— To follow is a bullet of wisdom on leadership. It comes from Tom’s rifle, named Shot, who has seen it all. You’ll get the drift by clicking Blog in the menu at www.tomnewhouse.com. —
QUIET! It was a command, spoken softly but surely. I heard it then and many times after. My bolt action was engaged, firing pin activated, and trigger toggled. Rudy, my marksman, said “Shhhh” to our companion. “Just listen.” In the stillness, all was actually not quiet. One could hear the chortle of the prairie hen, the rustle of breeze-blown leaves, the grunt of a badger, the padding of snow falling from trees, the flapping of an owl’s wings, and more. It was a busy, exhilarating quiet.
You want to listen well. Then be quiet. And let the others have moments of quiet time—when they go silent—with their voice, that is. Oh, they won’t really be quiet; Their minds will be processing a hundred things—maybe more—seemingly all at once. “Shhhh.” They’ll be back and with more to say, perhaps about their real goals, what truly matters, how they’ll handle a situation, or what plan they have. You’re a listener. To be more than that is not to be that.