Be sure of who you surround yourself with.
"The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him." - Niccolò Machiavelli
History is littered with the stories of powerful rulers who surrounded themselves with sycophants. Those ‘yes’ men and women who pander to everything they say!
Examples can be found in all walks of life, surrounding anyone with a position of power or perceived power, whether it's world leaders, business owners, spiritual teachers, or even a local committee.
Weak people and potential sociopaths (maybe even psychopaths) alike have fallen victim to the same thing. One being too afraid to stand up and say “enough”, the other only too happy to have their ego stroked.
This is not to spare these people from blame by any means, Adolf Hitler or Joseph Stalin may have been surrounded by ‘yes’ men bent on their own progress, but we cannot use that to excuse the atrocities these men instigated. They were not innocent bystanders. Hitler, for one, wrote a book about his intentions years before coming to power.
The business world is not without its characters who have caused large-scale harm.
In recent times, we have watched the fall of swindlers like Sam Bankman-Fried, Elizabeth Holmes and Bernie Madoff.
These people committed fraud on a massive scale but did not do so alone.
No one was either willing to call them out or they benefited too much, choosing to stay quiet out of self-interest.
Either way, people suffered as a result.
It is not only at a large scale that these things happen, in everyday life there are examples that cause much less harm.
Yet, as a business owner or a leader in any arena, it is up to you to surround yourself with capable people. Those who will question your ideas and motives. That will bring out and expect more from you.
It is up to you to bring these people into your life.
Abraham Lincoln had his famous “team of rivals”.
Here was a strong man of principle who believed that he should be challenged daily in order to achieve the best outcome for the people.
Marcus Aurelius, who is believed to be one of the best Roman Emperors, ensured he was surrounded by honest advisors, men not afraid to question or challenge him.
In Northern Ireland, the Good Friday Agreement brought peace to a place that had suffered with violence for decades. It was the coming together of leaders from different backgrounds, with vastly different world views that finally made it possible.
You must be selective about those you spend your time with.
Whether it's your relationship, your circle of friends, business associates, family members, etc., it doesn't matter.
If the group consists of strong people who aren’t afraid to question and challenge one another then the group as a whole grows stronger.
The values and ideas that the group produces are then more likely to be stress tested and much more robust.
It is those whom we surround ourselves with that help create who we become. As Johann Wolfgang von Goethe put it:
“Tell me with whom you associate, and I will tell you who you are.”
This week…
I want to share a post I wrote before but it’s something I think is crucial to understand.
When it comes to work, there is being busy and there is being effective.
Many make the mistake of confusing one with the other when in fact busyness is not necessarily a sign of being effective, in many cases it may just be a sign of being busy.
I hope you enjoy the read!
…..
Productivity as procrastination…
We all know that feeling, as we sit down to write that article, attempt that assignment, edit that PowerPoint for tomorrow's work meeting. All of a sudden there is dusting that needs to be done, the dishwasher that's been sitting full for 4 hours all of a sudden needs to be emptied, the clothes need to be hung out to dry.
These are all tasks that need to be done but do they need to be done now at that exact moment or are we just using them as a means of procrastinating further?
When I first became aware of the idea that productive work could also be another form of procrastination, it was like I had been blind and now I could see. I suddenly gained enlightenment and looked back differently on the many many times when I had done just such a thing.
I even feel the urge to do it now as I write this very post.
Productive work feels great. It’s a win, a task started and completed. A boost to the ego and a license to now take a break. While you sit down to watch tv and drink a well earned cup of tea, you can do so in the knowledge that you have completed something.
Yet, what about that task that you avoided doing and which is probably more important? It still likely has to be done. You may have been able to push the thought aside for a little while but it will slowly start to creep back to the forefront of your mind. Then the cycle begins again and you feel none the better.
There is a simple solution. I didn’t say easy because you still have to do the hard part. You have to decide what your highest priority task is and we all usually know what it is we should be doing, and just get straight to it. The other work can be done later. It will get done.
I am someone who gets a lot done. I’m productive in many ways but I am not nearly as effective as I would like to be. I know there are many others out there who feel the same and maybe if we just “eat the frog” as Brian Tracey would say more often and do our most difficult but important tasks first, we would be much more effective as opposed to just productive.
Book Recommendation…
Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage
Stranded on the frozen continent, their ship slowly crushed by sheets of ice, with a limited food supply, it wasn’t clear if they would ever see home again.
This is a story about leadership, companionship and hope. Of how 28 men persevered and survived when they shouldn’t have, when many would have simply given up, they Endured.
The book is based on the diaries and first hand accounts of a few of the crew members. Alfred Lansing did a fantastic job of bringing their accounts together in one book. It is not simply a great story, it is an encyclopaedia of leadership knowledge.
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