This last week one of my current American Government &Politics class members submitted a weekly Position Paper entitled:  Homework Does NOT Increase Learning.  Well I decided quickly she was a top candidate for making it a class presentation/discussion topic.  And it was very evident that she was proud of her topic selection and even prouder of her opportunity to share her thoughts and “Position” on the homework issue.

As you can guess, the rest of the class voted unanimously in favor of her idea to eliminate homework for students in all grades.  But you will also not be surprised that when I cast my vote…I included a statement that I thought it was a very short-sighted, creativity limiting and professional-growth delaying concept.  The resulting class discussion was very good!  And in the end I truly believe that everyone understand that dependent on one’s approach…Progressive “HOMEWORK” could be a better mindset.  So to correctly continue this important re-learning opportunity…this week’s TRIPLE III TIME message is kind of a reminder that homework…Progressive “HOMEWORK” can and should be a continuous improvement component of every workplace.

Think about it.

If you want to stay “up with the times” research homework may be a suitable responsibility.  Or if you are looking at new/different hi-tech ways of changing your business/agency marketing…Progressive HOMEWORKon what is most effective might be timely.  Or if you need to upgrade your professional credentials…to possible apply for a new/different job…Progressive HOMEWORKwould be a natural action to build your new life/work plan!

Maybe we all don’t think about daily life/work challenges and the Progressive HOMEWORK that we complete to improve?!  But if not before…today please be proud of and take credit for the professional advancements you achieve based on the Progressive HOMEWORK you complete everyday…EVERYDAY!

I know I’ve said and explained it before… but I never know where a cool concept for the next TRIPLE III TIME message may come from.  But let me say without any doubt… I never thought the Detroit Lions would ever be a progressive motivator!!

Let me explain.

Yes, I have been a life-long Lions fan… and annual disappointment has just been a regular fact of life.  However, like all Lions fans everywhere the last season and the current one has been an almost dream-like scenario.  And for me one of the most impressive leadership actions has been the team’s “4th & 1” DecisionMaking.  You know what I am referring to… right?  I am talking about continuously engaging a “LET’S GO FOR IT/Calculated Risk-Taker” action when faced with a fourth down and one yard (or short yardage) to be gained to achieve a first down and continue their drive for a touchdown!  It is a NEW LIONS… league-changing… impact on the game of football.

So why is this new “4th & 1” Decision Making change phenomenon an unexpected TRIPLE III TIME motivator?

Well I think the Lions success on-the-field and as a business in the sports sector… provides a real life example of the positivity of making a non-traditional “LET’S GO FOR IT/Calculated Risk–Taker” decision from time-to-time in the world-of-work.  Continuing down a “that’s the way we have always done it and/or how the game has always been played” path of operation may be easier to manage… but brings limited growth.

Think about the overall importance of adopting a developmental “4th & 1” Decision Making strategy in your personal and work life… and maybe leave the Lions out of it.  Taking that “LET’S GO FOR IT/Calculated Risk-Taker” action… may result in a multitude of unexpected progressive achievements and a new organizational “let’s enjoy being a winner” attitude that is regularly contagious!

One of the historic TOP 10 Employee Expectations is to have leaders and managers follow a professional style of being Dedicated & Balanced no matter the challenge.  And I can say as a career-long student of the principles of being a great leader…in almost every writing I have found the terms Dedicated & Balanced used regularly in a variety of progressive ways!

So for this Triple III message lets begin by thinking about the term Dedicated.  At first glance, issues that come to mind include being Dedicated to the:  company, making a profit, employees, customers…and of course the “cause” driving your organization.  But doesn’t EXAMPLE-SETTING, ACCESSIBLE, MOTIVATIONAL, CALCULATED RISK-TAKER and FUTURE-THINKER have a “fit” with being Dedicated?? Or should each have their own section to discuss and assess?

Next what about the main elements of being professionally Balanced.  Does it mean focusing too much on one area and giving a different area only a little leadership effort?  Or are we talking about interaction time with co-workers, partners in business, fiscal record-keepers, the general public or selective friends/colleagues?  Or is Balance more about money and how it is used within a group versus a specific product area?

The intent of this TRIPLE III TIME message topic:  Dedicated & Balanced is to encourage everyone to explore to multiple LEADERSHIP quality points contained in these special terms.  As you consider your own status regarding being Dedicated…realize that showing up early and sometimes staying late at the job is only a small part of the measurement.  Then as you assess your skill at being Balanced on the job…understand that time management is only one section of it’s total value.

Take a little extra time on this III message and hopefully progressive understandability will be your reward.

Well it is time again for starting up my American Government & Politics classes for the fall semester.  Am I ready… yes… but I wish I had another month of summer!  However, instead of whining about the fast passing of the Michigan seasons, I am moving forward with my plans for challenging the students.  As you hopefully recall each semester I give them a single word or concept to focus on as individuals and how it might impact the class as a whole.  So as you may have already guessed… this semester’s assigned concept will be:  Defining Success.

Typically people think about money, fame, power, status “about town” and promotional achievements when they consider measuring their success.  But what about Defining Success in a more personal, satisfying way?  An author and public speaker Alain de Botton in a special talk on creativity… I think said it best:

“We should focus in on our ideas, and make sure that we own them; that we are truly the authors of our own ambitions.  It’s bad enough not getting what you want.  But it’s even worse to [find out] it isn’t, in fact, what you wanted all along.”

