Tag: Leadership

Leaders need to lead the way (A Citizen’s Letter in a Time of Crisis)

I have been disappointed for some time from what I’ve read, watched in the media and heard through the chatter amongst peers as this crisis unfolds. I have seen everything from calm to stupid. After work on Wednesday I decided to stop by the grocery store and get a few things for the weekend; such as hand wipes, some Lysol spray and maybe some fruit and other little knickknacks. However, when I arrived at the grocery store and began shopping for my few items I notice to my surprise that the shelves were empty, of meats, of fruits, seafood and the other paper products that I was seeking for.  I overheard a shopper asked one the store personnel about toilet paper, I thought for a minute in a humorous way that was strange. So I decided to go to the aisle to help the shopper out finding toilet paper. I didn’t really need any toilet paper but to my astonishment to was gone. The fully stocked shelves of paper products including toilet paper were gone.   Go figure!!!  No one sensible enough to believe that just a few weeks ago before this surge of panic hit the airwaves people would be fighting over toilet paper and paper products, so reality began unfolding.  Then capture this moment in your imagination that other people with families were walking up and down the food aisles in a daze wondering like me where all the paper products, fruit and meats disappear to.  I could see the look in the people eyes and in their expressions of disbelief; I missed out and thought in mind of when the shelves will be stocked again.  The sad part of this experience is that I didn’t need food for the month or for the week. All I needed was a few things. However, looking at some of the families in disbelief of what they were witnessing walking up and down the food isles trying to find that needed food item perhaps dinner for that night; was sad to observe.

I guess people went stir crazy, when they saw that our Government at all levels didn’t have a handle on what was going on, held and back vital information to the people. This caused skepticism, cynicism and uncertainty amongst the general public. This causes psychological negative behaviors that were displayed such as fear, panic and stress.   Those who took matters into their own hands panic and began buying in large quantities of essential items.   Therefore, negative display of behaviors manifests themselves by shoppers raiding the supermarket stores shelves during the worst time in this world’s history.  These were very selfish acts committed against our fellow men.    

Another way of looking at the committed selfishness is the disruption on the supply chain just out of fear.  Disruption in an already fragile supply chain, according to Steve Culp of Forbes magazine can reduce the share pricing as much as 7% of affected companies, and cause slowdowns in the market place in response to the disruption. This previous run on the supermarkets sent a jolt in the supply chain which was behavior driven.  This false negative can cause bottlenecks within those effected companies.

From an economic scale the disruptive behavior disturbed an already complex and fragile supply chain.  This behavior sent false negatives in the market place and distorted the prices of the commodity the law of supply and demand was not implemented.  We live in free market system, the law of supply and demand says that when the price of a commodity will net demand goes up in the supply of that commodity is down in the price is higher. On the flipside when the demand for those commodities is down in the price or supply that entire commodity is up in the price is lower. The distortion comes in when the price of a commodity doesn’t follow the law of supply and demand.

While people made a run on the supermarkets just hoard it for them instead of buying what they need for right now. Instead people had no regard for others such as those families that were in shock and unable to find the flexibility of buying those needed items for that day or the week.  People were out for self, these actions were based out of fear driven behaviors and this selfish acts happen across the nation.  People were literally fighting for these essential commodities.  This is a defining moment not only for leaders in organizations in the community but also leaders in Washington DC. I will save the politics for later but right now we have an elephant in the room and we got to get it out.

So I appeal to leaders at all levels, first must display calmness and control especially at the local levels and restore trust in the public.  Leaders must display behaviors free from agitation, disorientation and anger, instead show strong tranquility free from anxiety and fear.  As John Maxwell would say , “leaders must not lead and moan at the same time.”  When people see that their leaders display behaviors of strength, the people with begin to trust and take on these transmittable  behaviors.  People are influenced by what they see not what they are told. To quote John Maxwell leadership is influence nothing more and nothing less.   

James Allen, said “the more tranquil a man becomes, the greater it is his success, he’s a influence , his powers for good, calmness of mine is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom.“

This past few weeks were crazy there were no, this was so wherever totally took everybody by surprise, preparedness wasn’t our strong point and calmness was not present amongst the chaos.  Therefore it triggered the behavior of total selfishness within individuals that did not care for their fellow man.

What happens in the United States was a trust problem which displays negative behavioral problems.  Leaders need to,

1.  Restore the trust of the people. Right now their don’t trust the government to make the right decision and have a handle on this epidemic.

2. Show people that their leaders are in control of their of the issues surrounding this epidemic and a willingness to share information regardless if it’s good or bad.  People want to know about the progress of the virus.

 3. Restore the people’s trust back in the government as leading the way in sharing information, keep them up to date on the cure and be upfront and sensible about the true picture of the looming crisis.  

