Good Morning Friends! Here are my 5 Things to Consider this week!
Culture – The freedom to live on purpose…or live by accident. We give you a lot of space here at LNS and OF. This isn’t an accident. It’s a direct reflection of the culture we’ve built. We’ve never been a “clock-in, clock-out” type of company because in our view, we’re adults here doing adult shit and we’re fully capable of managing our own time and priorities. We want you to be PROACTIVE in your careers with us because constantly having to micromanage is REACTIVE and not the way we want to live. I often talk about how freedom is the most valuable thing in the world. Not the “star-spangled-bald eagle draped in a flag-these colors don’t run” type of freedom, but the freedom to take a day off when you need one. Or to go home when you’re done with your day or to take your kid or relative to the doctor without having to ask. These are freedoms that make our “work-life” balance great and we wouldn’t have it any other way. If you’re reading this and are at the phase with us where you still have to show up on-time and leave when your shift is over, I offer this as an incentive to grow with us. As you grow and prove yourself with us, your freedoms grow too. With this freedom though, comes responsibility. We trust that you’ll use your time wisely and make getting the job done a priority. We trust that you’ll put effort into self-development and strive to be a better person tomorrow than you are today. And we especially trust that you’ll be the living embodiment of our values and come in every day knowing that together, we’re building something that’s truly great. When we combine the components of freedom, living with purpose and all working towards a common goal, we become unstoppable…and that’s the farthest thing from an accident.
Leadership – Leadership is an attitude, not a title. I was talking with a buddy the other day about the topic of leadership and, specifically, what makes a good leader? It lead to the question, what is leadership? Does simply being in charge make you a leader? I argued it isn’t. Is a good manager a good leader? Maybe. What came out of that conversation is crucial to us and our shops; management is a job and leadership is an attitude. Being able to properly manage a shop means you are adhering to a set of systems, processes, and behaviors. It’s very objective. Very black and white. Management is the things you do day-in and day-out that make your shop run well. Conversely, leadership is a mindset. It’s how you treat the people you’re in charge of leading. It’s the attitude you bring with you every day. It’s knowing the difference between accomplishing a set of tasks and duties and truly being aware, connected and concerned with the future of your team. When you develop the mindset that, “to lead you must first serve,” then you are truly on the path to leadership. Your observable behavior will be that of a leader and your team will naturally gravitate to you. Respect from your team is earned when you lead them and not simply manage them.
History – Faygo. I’m pretty sure the idea to carry all 23 flavors of Faygo came from Damon, the bartender at Bodgea. He is a Detroit native and grew up on the stuff. One day, back in the first couple weeks of the Shack he mentioned that we should carry Faygo and they have something like 30 flavors. I couldn’t have been more excited. I looked up their website and contacted their local representative immediately. It was a marriage made in heaven. Looking back, carrying all those flavors was one of the defining elements of LNS. People would always walk by the Shack and say “that’s Late Night Slice. They play movies on the wall and have like 50 flavors of Faygo.” Pizza and pop make a pretty good combo. Faygo was, and still is, an excellent brand compliment.
Motivation – “The problem is not the problem. The problem is your attitude about the problem. Do you understand?” – Captain Jack Sparrow
What I’m Reading or Watching – I’m still deep into Pour Your Heart Into It, the story of Starbucks by Howard Shultz. As much as I love this book and can’t put it down, I’m finding myself, for the first time being sort of defensive or sensitive or some other feeling I can’t very well describe. As in, his story about building Starbucks just seems so much more…planned and easy. So much more proactive. For the first time in my life, I’m feeling a little butt-hurt about another company, and that company is fucking Starbucks. I know that sounds funny and ridiculous, which it is, but looking back on our journey’s, sometimes I wish I had been as together as he seems to have been. I guess that’s why I’m reading his book.
Baby Update – Tonight (Monday) is only the second night that I’ve been away from the little guy since he was born. It’s hard for me to leave. I’m finding that one of the hardest thing about my work-family balance is the constant feeling like “I need to get back!” Wherever I’m at, work or Cincinnati or whatever, I always feel like I’ve been away for too long. I know that it’s a good thing that I want to get back. I’m aware how hard it is to take care of a baby by one’s self and that makes me want to get back to give Rachael a break. The more we get used to having the little dude around, the more we get used to these curve balls that life throws at us. Luckily we have family and friends that help when we need them. I’m also lucky there’s going to be a ton of booze where I’m going. 😉
Thanks for reading! Like or hate any part of this? Let me know! I really value your feedback.
Have a great week!
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