The only victims of the Penn State child molestion case are the children. Shame on media for making Joe Pa the victim. He did not follow up, did not pursue, did not take any reasonable action. His legal and moral obligation was not to Penn State but to the children who were harmed. Shame on Penn State for blocking the initial investigation by campus police. Penn State should be punished by the NCAA, forced to forfeit this entire season and forfeit 2012.

Unwilling and Ungrateful

In this brief piece, I want to begin an exploration of burnout. Some believe burnout is self imposed by workers who can’t take the pressure. Others find that in the current economic and organizational climates, burnout is imposed by business that do not recognize or accept that workers need periods in their work days to decompress.

During the Vietnam era, American military members often recited a refrain for which I do not have a clear attribution; although one source says Mother Teresa.

• “We, the unwilling, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, for so long, with so little, we are now qualified to do anything with nothing.”

Many of the service members who recited this also suffered from the stresses of war, constantly being shelled by the enemy, constantly being on patrol in jungles where the enemy hid, constantly being exposed to team members injuries, wounds, and death. Movie watchers saw this portrayed with some degree of realism in Band of Brothers. These military men and women were constantly in a state of high arousal with few or no opportunities to decompress.

Is there a parallel to that refrain in the current economy, the current organizational climate? One source explains the parallel by citing that in the current climate (economic or organizational) there are often mismatches between job expectations and expectations of the person performing the job. Often, organizations place economic consequences ahead of human values. This confusion of values against economic needs of the employee to survive in an unstable work climate may result in lost productivity brought on by stress.

Question, who are the unwilling and why did they become unwilling? It their book, The Truth About Burnout, Maslach and Leiter found several reasons why people become unwilling. They find overwork and lack of control over their jobs as part of the problem.

Another question, who are the unknowing? The comic Dilbert provides an example of the unknowing in the depiction of the pointy-haired boss who reaps all the rewards for himself sharing none with workers.

Why has working become doing the impossible? Although the work may not be impossible to complete, workers feel a loss of community in the workplace. Political intrigue and rumors often force workers to withdraw from those around them.

An example of the ungrateful comes from the movie Office Space. The unit manager who strolled the isles of cube dwellers showed his lack of gratitude in his interpersonal interactions. Today, workers feel that they are not treated fairly and have to deal with values conflict.

Citing Maslach and Leiter again, they write, burnout is a result of “erosion in values, dignity, spirit, and will -- an erosion of the human soul” (pg. 17). This is a strong provocative statement meaningfully explaining “doing so much, with so little, for so long.” The human spirit can become willing again if organizations take steps.

The modern military tries to relieve effects of stress and the resulting PTSD in the field and before and after a deployment. What are organizations doing to combat stress and burnout? The first step organizations must consider is the truth of burnout. Since the bottom line is the bottom line in contemporary business, one truth is that burnout takes an economic toll. Another truth is the emotional toll zapping the strength of workers both mentally and physically.

Organizations cannot afford to have unwilling and ungrateful elements if it wants to survive. Relieving the economic and emotional toll of burnout can take the "un" out leaving willing and grateful. People do not exist because of an organization, an organization exists because of people.

ThinkerToys

I pulled Michael Michalko's text ThinkerToys off my shelf to find some thought stimulation and came across these little ditties. 

Turn a capital "D" on its side, place it on top of a capital "J." What does it remind you of?

How about this... Read both across and down. What do you see?

    I2

A I3 C

   I4

Maybe a little silliness and maybe a way our rational minds interpret what we see. The umbrella graphic looks like a D turned on its side on top of a J. Left to right, we see A, B, C while top to bottom we easily see 12, 13, 14.

According to Michalko, our minds are performing a SCAMPER.
S - Substitute
C - Combine
A - Adapt
M - Modify or Magnify
P - Put (in order)
E - Eliminate
R - Reverse or Rearrange

Michalko challenges us to "take an existing item and manipulate it into a new idea." He reminds us that everything new is simply a modification of something that already exists. You can SCAMPER your daily routine, be creative, and make everything old new again. 

Protests - Deja Vu, the 1960s Revisited

In 2010, the Center for Representative Politics reported that federal law makers from 2008 to 2009 saw a 16% collective personal wealth increase. Those were the lean years, the Democrat held Senate and House of Representatives years following the Obama election.

The Center for Representative Politics also cited that 261 elected federal law makers are millionaires, that is almost half of the full congress. The 99% movement should have a beef with law makers as well as the 1% of the U.S. population who claim the same distinction.

Wealthiest federal law makers list their investments portfolios as including General Electric and Bank of America as their top company investments. Holding third, fourth, and fifth place were Cisco Systems, Proctor&Gamble, and Microsoft. Apple, IBM, Coke and Pepsi are popular holdings as well. Worry not, big oil and pharmaceuticals are part of the holding mix, too.

The 99% movement projects its anger at big business; however, their focus needs to expand. In a time when 99% are seeing their net worth dropping, the top 1% see their net worths growing. Executive salaries and compensations have soared, some reports say by as much as 350%. Law makers may argue that their 16% net worth increase is very modest compared to executive salaries and executive net worth increases.

