I was riveted to this piece from start to finish. So well written and clearly expressed.
My first c/o was lazy, practiced blame almost exclusively, failed to delegate well, and was entirely self-centered. He was focused on his own advancement to the detriment of everyone around him. He ultimately failed to advance very far precisely because he never differentiate between being a leader and being the leader. A miserable experience that helped me be a better c/o when it was my turn.
It is a rare quality that makes someone under a bad leader want to be a better one, when they get the chance. Too often it spins the other way. Your people were fortunate that you learned the right lessons from that experience.
You’ve made the right choice in “going for it” re: your writing career. This is an excellent piece. My first NCO in the USAF was not a very nice guy, but he was an excellent leader for me and the other E-1 on our weapons crew. It was his first opportunity as a crew chief, and he really showed us how to use effort and planning to become the crew the squadron leadership relied on when something needed to get done right, and get done right now.
I really appreciate that encouragement, bud. All the stories I'm hearing from folks about how they've experienced people in power using their positions well (or not so well) have been eye-opening. And a good reminder that good leadership doesn't always have to look the same way, but bad leadership always tends to make the same mistakes.
I was riveted to this piece from start to finish. So well written and clearly expressed.
My first c/o was lazy, practiced blame almost exclusively, failed to delegate well, and was entirely self-centered. He was focused on his own advancement to the detriment of everyone around him. He ultimately failed to advance very far precisely because he never differentiate between being a leader and being the leader. A miserable experience that helped me be a better c/o when it was my turn.
What Jim Nill's staff (Janko etcetera) say about him tells you a lot about him.
It is a rare quality that makes someone under a bad leader want to be a better one, when they get the chance. Too often it spins the other way. Your people were fortunate that you learned the right lessons from that experience.
It was a hindrance as well to be sure.
Very interesting to see that two of our younger players made Sean's list while none of our veterans did.
One other thing to factor in is that Robertson is the team's NHLPA rep, and Oettinger is the alternate.
Excellent article Robert! This could be written about anything and, in many ways, has nothing to do with hockey. Share some really great life wisdom.
I'm reminded of two proverbs:
1. Wisdom comes from experience. Experience comes from a lack of wisdom.
2. Give a little man a little power and he'll become a little tyrant. (That's regarding your warehouse mgr who abused his power for petty theft).
My favorite version of #1 is: Bad decisions make for good stories.
A form of that was given very early in my middle school English classes for a universal writing prompt - "Through suffering comes wisdom."
Bad bosses are a lot like bad coaches… a learning experience on how NOT to treat people!
Isn't that the truth.
You’ve made the right choice in “going for it” re: your writing career. This is an excellent piece. My first NCO in the USAF was not a very nice guy, but he was an excellent leader for me and the other E-1 on our weapons crew. It was his first opportunity as a crew chief, and he really showed us how to use effort and planning to become the crew the squadron leadership relied on when something needed to get done right, and get done right now.
Great piece.
I really appreciate that encouragement, bud. All the stories I'm hearing from folks about how they've experienced people in power using their positions well (or not so well) have been eye-opening. And a good reminder that good leadership doesn't always have to look the same way, but bad leadership always tends to make the same mistakes.