2010 February | John Gallagher

Archive for February, 2010

Pocket Change – The State of The Internet

February 28th, 2010 by John Gallagher No Comments

Pretty cool video on the ‘state of the internet’ – What stat in this video fascinates you the most?

Leadership and 'Re-fueling Pit Stops'

February 19th, 2010 by John Gallagher 2 Comments

In a Nascar race, an average efficient pit stop that consists of the changing of all four tires and a full tank of fuel can take anywhere between 13 and 15 seconds. The amount of pit stops during a race vary because of numerous factors — race length, caution flags, fuel mileage, tire wear and pit strategy to name a few.

In Leadership, it is necessary to take regular ‘pit stops’ so that you can keep your engine running. In today’s economy, it sometimes can feel so important to continue to run around the track at 200 miles an hour and not have time for a ‘pit stop’. We all know that if we don’t come in and ‘re-fuel’, replace the tires, and adjust the suspension, we will not be able to cross the finish line.

Recently, I completed an overnight ‘pit stop’ where my wife, Chris, and I were able to get away for an evening…just the two of us…to re-fuel and prepare to get back out on the track again. This opportunity was refreshing and got me thinking how important it is to take time away to refuel. You see, re-fueling doesn’t mean to shut it down completely, but rather, a brief moment to ensure all the systems are ‘go’. And, it isn’t enough just to do this for a vacation annually. It has to be planned as daily, weekly, quarterly, and annual down time to recharge. Mark Sanborn tweeted recently a post that touched me completely about the need for weekly ‘down time’. He asked if Sunday was a ‘day of rest, or a day to catch-up’. Too often, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week is seen as the norm, and I don’t want to allow myself to fall into that trap.

So, I am committing to the following ‘pit-stop’ schedule for myself.

Daily – 1 hour (reading an inspirational book or listening to a podcast)
Weekly – One day (Tuesdays. In real estate, Sunday is a ‘normal’ work day. Even for church leaders, Sunday is a work day!)
Quarterly – One weekend
Semi-annually – One week

During this time, I will take my foot off the gas and re-fuel the engine. I know it will benefit me. It is important to set boundaries around this time as well. No email…No PDA…Minimize the distractions. My wife needs this time, too. Rarely do stay-at-home moms get the benefit of pit stops and I need to honor her time.

So, are you taking ‘pit stops’ to re-fuel? What do you need to do to ensure that your motor is running at the end of the race and that your down time is rest time and not catch-up time?

Tags: Discipline, Mark Sanborn, Relationships
Posted in Discipline, Leadership metaphors, Relationships | 2 Comments »

Leadership and Shoveling Snow

February 11th, 2010 by John Gallagher No Comments

In the midst of one of the historic winters in Roanoke, VA, (with regards to snowfall) it has been a CHALLENGE to manage my attitude each time I have to go out and shovel the snow off of our driveway. Perspective is important. So, as I was shoveling our driveway for the 3rd time in a 24-hour period just the other day, I found myself thinking about how this could POSSIBLY relate to leadership and it actually was relatively easy.

Continuous improvement – I am always trying to find the ‘least waste way’ to do things and shoveling a 3,000 square foot driveway is no different. How can I improve upon my methods to reduce the time that it takes? Probably one of the many things that drives Chris crazy about me, but it is just how I am wired. (No comments from the Peanut gallery about buying a snow blower. That is another story in itself!)
Relationships – I was able invest time with Chris as we talked about a future vacation, sitting on the beach, and being WARM! We had about 3 hours of time with no TV, no distractions, except for the scraping of the shovel over the asphalt. It was almost peaceful.
Discipline- It was a great workout. Not a whole lot better core workout than shoveling about 4,5000 cubic feet(yes, I calculated it!) of heavy wet snow. Great cardio, too. Thus, I did not have to go to the gym (could not have gotten there, anyway!)
Attitude – Rather than it being WORK, it is time to reflect, think, be grateful…Grateful for the time with Chris, for the beauty of the snow falling, etc.

So, next time you get frustrated or angry with the shoveling of the snow (or some other project), view it as a time to grow personally….make a game out of it…consider it your exercise…It really helps to reduce the stress of it. (this DOESN’T mean that I am hoping for several more inches of show )