Ask someone who falls into the bottom percentile of the 99% if their net worth increased 16% let alone 350%. The 99% movement is much more right for the U.S. than the Tea Party movement.

Like Baby Boomers of the 1960s who willingly faced jail for protesting against Vietnam, for civil rights, and for political change, the 99% movement has a vision of something better. But the 99% movement must not limit their focus to big business. The government and big business are strange bed partners and are both Democrat and Republican.

Congress - The Wealthiest Top Ten

The 99% movement is picking up steam across the United States and around the world; I, for one, hope it continues. However, lets examine wealth in the in the U.S. Congress.

You probably will not be surprised to learn that among the top ten wealthiest members of Congress, three Republicans have a combined net worth of 551 million dollars. However, that leaves seven places in the top ten and those places are held by Democrats whose combined net worth exceeds 616 million dollars. These numbers were published by newsmax.com from data supplied by the U.S. Congress itself.

Democrat John Kerry of Massachusetts was the wealthiest until this September 2011 report showed he dropped to third with a net worth of 193 million dollars. Of the seven wealthiest Democrats, Kerry holds over 31% of the top Democrats net worth.

Fair is fair however. The top two spots are Republican and they own 87% of the three Republicans in the top ten. The number ten position is also Republican with a mere 44 million dollars.

Yet reading this list, notably missing are representatives and senators from New York. Still, five of the seven wealthiest Democrats are from east coast districts in Virginia, West Virginia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Rounding out the seven is a representative from Colorado and a senator from California.

The top place holder is Republican from Texas, number two is Republican from California, and number ten place holder Republican from Florida.

Stated differently, Republican net worth holders are from widely different and diverse states and districts while Democrat net worth distribution is concentrated primarily in east coast states and districts known for rich corporate headquarters.

There are 538 elected federal law makers representing districts, states, and Washington DC. In a follow up piece, you will read how congress has increased its overall net worth in 2008 and 2009 despite the down turn in the national economy.

Will the 99% Movement Continue to Grow?

Just as Boomers protested against Vietnam, protested for Civil Rights, and occupied college campus buildings seeking change, the 99% movement, though disorganized, is gaining momentum. In a protest in Omaha, Nebraska, as many as 1000 rallied to protest big businesses that headquarter in Omaha.

Data from several sources, including the U.S. Department of Labor, shows the growth of wealth among the top 1% of Americans is grater than the shrinking of wealth among the 99%. Business Insider reports these findings graphically - http://www.businessinsider.com/what-wall-street-protesters-are-so-angry-about-2011-10#lets-start-with-the-obvious-unemployment-three-years-after-the-financial-crisis-the-unemployment-rate-is-still-at-the-highest-level-since-the-great-depression-except-for-a-brief-blip-in-the-early-1980s-1.

American Legislative Exchange Council boasts having over 2000 elected legislators among its members as well as many corporate CEOs and business owners. More findings suggest these CEOs and business owners draft "business friendly" legislation presenting the drafts to law makers who, in turn, introduce the drafts as bills to various states' congresses and to the federal congress.

If or when passed and signed by governors or the president, these "business friendly" laws most generally provide businesses, CEOs, and owners protections that the 99% are not entitled to. My research suggests the 99% movement seeks change just as Boomers did in the 1960s.

So, my friends, where do we practitioners of leadership expend our energies? Should we work to expose shady practices that harm the middle class? Should we work within the legislative system to route out questionable practices of businesses and law makers? How do we rationalize our leadership against Matthew 25:45, "Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me?"

Management Builder

Bruce Winston wrote a little tale of an organization from its founding. In the beginning, the Master Management Builder lifted his structure. The ceiling he called mission and vision. The pillars holding the ceiling The Master Management Builder called planning, organizing, directing, and controlling. 

So far Winston’s little book sounds like a refresher in Management 101; yet, there is more. The Master Management Builder noticed how the ceiling sagged in the middle. There was nothing supporting mission and vision; he couldn’t do it alone. To shore up the sag in the ceiling, The Master Management Builder realized the need for a larger, stronger pillar in the center. This larger and stronger pillar became known as staffing.

Staffing is essential to an organization. The Master Management Builder realized that he could not support mission and vision on his own. Staffing gives an organization its strength. Staffing supports the mission and vision. 

However, having staffing alone was not enough for The Master Management Builder. He gathered his staff - assistants, managers, and workers - together and began describing the structure, the operation, material needed, and explained that each member of staff shared in the vision and mission. The staff was delighted that The Master Management Builder was open and transparent. This was a “value-added” to the organization. 

Notice, The Master Management Builder’s initial view of organization was one of openness and transparency; the structure had no walls obstructing collaboration. The staff was free to move about the structure unhindered, customers could see the inner workings of the organization. There were no secrets. 

That was the beginning and as you may guess, things changed and this short piece cannot tell the whole story. However, if you wish, the rest of the story is in The Master Management Builder & His Structure: A story of walls, arches and learning. It is in the learning that we grow our organization.