The solution is to control the chaos by the display of confidence and strength.  The restoration of trust of the public.  A control on issuing the essential items and a willingness to share information at State and Local levels on how to obtain essential items need to get through this crisis.  This is the bottom-line of Mark Weitzman, paper of “Price distortion and shortage deformation, or what happened to the Soap” written in 1991.

So my story doesn’t end there I’m still waiting for the abundance of supplies to fill the shelves to me that will take another week or so while these control measures are being implemented. Not saying that this will eradicate the shortage problem but at least the shelves won’t be as bare as I saw them a few weeks ago. What are your thoughts and comments on this matter? Am I far off?

Derrick Darden PhD

It’s here!!! The revised 2nd ed. ebook and Paperback is out on Amazon.

“Cooperating in the Workplace” Revised Expanded Second Edition

Normally, when a person thinks about cooperation in the workplace, they think it simply means avoiding chaos on the job. However, in reality, it means much more than that it means working productively with others to achieve a common corporate goal. For those trying to maintain a fulfilling workplace experience and encourage others to the same end, certain steps can be taken to make cooperation an objective understood and shared by all.

But let’s face it: not everyone is taught how to succeed in the workplace while working with others. Ask yourself: 

• Are you productive each day on your job, and living up to your fullest potential?

• At work, do you feel you’re lost in a confusing maze and don’t know how to escape?

• Do you feel that you want to know how to work better with millennials, deal with sexual harassment, or work with veterans?

• Do you want to learn about teamwork because you just landed a position that requires you to lead a bunch of high-speed coworkers?

As our working environment becomes more diverse and global ,our knowledge and organizational skills and behavior must develop along with those changes. Improving workplace cooperation is forefront in the minds of many who understand the importance of communication and teamwork as skills needed to reach a common goal. 

The author not only let you know what is happening in the business world, but gives you what you need to be a winner in your workplace.

As a Gulf War Veteran and Senior Army Warrant Officer who worked in the fields of logistics and Federal Acquisition in the federal government and later as an entrepreneur, I’ve seen how organizational form and structure within the federal government and in my own business experience provided foundational keys and principles that guided me to success in both the public and private sectors. 

This 2nd edition is for new employees, supervisors in mid-level management would benefit. 

On Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/sitb/B07MYBQHHN?ref=sib_dp_aw_kd_udp

Blog: http:// dcdardentalks.com

Please leave a comment.

Don’t self-sabotage your own success (you have the seeds of greatness) in you!

 

 

 

What holds you back? What is keeping you from reaching your goals? So many of us are so close to having that breakthrough, but we self-sabotage the path that breaks a success. Perhaps fear rips our consciousness in a new relationship; we think of our self-worth as undervalued and marginalize our abilities. We lack the value and belief in ourselves, and we psychologically and sometimes physically self-sabotage our success from having that true break-through.

First, let us define the familiar word “success.” This word means different things to different people. Happiness, wealth, recognition, independence, friendship, achievement, and inner peace. Because we measure success differently, let’s say that it’s an individual thing. No matter what stage in life we are in, victory differs from person to person, even family to family, no matter what socioeconomic level someone may belong to.

    Success is the progressive realization of a worthy goal or ideal. People with goals succeed because they know where they’re going. Whatever we plant in out subconscious mind and nourish with repetition and emotion will on day become a reality. (Earl Nightingale)

As we develop through life, success can be measured by different factors in an individual’s journey. For example, as a teenager, he or she feels successful when he or she gets a new car, has enough money to buy the latest fashion at the mall, or make the sports team in high school.

An individual in their thirties may have a different measure of success by having a house, a successful career path, or a family and kids. Or a 60-year-old may measure success by feeling and living a healthy life. As the old saying goes, “What’s one man success is another man’s failure.”

Success can begin at birth. A child can hear the voice of its mother’s aspirations and real ambitions in the womb. The child grows, and those subtle messages permeate the subconscious as those aspirations continue. As seeds of greatness are planted and watered, they become part of that child’s mental DNA as the mother nurtures and sow those seeds into the child’s life. The future looks bright for that child because of the principle that the sower sows the word belief. High will be that child’s success. Success can be in education, playing an instrument, or playing sports. Greater will be that child’s success because the real seeds of aspiration were sown and watered consistently.

Success can be incubated and displayed in unique and undefined ways. If you ever heard of the term “late bloomer,” no matter how and when those seeds of greatness manifest themselves, and then the flower blooms and gives off its fragrance to the world.

Again, you as an individual may define success differently and in your own unique way, but you must be fulfilled and accomplished. So, what is your definition of success? Be what you love, do something well, contribute something useful, and be yourself.

You decide…

Derrick C Darden, PhD