Followers blame their situation for not finding inspiration.
Leaders blame themselves for not finding inspiration within.
Which one are you?
Category Archives: Leadership
Don’t Waste Gatherings
Time together is a valuable commodity. Our Constitution honors the freedom to assemble in the very First Amendment. Time together should not be wasted on passive consumption. Active minds together exchange ideas and experiences that, when combined, can overrule the sum of their parts. The classroom, conference room, or venue should be reserved for collaboration, discussion, or audience involvement. Dialogue should be a two-way street, a symmetrical relationship. With the Internet more ubiquitous than ever, we have the freedom to access, share, and consume information whenever and wherever we want. We can connect with lectures, sermons, and updates asymmetrically on our private time. We should never waste the opportunity to commingle when sharing a room together. Spend private time well; spend time together better.
Embrace Rebellion
Craig’s first rule of parenting: children want to do what they are told not to. Aside from defiance or simple curiosity, I believe evolutionary biology drives our need to question authority. We are programmed from birth to challenge our parents. It’s a part of a natural life cycle: old must replace new and do so better than before to keep the species alive. It is the same reason we champion underdogs, success stories, fresh releases, and overthrows. Change is good, and new is the prerequisite to change. Embrace rebellion; it’s natural.
Flexibility
Since when has everything gone exactly to plan? Plans break all the time. That’s life. Things happen. When dealing with human or natural variables, it’s simply impossible to chart an infallible plan. A true test of character occurs every time you respond to malfunctions.
While backup plans are never a bad idea, they consume a lot of time and are unrealistic to outline for every operation. I propose a blanket backup plan: be flexible. Accept in advance that things happen beyond your control. Be prepared and practiced enough to make alternate plans quickly. Those who can accept change, keep cool, and think on their feet stand a better chance at getting things done. Furthermore, an open mind radically reduces stress and can open doors to better possibilities outside the original plan.
Embrace flexibility. It may very well be the key to a more fruitful, healthier life.
Steering a Large Ship
When you are in a small raft, you have enough influence and power to pilot the entire thing in a completely different direction. When you are on a massive cruise ship, you have no power at all and must go with the flow. Nothing you can do as a cruise ship passenger will change the direction the boat is sailing (unless you can convince everyone otherwise, mutiny the bridge to navigate, or sink the ship).
The analogy applies to companies and brands. It is much easier to have stake in and pilot the direction of a small company than a large one. Big companies are much more difficult to steer and big brands much more difficult to reposition. One man or woman will fight an uphill battle if he or she wants to inspire change from within an established, large organization or industry. One man or woman can sink an organization or brand alone, but I doubt the resulting consequences and reputation will be worth it.
Cruise ships have many amenities and benefits worth the ride. You can really travel through life in style in a reputable large organization. If the company treats you well enough, it may be worth the complacency of a vacationing passenger. But do not expect to change anything you do not favor from within the bureaucracy.
If you truly want to make a difference on your own in your field, consider building a faster raft and inspiring the cruise ship to keep up. Competition may be the only key to making a difference and steering a large ship.
Film School: The Super Degree
When I tell people I might take a break from the film industry to study the web, the first thing I’m asked is, “Didn’t you got to school for that? Why leave the business?”
I learned a hell of a lot more than just camerawork at film school. In what other degree do you learn to actively lead teams, coordinate logistics, start businesses, tell stories, embrace technology, manage budgets, engage in philosophy, write both fiction and non-fiction, design advertising campaigns, engineer software, study history, direct talent, interface with contemporary culture, carpenter sets, raise money, play with toys, draw pictures, play music, review law briefs, curate content, and express yourself? That’s right, I can’t think of another degree either.
Film school is an all-inclusive wrapper for a cumulative degree in storytelling, business, marketing, management, design, communication, technology, law, twentieth-century history, and cultural studies. In even the smallest film trade schools, you must learn to lead teams through creative and technical projects while coordinating schedules and money to do so. Few MBA programs I’ve heard of are half as hands-on.