Interestingly, I start every class by asking each student to indicate: “What do you want out of this American  Government & Politics class?”  Some answers are just standard…get college credit…get an A…not have to take the high school government class.  But many also offer a personal gain of knowledge answer which gives me even more professional enthusiasm to do a great teaching job!

I guess my principle TRIPLE III TIME Defining Successmessage is to encourage everyone to apply a personally satisfying “measuring-stick” to your ambitions and goals.  Do yourself a favor and make sure you consider:  What do I really want?  The deep down answers will come as no surprise and may offer a more satisfying personal and professional life-style!

One of the extreme actions that can often make or break an entrepreneurial endeavor is the preparation of a quality business plan. In a textbook often used by small business development specialists… one of the best quotes I recognized read like this:

“A real benefit of a business plan is the fact that in the act of preparing it, the would-be entrepreneur is forced to develop the business idea on paper and firm up his or her thinking about the launch before investing time and money in it.”

Well as I thought about this week’s TRIPLE III TIME message, I was drawn to the fact that Business Planning IS An Every Year Opportunity in every aspect of your personal and professional life. So, ponder these TOP 10 factors of consideration for YOUR annual business plan!

1. Creativity: Every business plan needs/must contain creativity factors in order to advance and grow.
2. Stabilization: Business plans must also consider factors to maintain a level of stability within ones overall home/business economy.
3. Cost Analysis: Balancing profit and loss, assets versus liabilities, is a necessary part of business… of life.
4. Customer Service: Who isn’t your customer and maintaining an effective plan in his area is critical.
5. Personal Advancement: Effective business planning should also require you and co-workers to continually improve.
6. Marketing: What people see and hear about you… your company/organization… is up to you through your business plan.
7. Location: Are you geographically happy where you are personally and/or professionally? Does your yearly business plan address this?
8. Partnering: A solid business plan should reflect who and how you strike good personal and professional partnerships with.
9. Change adaptations: Adapting effectively to change issues should be prioritized and highlighted every business planning year.
10. Succession Truths: Nothing lasts forever and considering personnel shifts/changes annually is just necessary on all fronts.

I bet you have not thought Business Planning IS An Every Year Opportunity very often in the past… right? Maybe the special TOP 10 points will help move this opportunity up a little higher as a regular consideration both personally and professionally.

One area of leadership that has always shown up as an unplanned challenge is co-worker self-improvement.  It was/is always interesting when some are asked the question:  “What areas do you feel the need to improve on or get extra training about?”…and the response is more a series of additional questions!  Questions like:

• What trainings are available? 
• Is everyone being asked the same questions about self-improvement?
• Can I just take a one-day class…not a longer one?
• Could I take training with Charlie, Sarah, and Judy…it would be better that way?
• Would I get a grade…or what if I fail the class?
• Do I/we get a raise if we take the training?
• What happens if I can’t come up with something I need to be better at?
• I thought because you are the Director…that you pick training to help us improve?

Have you heard or maybe spoken these words before?!

Well, this week’s TRIPLE III TIME message:  Self-Improvement:  Who ME?…is totally intended to force you as a professional to specifically answer the question:  What new coaching or training would make me a better employee?  Think only about your current skill sets and what may be missing.  Would more:

• Computer training help?
• Communication options/opportunities create improvement?
• Price/cost analysis information assist?
• Diversity understanding be a benefit?
• Public speaking assistance aide connectivity?
• Or others?

Everyone can see that this list of “help” learning suggestions could go on and on.  However, only you know best…what you may be missing.  Also, remember that no self-improvement development gap is too small or too large to be considered!  Self-Improvement:  Who ME? is a life-long appropriate question that should be progressively asked…and ANSWERED?

Did or do you work in an organization that always looks to a single employee as the “regular idea person”?  You know what I am referring to.  The situation that traditionally expects a certain person to be the standard source for new ideas/concepts/innovations?!

Is this a good practice?  Does this occurrence mean that only “chosen” people are able to come up with cool new ideas…and everyone else gets a “pass” on thinking innovatively??  Does this practice also mean that if only one or two people in an organization think about the value of creativity in the workplace…and they leave…that the group would be instantly falling behind the times??

Well, no matter how you respond to the initial TRIPLE III TIME message questions…today I believe we need to more frequently embrace a “Crowd-Driven-IDEATION” methodology!  Specifically, this means that the more people one involves in the building and facilitation of a new product or service idea…the greater potential it may have for quicker/more complete success.

OK…this process sounds easy but for today, I want to initiate a thought process of factors to consider if one adopts a “Crowd-Driven-IDEATION” path.

1. Would you feel comfortable asking others to co-ideate?
2. Could you deal with a reduced level of control over the idea?
3. Would you be willing to allow co-ownership of the idea results/profit/loss?
4. Would “Crowd-Driven” mean greater involvement of technology in the entire idea-building process…and would that be ok?
5. Would “Crowd-Driven-IDEATION” offer the potential for more fiscal support for the idea?
6. Could “Crowd-Driven-IDEATION” cause total cancelation of the initiative?
7. Would a shared idea-building option improve/make selling the new concept more flexible?
8. Is “Crowd-Driven-IDEATION” a better tool for maximizing an idea?
9. Does “Crowd-Driven-IDEATION” creatively expand the geographic application/support of the idea?
10. And finally a critical consultant question I have asked many times: How can an idea be considered good or great…unless shared with others?

These unique TOP 10 “Crowd-Driven-IDEATION” consideration questions are all important when partnering on real innovation and creativity concepts.  Give each one adequate thought…then GET GOING!