Negative Nellies
I indeed respect these writers, pundits, commentators, managers, charlatans and everyone in between who feel compelled to write about how impactful the negative nellies are in their respective communities. You know the through line: keyboard warriors or nasty gadflies or outraged residents or council members that aren’t always nice - there’s a common denominator. And we (well not me, but some people in the profession of public administration) are sort of incessantly conversing on this subject as if its the only thing going. I get it, it makes people money — but get over it. Life in the public fish bowl isn’t perfect, it’s not always fun and yes, you have jerks. Just don't have your world revolve around talking about them all the time and how bad things are and how you and the staff have to overcome this non-stop. There are thousands of counterpoint experiences where life is swell, where challenges are addressed in a reasonable way and where government worklife is indeed more than manageable, it is — gasp — positively rewarding, fun and engaging. Negative experiences happen but one need not let their life be ruled by them.
Digital Detox
The great Cal Newport, a personal favorite of mine, writes in the NYT this past weekend of a call for digital detoxification. He advocates contemplation as an antidote, in the same way a cardiologist would recommend aerobic exercise and jogging. I am reminded of the analogy of the bicep curl and meditation (the below from our presentation on Mindful Public Management™). We need to work and train our brains as muscles — and meditation, mindfulness, "disconnecting to connect," and taking time to just think and contemplate are good workout routines to employ.
Diversity of Work
To me, a job like a city or county manager is so unique, in that, one has such an immense possibility of worklife “paths” to take, in the course of just hours let alone days and years. The generalist traits (and approach) to municipal management is often maligned, but indeed it is the most positive “calling card” of the profession, in this author’s opinion. Financial management? Yes. Human resource matters? Yes. Economic development projects? You bet. Project management? Minutia and process stuff? Yea, those too. And to know the work that is getting performed is indeed work grounded in public service and advancing the community and building better lives for people and caring for residents? Icing on the cake!
Viewpoints
Sometimes, simple life “happenings” cause you to pause to reflect and zoom out. I recently got a standup desk. After about a year of complaining about not having one, I finally got around to it. I now stand-up in my office while working when, heretofore, I was at the “chair level".” I now see and experience both viewpoints out of my two windows differently, as I am a few feet above where I normally was positioned. What’s the leadership lesson here? By simply changing your location, viewpoint, angle, or experiences — you can have see things anew. Maybe you were missing something, or not understanding another’s point of view. Try to change the lens of observation, even for a trial run, and see how it looks.
Meeting and Burnout
I hear from a lot of CEOs and CAOs complaining of being burned out by “death by meeting.” To which I respond/reply: “why are you having the meeting in the first place?” Leaders must be VERY strategic about time utilization and organizational (personal) management. Some meetings can be an email and some emails need to be a meeting. Be smart about this seemingly simple function. But be controlling about it, too. Be very guarded with your all-important time. And if you do have a meeting, do not presume it needs to be the calendar-entry-standardized block of time (whatever that happens to be). E.g., It needn’t be an hour. Maybe it needs to be slightly (but not much more) longer. Often/usually, it needs to be a little less. Have an agenda for all meetings. Do not auto-regularize meetings that needn’t be. Again, be controlling and vigilant about your meeting times. If they burn you out, look at your practices and tendencies. Are you yourself complicit due to lack of attention, intention, and failing to establish guardrails?
Budgeting Simplicity
When I came into a county government role in 2008, I had only to that point, managed a village government with a budget (depending on capital) that ranged from $6MM to $10MM. The county’s budget was, at the time, around $160MM. (It is now ~$225MM). My predecessor at the time was dismissive of concerns on the size differences — “it’s a few more zeroes, and a sh*t ton of more human services programs than you’re used to, but budgeting is budgeting.” Indeed, it’s not more more complex than that. Expense estimates, state/federal/misc revenues as offsets, and seeing what is left over. Property taxes plug the hole, along with judicious use of fund balance. Rinse and repeat annually.
Generations
A recent article pegged Gen Z as a lost generation unprepared for the workforce as it’s currently constructed. The concerns expressed were related to this generation and office jobs, work environs, organizational topics and issues such as: Social cues, old-school networking, shoe-leather office politics, water-cooler conversations, phone-less and low-tech environments, and so forth. It was written by a Gen Z person, too, I think.
A few observations myself:
This is the first time we have had as many generations as we have in the current workplace. Potentially greatest generation folks all the way to Gen Alpha.
