1,320 books in library

What book has been recommended to you recently?

Recommended by a friend at my gym, we’ve just taken delivery of ‘The 4 Disciplines of Execution’ by Chris McChesney, Sean Covey and Jim Huling.

It looks like a comprehensive read. Not too academic. But one with a simple concept that was easy to recite. Only 284 pages to go!

On taking a simple idea seriously

What are you working on at the moment?

A recurring theme in leadership is to simplify ideas and take them seriously. Help others achieve greater things by distilling the complex to the bare essentials—then focus like hell to get things done.

“Take a simple idea and take it seriously.”
—Charlie Munger

This is exactly what I’m trying to do with Twelve Scholars. (The clue is in the name).

Limited to 12 people, we strive to deliver the best leadership programme each year. Period.

Letting JASON help

How will you prioritise the second half of the year? Simple, let JASON decide.

As a leader, you should always have a clear view on what needs to happen. A simple task list that’s easy to communicate. Both long-term and short-term. So what can you do?

Well, JASON is a simple technique that’ll help prioritise the work. But hurry, it’s a time-sensitive tool.

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JASON will help you focus on big objectives. The mission critical activity that must happen between now and December.

JASON will help keep you out of the weeds. Whilst providing a suitable (realistic) timescale—without getting too scientific.

JASON will help you communicate. And get everyone on the same page.

I’ve used JASON multiple times today. And it’s worked a treat. From simple whiteboard sessions to high level customer-centric project meetings. JASON explained precisely what needed to happen.

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So what who or what is JASON?

Well, it stands for: July, August, September, October and November.

Five buckets to you prioritise. And it’s as simple as that. Or is it?

Let me know how you get on!

Amplify a Need

What do you notice when you look back at your notes?

Ideas get lodged. Ideas jump out. And certain ideas don’t go away. (This is when you need start paying attention).

For over 25 years I’ve kept a ‘professional’ diary. Not just a ‘Dear Diary…’ but a full written account of my professional life—in work and outside work.

It started as WHSmith page-a-day diary, then Black N’Red A4 notebook, before taking the shape of Moleskine A5 bullet journal.

Every couple of months I’ll look back. And perhaps every year I’ll check in on the previous 12 months. But what happens when you start looking back further?

“Amplify a need” is one such idea.

A simple drawing by Hugh MacLeod (and copied into my bullet journal). It essential suggests that all good business ideas fulfil a simple need. Get the basics right, and the rest will scale.

12 years of bullet journaling

How often do you change notebooks?

For me, it’s every two months. And it’s time to start a new notebook—Volume 72.

I’ve been using the same bullet journalling method for 12 years. And same Moleskine squared notebook (Carnet quadrille) since the start.

It took a while to find the cadence to change notebooks. But since January 2014, I’ve been starting with a new bullet journal every two months. And it works for me.

A few things have changed. And quite a lot has stayed the same. Perhaps I should now review Volume 1 and see what specifically has changed!

Half-yearly review

Plans don’t survive time, but planning is essential.

I met with an old friend today for our half-yearly mentoring session. We’ve been doing it for almost 10 years. And each time we learn something about each other.

This time was all about clarity and focus. Not only for the next 6 months. But for the next 3 years!

(Yes, that’s when we both reach 50 years old!)

Our plans might not work out the way we see them today. Shift happens. And life gets in the way. But the process of planning is essential for anyone in pursuit of their goals.

Returning from sabbatical

When was the last time you took a career break?

For me, I view every client project as a sabbatical. A chance to take a rest from Twelve Scholars and focus on something new. It’s also my monomaniacal way of helping others.

When returning from sabbatical, I always have a fresh perspective on Twelve Scholars—and what needs to happen. And this time has been no different.

A Stainless Steel Bullet

A new heavyweight addition has arrived.

After six months of using my ‘back up’ pen (a super lightweight aluminium bullet pen), a new heavyweight addition has arrived. And this time it’s made from stainless steel. Immediately, the benefits were clear. It felt better. My handwriting improved. And it put a smile on my face. And you can’t put a price on happiness!

Teenage Engineering

What’s new in your world?

Here’s a little addition to our podcasting setup. It’s the fabulous TP-7 by Teenage Engineering. An ultra-portable audio recorder.

Ok, you could argue it’s a rather fancy tape recorder. And an expensive one at that. But what you get is a gorgeous piece of engineering and the justification comes later—much later.

Still in the experimental phase. But soon, we’ll relaunch our podcast with a new ultra-compact setup.

Make do and mend

Does this apply to you?

Over the years, I’ve come across three types of leader.

Type 1 — Always make do and mend

• Always cutting costs

• Always cutting corners

• Always accepting poor.

• Unable to recruit and retain talent.

Type 2 — Occasionally make do and mend

• Focused on short term tactics.

• Cost conscious.

• Able to call out poor.

