Bright Ideas
Presenting…..BRIGHT IDEAS
A feature column of thought-provoking bright ideas brought to you with wit and wisdom from the creative mind of Lee Smedley. Designed to help you invest in your own effectiveness, Bright Ideas may be forwarded by email to anyone you like and quoted free of charge. Please leave all copyrighted information intact. For more insight, click to Subscribe Now or View Past Issues. Now….here’s Lee’s latest bright idea….
The Positive Side of Negativity
My default option is optimism. Joining conversations with sentences that begin “You could even….”, I regularly encourage others to ponder and pursue positive possibilities. ;-)
And, I’m usually impatient, irritated, even extremely upset with those who go to the nit-picky dark side. You know, those who prefer entering conversations with “Yeah, but….” or “That will never work ’round here…..” But this election year, I am grounding a new assessment of pessimism and negativity. You might say I’m choosing to look at them more positively.
This new view is based on three experiences I’ve had over the past two years:
- Attending a presentation by Howard Dean, Chair of the Democratic National Committee, at Eastern University
- Discussing the history of negative campaigning with my wife Sally, the history teacher
- Reading a recent Newsweek article identifying the impact of negative campaign tactics. http://www.newsweek.com/id/163476
Howard Dean, in response to a challenge question, said that politicians resort to negative campaigning because it does impact voter behavior. Sally says that negative campaigning has been with us since the beginnings of democracy, and the Newsweek article identifies the fact that such approaches can often backfire on the person making the accusation.
So, it’s time for me to walk the talk, using a technique I suggest in my coaching work with others. If the assessment you have been holding is not working, ground a new, more productive one. The old assessment was that negativity is destructive and needs to change. The new one is that negativity can lead to better results.
Let’s move on to information for grounding a new assessment. First, I must admit that I will never eliminate pessimism and negativity. Complaining about them is like complaining about gravity. They are not going away; I need to accept that and move on. Second, negative campaign statements about an opponent often energize people, many of whom search out additional details to authenticate or debunk the statement. This can result, eventually, in a better educated electorate. Third, those who criticize harshly and without good grounding of their own end up damaging their own reputation. And finally, I must admit that all too often my optimistic suggestions are not very practical. A little “Yeah, but…..” helps me create better proposals.
So take a look around. Take advantage of what you learn from pessimists and the purveyors of negativity. If you choose to, You could even…. see the positive side of negativity.
Who Will Sing Our Song?
In his book Small Decencies, John Cowan asks the question, “Who will sing our song?” suggesting that all too often, we do not celebrate the good work we have done in our jobs. Has it gotten out of fashion for us to love our work, to whistle as we walk down the hallway after a good customer call or an attaboy from the boss? I certainly hope not. But I also haven’t heard any whistling recently.
Story tellers and poets have spoken about how stories and poems can enrich our work life. But for many, songs and singing, at least about professional and managerial work, seem relegated to parodies and sick, sarcastic jokes on early morning radio.
From my work as a balladeer in Colonial Williamsburg, I know that songs and work used to be connected quite closely. The cadence of a song could help one keep pace marching, sailing, churning butter or even picking cotton. Some songs even served as simple job aids detailing a certain sequence of events in a given job. Today, most of our work has a cadence determined by a machine or computer chip. And the job aids are often interactive and HD. Still, one more reason for singing about work remains – celebrating what we have done together. Cowen says its important, and I do too.
Can’t you feel the sense of pride in the chorus of The Work of the Weavers?
If it wasnae for the weavers what would we do
We widnae hae clothes made o' woo
We widnae hae a coat neither black nor blue
If it wasnae for the work o' the weavers.
An occasional celebration of production work does emerge even today. Consider this verse from the Alabama song 40 Hour Week.
There are people in this country who work hard every day.
Not for fame or fortune do they strive.
But the fruits of their labor are worth more than their pay.
And it's time a few of them were recognized.
I’m stepping up. I want to celebrate the work we do in the professional and managerial ranks. Over the years, I’ve written songs to celebrate beginnings and endings of good work, to make fun of our own seriousness and to reflect on how hard we strive to balance our work, family and personal lives. I’ve even written a rather amusing tune about the Marmorated Stinkbug for my friends at JC Ehrlich.
I invite you to sample the songs I’ve compiled in my recently published CD Lee Smedley: Business Balladeer at my new website. Here’s the link: http://www.leesmedley.com/ The CD is available for sale for either personal or professional (release rights included) use. You’ll also find information about my keynote and seminar presentations using this music.
If you have something especially important to celebrate song, I’d love to talk with you about an original composition. I’d love to sing your song!
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