Listening Leaders Archived Edition

May 3, 2006

LISTENING LEADERS EXHIBIT ENDURABILITY

Listening Leaders® develop and exhibit the special behaviour of endurance in challenging and difficult times.

Experienced and time-tested listeners appreciate the simple fact that it is easy to listen and lead when the challenges of life are slight. But when inordinate difficulties appear, the challenges of listening change. As an old Japanese proverb reminds us, “To endure what is unendurable is true endurance.” Or in the unforgettable words of William Penn, “No pain, no palm; no thorns, no throne; no gall, no glory; no cross, no crown.”

Amongst the numerous characteristics exercised by all “Golden Circle Listening Leaders®” is their persistent ability to endure challenging messages in difficult and daunting times. Enduring listeners do not bend and they do not quit. They drive to the heart of difficult issues and listen on purpose, long after others have ceased to focus. A close examination of the forces that drive such listeners spotlights four special elements that separate them from non-enduring listeners.

First, they exhibit an enduring and optimistic faith that “all things are possible” for those who believe in the end goal. They believe in the old adage, “Nothing tried, nothing gained.” They listen with an enduring focus on concrete challenges, goals and objectives.

Second, they exercise and position themselves for the long haul. Like all successful marathon runners, enduring listeners condition their listening muscles in preparation for life’s long and constant race. Like Boy Scouts everywhere, they focus on “Being Prepared.” They fine tune and hone their listening attitudes, skills and knowledge. They realize that ultimate listening and leadership requires an acceptance of the belief, “If it is going to be, it’s up to me.” Thus, they are ready for every difficult moment and every challenging message.

Third, they do not understand the value of quitting. Persistence is their middle name. They forebear the time, effort, and pain necessary to achieve their goals. They make every extra investment required for success. They persevere where and when others fail. Simply put, they do not quit.

Fourth, enduring Listening Leaders® focus on the beneficial results for those they lead. They realize self-centered listening only rewards the individual, whereas other-centered listening rewards everyone. They also understand, “If it is going to be, it must reward we.”

Thus, although the listening endurance of the led may wane, true leaders cannot, and do not, rest or falter. For effective leaders, the simple listening fact remains: As the many roads in life get steep, they find little time to weep. The listening road may bend, but it cannot end. They listen to their inner-voices, they listen to the multitude of those they lead, and they listen over the long haul. In the process, they heed the immortal words of Winston Churchill who during England’s darkest hours simply said, “Never, never, never give up!”

LISTENING LEADER KNOWLEDGE NUGGET: Listening Leaders® commit themselves to endure.

Endurance is defined in many ways and can be illustrated with examples that range from the mundane to the heroic.

For example, in the early days of the homestead law a prospective settler asked a lawyer friend to explain the meaning of the law. His friend responded, “I don’t know the exact wording of the law, but I can give you the drift of it. The United States government is willing to bet you 160 acres of land against $14.00 that you can’t live on it five years without starving to death.”

At a completely different level, stories of the sagas of Sir Ernest Shackleton and Nando Parrado illustrate the importance of endurance in unimaginable moments of listening and leading.

Of course, British explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton's trans-Antarctic expedition of 1914-1917 is one of the great feats of Listening Leadership® and human endurance. Shackleton and his crew set sail from England with the intention of being the first to cross Antarctica from one coast to the other, passing through the South Pole on the way. After five months, they reached the freezing Weddell Sea and were within sight of land when their ship Endurance became trapped in the ice pack. Nine months later, the ship was finally crushed, leaving the crew stranded on drifting ice floes at the end of the earth.

What followed is one of the most remarkable survival stories in the history of enduring leadership. Shackleton's men camped on the ice floes for five months before they escaped in their lifeboats, endured a harrowing five-day voyage, and reached Elephant Island, a barren outcrop too remote for any hope of rescue. From there, Shackleton and five other volunteers set out for South Georgia Island and miraculously reached their destination after traversing 850 miles of the fiercest seas on the face of the planet in an open lifeboat. There they found help, and after three months and three failed attempts, Shackleton made it back to Elephant Island with a rescue ship. Incredibly, every single one of his men survived, fulfilling Shackleton’s goal to keep every member of his crew alive. He listened, he cajoled, he modeled, he led, he endured, and every single member of his crew lived to tell of the importance of endurance.

Fifty-five years later, Nando Parrado and his young Uruguayan rugby teammates were flying to Chile and crashed in the remote Andes mountains. As captured in the book "Alive", Piers Paul Read recounts the unforgettable saga of human endurance. Stranded for 74 days at an altitude of 18,000 feet, 16 survivors found themselves without the necessary winter clothing, training, equipment, or supplies to deal with their perilous situation. Cold, hungry, weak and desperate, the survivors struggled against all odds to remain alive. In their extreme hunger, they survived by consuming the flesh of their deceased mates. Yet, with an unwillingness to perish they endured.