• Understands when things are good enough to move on.

Type 3 — Never make do and mend

• Attracts high performing teams.

• Driving people forward.

• Unable to compromise.

• Always striving for Excellence.

Interesting to reflect. Which type of leader are you?

Lifetime mastery

What skills will you master?

Not just this month, or this year. But what skills will you master—over a lifetime?

Thank the motoring lord

Two years after introducing a new naming strategy that saw even numbers applied to electric vehicles and odd numbers to fossil fuel cars, Audi had gone back on its decision.

I’ve always been a fan of Audi cars. In fact, I’ve previously owned four consecutive Audis: Audrey, Augustus and Maximus. But their recent naming conventions have caused much angst in their line up. Fortunately, they have made a u-turn and reverted to common sense.

(For a satirical view click here).

As a leader, you need to keep things simple. And avoid ambiguity at all costs. And as a global leader in the motoring industry, Audi has learned a valuable lesson.

Ambiguity creates confusion. And confusion can cause brand erosion. The most successful brands (and leaders) work tirelessly to keep things simple.

Love and Leadership

How much do you love what you’re doing?

I’ve always believed that the most successful leaders love what they do. Like really love their work. In fact, there’s probably a direct correlation between successful leadership and love for your work.

Conversely, success won’t be achieved if you don’t enjoy what you’re doing. Perhaps this describes you or a member of your team?

Resigned to the fact

When do you accept a situation is poor and cannot be changed?

For many people this is a regular occurrence. Always accepting fate and ‘unable’ to do anything about it. For others, it’s a challenge. It’s worth a fight. Arguing the case, Being a pain in the backside.

As a leader, you need to pick your battles—and take people with you.

You need to know what is worth fighting for. Think values and beliefs, doing the right thing, or anything within your circle of influence. You need know what is not worth fighting for. When to accept a poor situation. And where focus your efforts.

I believe being resigned to the fact is a skill. And one that comes with experience. In time, you’ll learn that it can become a superpower.

What’s in a name

The concept of TWELVE SCHOLARS has been with me for 21 years. But until now, I’ve always failed to articulate the basic business idea—in simple words.

(Ok, so that’s a bit harsh—it’s a continuous process of evolution).

So what is the basic business proposition? And why should anyone choose Twelve Scholars?

Well, Twelve Scholars is all about step change improvement. Specifically, cohort-based leadership programmes that create step change improvement.

Yes, all our courses are designed for 12 participants.

This cohort-based approach enables our clients to go further, faster and achieve more. And the step change improvement relates to our proprietary EGSP® methodology.

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TLDR. Twelve Scholars specialises in cohort-based leadership programmes that create step change improvement.

Pinball management

How focused are you throughout the day?

Pinball management is associated with an unfocused style of leadership. You’ll have seen it. And perhaps (unwittingly) even subscribe to it.

A lack of focus takes you away from your goals. It makes things harder to achieve in the long run.

A lack of focus causes chaos and confusion. Not to mention conflict and caution.

It’s worth asking yourself is this how you want to spend your days?

Petulance and patience

Petulance is a quality not often admired in leaders.

It doesn’t get you far.

Patience is a different quality that is admired.

Yet too much can be unhealthy.

Petulance is a sign that you’re challenging the status quo.

Patience is an acknowledgment that things take time.

I believe petulance and patience are opposite ends of the spectrum.

Both are required if you’re wanting to create change.

Cats on ketamine

How often do you find yourself herding cats in a meeting?

What about if they’re unconscious, suffer from short-term memory loss or even worse—detached from the meeting itself? I was left in a similar situation recently. And it got me thinking.

In that moment, I needed a better way.

A better way for everyone to conduct themselves. A better definition of what was required.

But I hadn’t done the prep. I hadn’t laid the groundwork.

I hadn’t introduced what acceptable behaviour looked like. And more importantly—what unacceptable behaviour would look like.

Next time, I’ll use the EGSP® Leadership Model.

But next time, I’ll make sure it’s done before the meeting starts.

On chasing perfection

Many leaders will chase perfection, only to end up with poor. Why is that?

Whilst striving for perfection is an admirable quality. A relentless pursuit of perfection will often end in failure.

You run out of time. You run out of money. You p*ss people off along the way.

Poor is what we don’t want to happen. It’s unacceptable.

It’s much better to reframe our deliverables and ensure we deliver satisfactory first. We can then improve and deliver better iterations over time.

Let’s call it an agile approach to leadership.

Reframing failure

What does failure look like to you?

I heard a lovely quote today—from Adam Pearson, the actor and disability campaigner.

“Failure is not the opposite of success. Failure is part of the journey towards success.”

It’s easy to get disheartened by failure. Especially when you’re in a culture that tolerates failure or ridicules success.

However, as a leader, you need to embrace failure—and reframe it at every opportunity.