Good or Bad? – I was in a meeting today and someone said we had made a drastic improvement in something. I think he meant dramatic. I often hear people claiming that they want notoriety when what they really want is publicity. I worked with a person who, at least once a week, told a large group of people that, “It’s detrimental that we fix this problem immediately.” It seems that in our society today that it’s more important to use an impactful word than to actually understand what the word means. So who corrects these errors? Not many people do – they don’t want to come across as someone’s English teacher. But we’ll correct engineers on circuit designs, accountants on accrual problems, lawyers on legal language, etc. When people misuse these words, we understand what they are talking about. But others may not. If a CEO told investors that the company is making some drastic changes, the message is quite different than if he said dramatic changes. And the reason he said that is because nobody thought it was important to provide him the correct information (for the past 20 years!!). There is benefit from clear communication. So, even if you can’t do it directly, write a note that spells out the difference. The person you are helping will be grateful to you, if not today, then in the future – when they use that word correctly.

Warming Up – When I came to work today it was cold in my office so I fired up the space heater that I have. So I’m thinking that we let a lot of things warm up before using them. We let our cars warm up, we warm up before exercising or playing sports, before we sing, and on and on. A Canadian friend of mine said that in the winter they let everything warm up before using it! But do we let our people “warm up” when they come to work? I warm up by getting a cup of coffee as my PC boots up, then I review new emails, and set my calendar for the day. I know that if I have a meeting scheduled for the first thing in the morning, it disrupts my day a little bit. So my question is, “Are you the type that schedules 8:00 am meetings?” If so, not letting your people do the seemingly unproductive activity of “warming up” might cause them to “break down” later on. (And don’t suggest they come in a half hour earlier because you know you’ll start scheduling meetings at 7:30!!)

Is it a River? – During my lunchtime walk today I went by a “tributary” of the Los Angeles River. Actually, it was a concrete channel with no water in it, which, by the way, is what much of the LA River is like. In Phoenix, they have the Salt River and most of the year it’s the same thing – it has no water in it. So why call it a river and not a dry riverbed? Perhaps, it’s because it was once a river and has the potential to be a river again – in fact, in its glory it is a river! Why not treat people the same way and recognize their past and perhaps future successes. The entertainment industry excels at this. “Here is Academy Award winner so and so.” They don’t tell you they won the award in 1957. “I’d like to introduce Triple Crown winner Frank Robinson.” He didn’t win the Triple Crown last year – it was 40 years ago, but that’s not the point. People like to be recognized for what they have accomplished. Imagine if you introduced one of your employees as “employee of the year Bill Jones.” Maybe he won that in 1991, but Bill will feel great and the people you are introducing him to will probably think well of him, too. This one is free and reminds you how valuable your people really are.

Hide the Gatorade - I watched the bowl games over the holidays and with every winning team, the inevitable happened – dumping the Gatorade on the winning coach. Now the first time they did this it was kind of funny. But by now, isn’t it getting a little tired? Maybe after Hall of Fame coach George Allen died from the “ice water on head” treatment, we should have retired it. But it lives on – even outlasting The Wave.

What is more concerning, though, is the subtle change in society that this represents. In the “old” days, when our leaders marched us to victory, we honored them. Remember Vince Lombardi (and many other coaches) being carried off on the shoulders of the players. “We are victorious and this is our great leader!!” But now we want to reward victory with humiliation. We win the game, and then we douse our coach with freezing cold water. Students improve their reading skills and we have the principal shave his head or dress up like a chicken. Company profits skyrocket and we have a party and allow employees to throw cream pies at the executives (this actually happened at a company where I worked). What has happened to us that causes us to reward achievement with humiliation? What insecurity do we have that manifests the need to “bring people down” when they are both successful and are on our team?
You can opt out of this positive equals negative scenario. When something good happens, treat it like something good. Quash the suggestion to make fun of somebody and counter with honor and respect. When you can’t avoid being around the “humbling” scenario, don’t take part in it. Offer a towel and a high five instead. Lead by positive example. Make it your pledge that when you succeed, you will hide the Gatorade and open the champagne.