social impact cause or non-profit of their choice.

Thus, no additional time is needed from the executive, since they’re already working to improve financial performance. Nonetheless, they and their organizations can now deliver $100,000+ from their new Net Income streams to social causes and positively change many, many lives.

Get Making A Difference! ~ JR

Love your organization, employees and community!

Unlock Organizational and Leadership Potential

How Do Leaders Know if (vs. think) They “Get It”?

Why Do the Laws of Attraction Always Prevail?

What Type of Leader Are You on Jugular Decisions?

Why is Death so Important to Leadership?

Who’s Responsible for the World’s Happiness?

How Strong is Your Vision for Possibilities?

Possibility or Dream: Can You Change the World?

A Financially Intelligent Way to Make A Difference