Last week was a very military oriented week for me. I had the opportunity to attend my friend Sean's retirement ceremony from the Navy at one of the most secretive places in the United States. Another night I had dinner with General McCrystal, the man who ran our wars in the Middle East for the past 10 years. Both experiences gave me the chance to think about leadership and how important my role as a leader is to the success of our company and everyone involved.
Sean progressed from an an enlisted man to the Chief Master Sergeant, the highest ranking possible for a solider who was not trained in the Naval Academy, and spent a total of 21 years in the Navy. Sean fought wars for us, kept our Presidents safe and did countless other things that we may never be allowed to hear about or want to hear about.
So this ceremony, his retirement, should be about him - right? Wrong. This ceremony was about the enlisted men and women, the young sergeants, and the lower ranks. This ceremony was about his wife and son who made great sacrifices for their country. Sean pointed out that his success was not about himself but was about the many people who supported him and made him look good. He talked about his hardest days as an officer like when he needed to punish a good soldier for making an honest mistake and his best days when he would see his reports excelling. As part of the ceremony he gave his direct reports some of his medals as a symbol of the success they helped him attain. The other special part of the ceremony was the tribute to Sean's wife and child. The military knows that when a solider is out on the battlefield it is not just him making the sacrifice. His family is also very much involved. I cannot imagine the fear and concern the family must have endured all those years of Sean's service. The Navy made it a point to commemorate those sacrifices.
"The final test of a leader is that he leaves behind him in other men the conviction and will to carry on." Walter Lippman
My dinner with General McCrystal was just as impactful. The General oversaw more than one million troops in one of the most important war efforts of our time. There is much controversy as to whether we should be in Iraq, but this does not negate the fact that the General is responsible for every one of those young soldiers' lives and all the civilians living in a war-torn environment. The General stressed the soft sides of leadership rather than a strict organizational management chain. Understand your enemy, understand what is going through the minds of your soldiers, know how people will see your success or failure in a mission. This was the anti-art of war speech. This was a roll out the Kleenex sit down and have tea and get friendly before engaging in battle mentality. He had the amazing ability to separate himself from his position as the leader of the world's largest and most powerful army to one of an empathetic friend to discuss your hopes and dreams with. He spent more time understanding what the leaders and people of the chaotic middle east countries hoped for as opposed to the strategy involved in destroying the enemy.
My dinner with General McCrystal was just as impactful. The General oversaw more than one million troops in one of the most important war efforts of our time. There is much controversy as to whether we should be in Iraq, but this does not negate the fact that the General is responsible for every one of those young soldiers' lives and all the civilians living in a war-torn environment. The General stressed the soft sides of leadership rather than a strict organizational management chain. Understand your enemy, understand what is going through the minds of your soldiers, know how people will see your success or failure in a mission. This was the anti-art of war speech. This was a roll out the Kleenex sit down and have tea and get friendly before engaging in battle mentality. He had the amazing ability to separate himself from his position as the leader of the world's largest and most powerful army to one of an empathetic friend to discuss your hopes and dreams with. He spent more time understanding what the leaders and people of the chaotic middle east countries hoped for as opposed to the strategy involved in destroying the enemy.
"You must love soldiers in order to understand them, and understand the in order to lead them." Henri Turenne
So how do we at Signature Community bring these lessons to our community? Our success is ultimately tied not to what I do and say but to what our team members project at our communities. Everyday their actions are the difference between our success and failure in these turbulent economic times. Furthermore, I as a leader and all of our managers must understand what makes our people tick. What are their hopes and fears? What gets them up in the morning and happy falling asleep at night? What motivates them? I know that the General and my friend Sean were motivated knowing that their efforts were protecting the United States of American and all its ideals. I personally cannot and do not wish to take on such a burden but do feel that what we do at Signature Community is to create a safe and caring community where residents can feel at home. Hopefully they are better because they have lived with us. That is my goal in our efforts to make Signature Community the greatest place to live.
So how do we at Signature Community bring these lessons to our community? Our success is ultimately tied not to what I do and say but to what our team members project at our communities. Everyday their actions are the difference between our success and failure in these turbulent economic times. Furthermore, I as a leader and all of our managers must understand what makes our people tick. What are their hopes and fears? What gets them up in the morning and happy falling asleep at night? What motivates them? I know that the General and my friend Sean were motivated knowing that their efforts were protecting the United States of American and all its ideals. I personally cannot and do not wish to take on such a burden but do feel that what we do at Signature Community is to create a safe and caring community where residents can feel at home. Hopefully they are better because they have lived with us. That is my goal in our efforts to make Signature Community the greatest place to live.
I know that Signature Community team members don't usually have the opportunity to protect their country but I hope they do realize that what they do out there everyday is protecting the lives, dream, and hopes of the Signature Community residents.
Thanks for the team effort that is Signature Community.
-- Thanks for the team effort that is Signature Community.
Nickolas Jekogian
CEO
Signature Community
917-763-3500
www.ASignatureCommunity.com
Blog -http://www.nwjceommm.blogspot.com/
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