Now nearly 35 years later, Nando Parrado’s new book, “Miracle in the Andes: 72 Days on the Mountain and My Long Trek Home” reminds us why this story remains as one of the most extraordinary endurance survival stories of all time. As Nando Parrado shared his personal story one night in front of a roaring fireplace in the warm comfort of the Sonnenalp Resort in Vail, Colorado, the importance of unending listening and leading was reinforced. With no compelling alternative and an enduring drive to find assistance and rescue their teammates, Nando and his teammate, Roberto Canessa, successfully struggled to trek for 10 days, over snow covered and rugged mountain peaks, to find help. In the end, 16 souls survived to enjoy fruitful lives.

Although their story of courage, teamwork, determination, endurance, and leadership, is a story experienced at a level few will ever know, their lessons are clear for all Listening Leaders®. Ultimately the measured behaviour of leaders, who listen and persevere, will be observed in concrete and valuable outcomes. Equally important, whether one chooses to survive and/or thrive, listening will play a significant role. More important, endurance matters!

LISTENING LEADER TIP OF THE WEEK: Ready yourself to listen with endurance.

GOLDEN CIRCLE LISTENING LEADERS QUOTES OF THE WEEK:

Victory is a thing of the will ~ Ferdinand Foch
What can’t be cured must be endured ~ Proverb
Nobody ever drowned in their own sweat ~ Ann Landers
Effort is only effort when it begins to hurt ~ Ortega y Gasset
To endure is greater than to dare ~ William Makepeace Thackeray
Heroism…is endurance for one moment more ~ George Kennan
I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail ~ William Faulkner

A LISTENING LEADER GIGGLE:

Endurance and listening evidently go hand in hand in some Convents.

A story is told of a Novice who had taken a vow of silence. Apparently the Convents rules were stringent, but clearly stated. Silence was imperative and the Novices were allowed to speak only two syllables per year to their Mother Superior.

Having endured her silence for the first year, one Novice was asked by the Mother Superior, “Well, sister, in only two syllables, what would you like to say?”

“Beds hard,” replied the Novice

“But they are clean and good for your back,” responded the Mother Superior. “I’m sorry you feel the way you do, but God blesses you sister.”

After another year of silence had passed, the Novice was again summoned and asked what she would like to say in just two syllables.

“Food stinks,” was the reply.

“But sister,” said the Mother Superior, “it is made of the best whole-ground wheat, and the water is natural spring water. It is very good for your health and God blesses you.”

As the third year passed, the Novice was summoned. When she appeared with her few worldly passions in a small sack, the Mother Superior asked, “Well sister, in two more syllables, what have you to say this year?”

With her endurance exhausted and with a slight smile, the Novice simply said, “I quit.”

Obviously vows of silence by those who are led, provide leaders little to listen and respond to.

A LISTENING LEADERS KUDOS:

Kudos to all Listening Leaders® who listen and lead through thick and thin. Your endurance is commendable and your service is invaluable.

LISTENING LEADERS WORKSHOP: THE NEXT LISTENING LEADERS WORKSHOP WILL BE HELD IN CENTRAL FLORIDA ON MAY 23, 2006. Limited class size -- enroll early! For workshop details and to register go to www.ListeningLeaders.com

BECOME CERTIFIED TO TEACH LISTENING LEADERSHIP IN YOUR ORGANIZATION. For certification details, go to www.ListeningLeaders.com

WE ARE LISTENING and invite your action:

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Strengthen your resolve to endure
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We can help, we are committed, and we are listening.
Listen, Lead On & Make Today Count! – Manny & Rick
__________________________________________________________________

LISTENING LEADERS: THE TEN GOLDEN RULES
TO LISTEN, LEAD & SUCCEED

By Dr. Lyman K. Steil
& Dr. Richard K. Bommelje

Publisher: Beaver’s Pond Press
(ISBN 1-59298-073-2)

A pioneering book that directly connects listening with leadership.Based on more than 50 collective years of work with listening leaders throughout the world, Dr. Steil and Dr. Bommelje have created 10 practical, proven, and priceless rules to enhance everyone's listening and leadership success. Although outstanding leaders are outstanding listeners, most leaders have neglected the development of their listening attitudes, skills and knowledge.

“This is the most significant book ever written on listening and leadership and will profit leaders at all levels in all types of organizations and enterprises.” Dr. Ralph Nichols, Father of the Field of Listening

ORDER YOUR COPY at www.ListeningLeaders.com or www.amazon.com

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Dr. Lyman K. (Manny) Steil
25 Robb Farm Road
St. Paul, MN 55127
651-483-3597
LKS@ListeningLeaders.com

Dr. Richard K. (Rick) Bommelje
8530 Amber Oak Dr
Orlando, FL 32817
407-679-7280
RKB@ListeningLeaders.com

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