Company Value Statements Are NOT Worthless

#values
What are your thoughts on corporate mission/vision/value statements?  Do you think they have any **ahem value? (seewhatididthere)  I took me a while, but yes.  I think their tremendously important.  Here's the short version of my story of going from "naive to fed-up to apathetic to interested to respect" when it comes to internal corporate propaganda.

Long ago in a land far far away... I got burned.  I was working at a strong local consulting firm that gave me "fantastic opportunities to grow". We would have these monthly meetings where everyone would get pumped about what was going on and our place in this "trendy" small company.  Then out of the blue at one of these monthly ho-downs, the CEO pitched a raging fit and told everyone they'd be fired on the spot if they couldn't recite the company's vision/mission statements.  I quickly left that place "knowing" that ALL corporate propaganda was a filthy lie and I'd have nothing to do with it. Anytime someone would tell me they even liked their company/job I'd think to myself "What a moron.  He thinks they care about him." That's a special kind of jaded right there.

Between then and now I've journey-manned my way through several projects and constantly worked on personal and professional growth.  In pursuit of said growth, I've taken up a habit of reading books, blogs and articles that pertain to strategic development.  I've also tried my hand at building a company of my own, which obviously brought up the issue in a unique way.  During that time I've talked with several executives and company owners ,good and bad, about their companies' corporate values. Sometimes I even wanted to! One thing was consistent across all of them; You could always tell the ones who had really considered it/owned it/lived by it (versus the one who was regurgitating memorized phrases for fear of being fired) by the aura they gave off.  But what does that mean? Am I being naive again? Hold that thought.

I'm currently a director at a small consulting firm that I believe has true potential for great things.  With that level of influence, it seems at least necessary to know what the corporate value statement is.  But what about owning it?  Is that necessary?  The short answer is YES. If you want to make any progress at advancing/growing the company you choose to be a part of, you must take into account the direction set forth in the mission/vision/values statement when making critical decisions.

CONCLUSION:
The really good ones "own it".  When the good ones make a decision, big or small, they see the issue at hand, superimpose it's potential impact over the roadmap defined by the strategic direction, and pick the one that best lines up.  Now that I've written it down it seems like common sense... but that's what I've thought after reading EVERY great self help book in my library, so maybe I'm onto something.


Post Script:
The inspiration for this post came from stumbling into a page of a company whose products I really love, Atlassian.  The content took me aback at first.  While I don't necessarily agree with the raw crassness, I do appreciate the directness.  It's not often you find a company willing to just "lay it on the table" in plain English without polished corporate mumbo jumbo screwing with it.

linky-link - http://www.atlassian.com/company/about/values

video (slighly NSFW due to language):



PPS
Note to self: Re-read this one by Maxwell.

Twelve Days of Christmas - Breakin' it Down Like a Fraction!

There is one Christmas Carol that has always baffled me. What in the world do leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge that won't come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas?

From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a catechism song for young Catholics. It has two levels of meaning: the surface meaning plus a hidden meaning known only to members of the Church. Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality which the children could remember.

The partridge in the pear tree represents Jesus Christ.
The two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments
The three French hens stood for faith, hope, and love.
The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
The five golden rings recall the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.
The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.
Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit-----Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.
The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes.
Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit-----Charity, Joy, Peace, Patience [Forbearance], Goodness [Kindness], Mildness, Fidelity, Modesty, Constancy [Chastity].
The ten lords a-leaping were the Ten Commandments.
The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful Apostles.
The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in The Apostles' Creed.
So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now I know how a strange song became a Christmas Carol...so pass if you wish.

So close... Yet so much left to cleanup

I woke this morning with a plan to get out of the house a few minutes earlier than usual.  That ended before it even started.  Ben (3 years old in May) had been awake about an hour and dropped a deuce in his Pull-Up.  No biggie... Except that he tried to change it himself.

Ben tried to clean it up (and to his credit didn't do a bad job for someone his age.)  He didn't get it anywhere outside of the bathroom and even in there it was pretty contained.  The diaper was in the trash and all the tissue was in the toilet.  There were some remnants on the floor, and the toilet seat, and a few  spots on the wall.  I threw the bathroom rug in the shower and Ben in the washing machine and wiped up the rest with Lysol surface cleaner.  

The best part was the first thing he said to me this morning.  "Daddy, I pooped!  But it's ok I cleaned it up." 

For all of you who are freaking out right now and getting ready to call child services:  My child is healthy, well cared for, and smarter than you so don't worry about 'saving him' from your unfounded concern.

Deluge Hydroplane

Steps to hydroplane a black Acura TL in front of me in traffic this morning:

Step 1: Be stupid.
Step 2: See big puddle.
Step 3: Slam on brakes just before hitting said puddle.

This has been a public service announcement for the moron who nearly pooped on my day. Instead I just pooped my pants.

Next time maybe you can do what grown up drivers do and brake smoothly while gripping the wheel a little more attentively.

Congrats on making it this far dude. I'd be surprised if you weren't also a communist.


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No time to be sick

Dear #sorethroat,
You are not welcome here! I have a full day of work tomorrow, I have to pack, wrap up some things around the house, and the drive 4+ hours. You should find yourself a lazy bum who eats Cheetos all day and watches daytime tv because if you try to setup shop here I'm going to blast you with whiskey, OJ, honey, and lots of Allman Brothers.
There. You've been warned. Now move it along before I go all John McClain on your ass.
Healthily,
MLONF

If I Had Only Known

Thursday night, February 3rd, we said goodbye to our friend Samson.  Some of you know him as the "little" brown dog.  He went out for another unsanctioned roam around the neighborhood and was hit by a car.  He served a great purpose in our lives and we are so blessed to have had him for the little time that we did.

Even after he was gone Samson was still contributing.  It was a pretty normal event for him to get fast food bags out of the trash.  He had a knack for not only eating the leftover fries (and sometimes ketchup packets), but for dessert he would shred the bag into several tiny pieces. I never understood it, but apparently it gave him pure joy because he did it ALL the time.  Several times before that I had been upset at him for it.  At that moment I just wished he was still there.

So I started cleaning up his last food bag shred-fest, and every time I would think I was done... another piece. Eventually I was laughing through the tears, because I realized even then he was helping me grow.  I've never been good at "stopping and smelling the roses". This made me promise to myself that I'm going to be much better about enjoying the blessings that are right in front of me.

This is not a "My dog died - Pity party" post.  Yes I miss him, but this is not just a status update.  I'm asking all of you to hold me accountable.  Help me remember what it's like to wish I had gone for one more walk, or thrown the ball one more time, or let him lick my face just a little more.  Because one day I want to be able to look back on my life and say I cherished everything as much as anyone could.

Samson,
Thank you for being part of our family.  You gave us so much comfort, joy, and laughter.  We are and will be better off because you were here.  We love you and miss you, and we will remember you always as a great friend, and a loyal protector.
Love,
The Long's

Bread and Milk

http://bit.ly/fCEmcF

Saw this tweeted by James Spann. Now I know why people by this stuff when it snows here. For dancing!!! Hilarious.

p.s. Roll Tide


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