All generations are unfortunately typecast. I know a young person, quite well, who is an “old soul.” I call him Boomer actually. He’s 20. As employers and organizations, we mustn’t assume anything about one’s tendencies or proclivities. I am, no surprise, not a big fan of tapestries.
Part of workplace culture is indeed assimilation and blending in and being part of a team.
That all being said, I do believe there are certain habits, tendencies, work-styles, and office tact elements of some generations (not just Z) that definitely do not jive with conventional norms, nor work well with assimilation and teamwork/teambuilding, nor lend themselves well to employment success. Socialization is part of the mix. Attentive listening is needed. Banter and fun is essential. Boredom, embraced and not thwarted by scrolling, is necessary. Networking and phone calls and in-person conversations are the lifeblood still of professional life. Time off from your phone is a must-do. Both stretch assignments and work life imbalance will indeed occur and one needs to just accept those facts.
This is in part why I believe strongly in the power of mentorship and coaching and being a voice and an ear for people as they navigate work, organizational, professional and other such challenges.
Attitude
My wife is a teacher and there is the season of sickness. The elementary age classroom is the “petri dish” of whatever is going around, virus, strep throat, the most-dreaded-of-all — the stomach bug. Kids are carriers and everything is contagious! What is also contagious is attitude. In the school classroom, business, profession, and organizational context your attitude is so very important. How you show up, how you present yourself, and so forth. Have you been in that situation where a bad attitude from one team member is just a downer? Conversely, how maintaining a positive, upbeat mentality can lift others up? Own your attitude and realize and appreciate that it’s contagious.
What Yes means and What No means
People often forget the other side to a decision to do something, anything. Take on something? You are saying yes to that action, objective or issue. But you are also saying no to something else that would have had access to your time and attention that is now tied up with this thing you said yes to. Likewise, on the flip side, when you shed some things from your routine or say no to an ask, offer or engagement opportunity, you are saying yes to the possibility of other things entering that space, at least yes that you are open to other things and not the thing you declined. Particularly the “everything you say yes to, you’re saying no to other things” is the more challenging of the two prompts.
Patches on the Pants
Reading a book on non-profit management and the great Peter Drucker comments on job descriptions. He writes: there comes a point when one has to look at what the job requires and design for that job, rather than saying this is how we have always done it. This is one of those critical decisions. It is one of the crucial tasks of the executive to know when to say “Enough is enough. Let’s stop improving. There are too many patches on those pants.” Taking a look at your organization - are there a lot of patchy pants?
The Muddled Middle
The great Franciscan author Richard Rohr writes and speaks regularly of the three phases of the life journey. Rohr often describes a human journey in three broad movements:
Early stage (order): You see the world in clear, simple terms—right vs. wrong, good vs. bad. You rely on rules, structure, and certainty.
The muddled middle (disorder): Your previous certainties stop working. Life gets complicated. You experience doubt, failure, paradox, or suffering.
Later stage (reorder): You come into a deeper, more compassionate, and integrated understanding of life.
I think there is relevance here to the work of the public administrator. The job is initially clear, simple, described, and structured. Certainly upon hire it is! And then as things progress and time goes by, you experience this period akin to the muddled middle. Complications ensue, you experience distress, there are items popping left and right that are “not on the job description,” there are gray lines and not just black and white, and so forth. Working through this — to get to Rohr’s “reorder” phase — takes time, personal growth and evolutionary practices, and focused, mindful development at the personal/professional/organizational level.
Being versus Doing
I know a lot of people that say they want to be something. In this specific case, it is a City Manager / County Administrator. “I want to be a City Manager!” they say. To which I reply, “are you prepared to do the work of the Manager?” There is a big difference between aspiring to be, and being, and then doing the work, on a day to day basis. The work is in the slop, the trenches, the bad days, the frustrations — one has to be ok with and reconcile those realities with the oft-pleasant aspirational aspects of simply holding the position itself.
Real-time Work
A coaching client of mine was recently due to experience a major weather event. This would be his first time managing such an event, and operating the Emergency Operations Center. It was a snow event, with lots of lead time and therefore, they could plan ahead and plan accordingly. I gave him one simple piece of advice - have a notebook (actual pen and paper) besides you all of the time. In real time, as things progress, use this notebook for one singular purpose – notetaking on processes, policies, people, programs, actions, and so forth that need to be addressed post-event. This could be the way some press communication was handled or how parking issues were resolved with the local municipality.
