— 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 above. —
IN THE BOOK, SHOT, I tell of Lenn who, though bearing a shotgun, was overcome by the D’s (duress, distraught, desperate, and discomfited) in response to a wild bull who had his own D’s (delirious, demented, deranged, and dangerous). Ever get the D’s? You know, doubting, disappointed, downcast, delimited, despondent, dejected; or, darkened, dampened, daunted, defamed, and demolished. Or, maybe, you were in a deadfall, deception, default, or depression, feeling devastated, devoid, divided, or diffused. Enough, you say. Let’s disembark this dreadful dirge.
Yes, leaders, disengage from defeat and subscribe to victory. Counter the D’s—yours and those of your followers. Try some C’s: character, charisma, and commitment. Exercise profound care, positive change, new challenges, more capacity, and greater coordination. Communicate more, clarify concisely, circulate good news, cultivate creativity, and convene a compelling contingency. Circumvent coming crises, capitalize on your strengths, coach others to excellence, and channel a collective energy. In short—take it from a long rifle—combat D’s with C’s: C’n before D’n.