At the University of Southern California‘s School of Cinematic Arts, I had the pleasure of studying under studio executives, A-list producers, active professionals, and trendsetting innovators; I produced over 280 minutes of content and coordinated more than a cumulative 200 students and professionals to do so; and I interfaced directly with current and impending trends in the film industry. I moved to Hollywood to study from within the belly of the beast and learned more than I could have ever imagined.
Am I bastardizing my cinema degree by jumping industries? Absolutely not. If anything, I am honoring it. And I would recommend it to absolutely anyone looking to master important entrepreneurial skills, engage his or her creative side, solve complicated human puzzles, and have some fun.
You Look Stupid With Too Many Hats On
Lean and mean companies staff few to do the jobs of many. Especially in startups, you are expected to “wear many hats.” There’s a lot of pride in being superhuman, accomplishing a lot, and exhibiting different skill-sets. Staff members may complain, but deep down they feel awesome for being worth more than one man or woman.
As a leader, wearing many hats earns you more control. You can have your finger in everything, stay involved, and have your say. But be very careful – spreading yourself too thin will hurt the work and hurt you. I don’t care who you think you are; there are physical limitations to what you can do with your time. Whether you believe it or not, you cannot do everything. Too many hats will weigh your head down. You must learn to delegate and trust others. If you do not, the quality of work done by you and others will suffer dramatically.
Don’t look like a fool for wearing too many hats. Give a few away.
The Snowball of Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship is all about momentum. Hell, business is all about momentum. Ever roll a snowball to build a snowman? When starting a business, you need to push everything to a start, pack more snow on, recruit people to help you roll the ball as it gets bigger, and keep things going smoothly. If the ball stops, you will have to apply extra force to get it started again. Keep people excited, keep the idea alive, and keep people having fun. The energy alone will inspire your team, the caliber of work, and the vision at hand. Stop for no one.
Be careful and mind your surroundings. Some leaders get too excited about the work to notice the cliff ahead. One sharp rock could shatter your snowball. The trick with momentum? Stay fresh and always look forward. Avoid tunnel-vision at all costs so that you can chart the best course for your project. Listen to your team, your mentors, and the market around you. They may see something you don’t and could save the snowman’s life.
Mission Before Business, Horse Before Cart
People throw around the word “entrepreneur” like it’s a lifestyle trend. Many fancy themselves an “entrepreneur” with only the curiosity (or perhaps a lust) for building a business. Like movie or rock stars, many successful business leaders keep up a public image. Far too many people subscribe to entrepreneurship because it sounds and looks cool. Most fail to understand the real work involved.
Building a business is very hard. With very few resources at hand, you must pull everything together through favors and very long hours. If you do not truly believe in what you are building, then it will never work. You must have a mission or product you believe in first before chasing your lust for business. Not only that, but you must have a mission or product that can inspire other people to help you and customers to buy from you. That’s a tricky thing to find. Most wannabe entrepreneurs forget that the core mission or product is what it’s all about. And it must come first.
Everyone and his or her mother wants to start a business and be a boss. Nobody will care about you until you give him or her something to sink teeth into. If you cannot offer the world a product that changes lives, then you must start with a mission people can understand, sign on for, and follow to the end. You must get the team on board and excited. And to find success with your business, you must get customers on board and excited as well. As the character Proximo says in Gladiator, “Win the crowd, and you will win your freedom.”
Find your core idea, set your mission, build a product, and then build a business around it. You cannot have a business without something to be busy about.
The Hat-Trick of Leadership
While it takes many different ingredients to make a leader, some of the greatest I study share the following three traits:
- Higher Purpose – for the mission and for humanity abroad.
- Steadfast Optimism – faith in people, the direction, and positive results.
- Genuine Patriotism – in service of and love for the family or organization at hand.
Do you have what it takes?
Craig Ormiston 