Surviving or Thriving
Organizations, and the leaders of them, often find themselves in one of three types of situations. Treading water, setting sail, or sinking. There’s also a straight duality assessment - which basically blends treading water and sinking into one in the same, leaving setting sail alone – are you surviving or are you thriving? Take stock in your organization first. Assess your performance and current status (be honest) against this simple metric. There’s not 7 out of 10 here really. Also, do the same with yourself as a person and as a leader. Self-reflect and take your time. Look at your schedule - are there events, activities and planned items that reflect your growth and growth opportunities and developments and progress? Or is it filled with stuff that is keeping things afloat. Static situations of “just getting by” aren’t bad. They’re fine. But if you stay there, you probably will just end up sinking.
Performance Appraisals
I was speaking with a coaching client recently and the subject of personal performance appraisals came up. They had a 7 member Board and their process was such that all 7 needed to file their appraisal/review by December 31st. Only three had complied. In the past, it was rarely that 7 provided. There was also a self-appraisal that the CEO needed to complete, themselves, annually by the same date as part of the process. I have seen many bad things happen when appraisal processes are not adhered to as specified in policy. The Board needs to comply and be reminded and maybe even harangued and cajoled in the run-up to the deadline, so they keep up with their end of the bargain. And the CEO should always comply. This is important and more than just CYA. It’s an essential part of the employment agreement and the CEO/Board compact. Leave nothing to chance or circumstances. Control your controllables.
Screenings
Most people know that at age 45 one is due for a colorectal screening. Other common ones include bone density scans at age 65 and the shingles vaccine at age 50. In your organization, what screenings should be taking place and at what years or milestone markers? Major budget officer or administrative officer turnover? A thorough financial audit (if not already done). Running a self-insured health program? Every five years, a dependent eligibility audit for your health insurance participants. Heavy in terms of policies, procedures and so forth? Every year (if you can) an analysis of policies and which ones should stay, go, and/or be amended. Have a Board? Upon changeover of a council or board, make sure you undergo a council-manager or administration-governance training. Institutionalizing these in your community or organization will be foundational to the long-term success and health of your organization.
Going Analog, Redux
I realize this is a bit like my pen and paper blog post of recent past, but there is something about the simplicity of not being around the technological aspects of our modern lives. Time in nature. A car ride without the satellite radio / podcast on bluetooth / hands-free call. A morning read with a “paper copy” of the morning newspaper, still cold from being in the box in the wee hours of a chilly winter day. I refer to these simplicities as “going analog.” I include such professional and organizational items like taking out pen and paper, walking to the office (if one can), holding meetings in person, phone calls versus Zooms, lunch meetings in person and so forth. There is nothing like these personal, “old school” touchpoints to take one back to the simpler times.
Pen and Paper
With technology in our face all the time, and the dings and pings of social media and phone notifications, how therapeutic it is to just sit down with pen and paper and think. Do a brain dump. Write out plans. Do resolutions. Review quarterly tracking. Develop a personal strategic plan. Write out a to-do list. Send people get well, touch-base, and/or thinking of you cards. Whatever it is, do it in pen and paper. You can thank me later.
Service
Service is a responsibility. We have obligations, not formal and contractual, but to me inherent, that indicate that we have a responsibility of serving others, of helping where and when we can, of paying it forward. You need not be a philanthropist or a community organizer. You could simply call on a neighbor in time of need. Hold open a door. Caretake for a loved one. Treat the opportunity of small, and big, service work as a solemn charge that you, as part of humanity, have.
Attentive Listening
Whether it be job interviews or simple conversations, more and more people I find are truly lacking in attentive and intentional listening. They’re distracted by other things. They are keen and intent (bad pun) on saying what they want to say and not simply listening to what the other person is saying. They are failing to acknowledge the other person’s point. This is beyond tact versus tactless. This is a big issue and generationally, alas, it does seem to be getting worse. Smartphones, text-based communication, distractions, and attention-demanding “everything” around us is surely to blame. Take a pause, listen, don’t jump to conclusions, don’t jump to what you wish to say irrespective of where the conversation is going, don’t talk over people, and show them your undivided — and undistracted — attention. While I would argue this is expected, common, regular and “of course” type counsel – doing so will separate you from what the “norm” seems to be these days.