Business Leadership
BUS 5453.56, Spring 2013
ASSIGNMENT 1: Review of Kaltman’s Book

April 13, 2013

Summary This book is a book of Lesson from General Ulysses S. Grant. It is sharing different aspects of his life experiences that helped him become the leader that he was. He felt that every situation we encounter in life we can take the opportunity to learn from. Not only are we to learn from our rewards but also from our failures. We should seize the chance to learn to make us evolve as a person. As leaders we should be able to plan accordingly. In order to execute goals we have to know the ins and outs of our business. Be able to set a plan into place to complete goals and put together a team that will have the resources and abilities to complete their goals.
I. The courage to tell it like it is.
Lesson learned is keeping you surrounded by opportunity to learn from our environment. This is the only way for people to learn. If we walked around thinking that we are perfect, would we think we have to learn anymore? I respect when someone is upfront and honest with me. It takes a lot of courage to be able to do that because people get defensive when they feel like you are calling them out on something they did wrong. I do not think I do this often enough because of that very reason. I can be very blunt about things but only with people that work with me on a day to day. These people know me as a person and know that when I tell them something it is because I have their best interest in heart. If you do not know me well I can seem harsh went I am not. Communicating my thoughts is a personal weakness that it holds me back on being able to “tell it like it is”. To improve this I plan on thinking my responses through. Filter my words before I speak.

II. Talk to your boss.
Lesson to be learned is to keep your-self understood. Let your boss see your attributes so they can support you if a situation may arise. How do I expect my supervisor to know me if I do not communicate with them on a regular basis? My personality lead me to go work every day, set up my computer, and get a cup a coffee and then hibernate. Since I have started the EMBA program I have been trying to challenge myself to communicate better with my supervisor.
III. See the total big picture.
Lesson to be learned is learning the ins and outs so that you can succeed from all angles. In the position that I hold now, I feel that I have learned all that I can learn at that level. So a lot of my co - workers under estimates me just because of the position that I hold. This especially holds true for people that do not deal with me on a day to day basis. They will come to me with a problem and I will research and analyze the situation from ALL angles. I have to cover all aspects in order for me to understand and be able to communicate that back to someone. From a leadership perspective I do not let my abilities be known unless forced to. The total picture is not only understanding it but being able to react and communicate responses based on it. I find that my current supervisor is like that also. This is a positive and a negative for me. It is negative for me because she makes me go out of my comfort zone and communicate my findings with management. She feels that it can get communicated more effectively if the person that did the research is the same person that is presenting it, which holds true in my eyes also. This is a positive thing for me because she is helping me strengthen an important quality that I think a leader should hold.

IV. Plan for your future. Lesson to be learned is the path you plan may not be the path that you will end up traveling. I do not know if I would of chose this one if it would not have been for some of the obstacles that I faced in starting the EMBA program. My career at my current company is kind of at a standstill. With of all the layoffs, restructuring and cut backs it is not much room to move around in the company anymore. The company offered a lot of room for future advancement at the time that I was hired. The opportunities that would be available are what enticed me to accept the offer. So now I have to push myself to the next level so that I can have an advantage not only within my company, but with opportunities that may come available outside the company.
I had some obstacles that I had to overcome. Because of these obstacles that were out of my control, I may not be able to continue the program at TWU. It was so hard for me to accept this at first. The plan that I thought I had set in place may change now because of situations that I feel were not in my total control. How can I adjust to this? At first I was going to give up. I was talking to a co-worker about my situation and told her that I have given up. I had two other classes left that I had registered for. I was going to just go through the motions. After having this conversation with her allowed me to open my eyes and see that even if I cannot stay in the program. I can still get something out of the two classes that I have left. Even though I failed grade wise, I feel like that I passed personally. Now I have to learn from this experience and incorporate this into my plan.
V. Cultivate a thick skin. Lesson to be learned is to not to take offense to criticism, but take it as an opportunity to learn. I am the world worst when it comes to dealing with criticism. From the section titled “Situations that reduce Motivation” on the Self Understanding Disc, Eating her words, failing and making mistakes, and carelessness was listed for motivation turning negative if levels are increased. Criticism is often derived from those actions. I do recognize when a supervisor approach me in a negative manner can also cause a negative effect on me. I have to try to tell myself every time to not take it personal and just learn from the error that was made. One thing I had to do also is observe how certain managers might interact with other people.
VI. You needn’t be a workaholic.
Lesson to be learned is putting more time in is not always the answer (definitely a working area for me). We cannot let work overcome us because it makes us unproductive. I will lose sleep when I have projects or unresolved concerns at work. I have to catch myself because it causes me to become mentally exhausted. This does not help me achieve my goal any faster. Moving at a more productive pass is a positive result for a leader. I am trying to make sure I incorporate relaxation time every day for me to let everything free from my mind.
VII. Create Allies.
Lesson to be learned is that sometimes sharing your vision outside the boundaries can lead to future associates (learning this as we speak). I am a leader to my children. They are maturing so fast. During this development stage parents reactions can be so vital on how they manage their own behavior. I have come to learn with my oldest if I allow her the opportunity to feel like she is a part of the family I get more cooperation from her. By aiding in accomplishing small task around the house leads us to the ultimate goal. The goal could just to be to go to the movies. If a leader can see that this is effective with the people on his team. Could this not be effective if we stretch it outside of the team? Sometimes we have to go outside the team to be effective. When I have to conversate with people outside my department I try to observe their strengths and weakness. This way they could be vital to me when a time might present itself.
VIII. Help your replacement.
Lesson to be learned is that we are not always going to like the tasks that are put before us. We have to remember what is best for the whole. As a leader sometimes we have to let our prides go. Sometimes organizations make changes that we are not always in agreement with. Sometimes we can be in agreement but is just ready to travel a new path in our career. This is when we have to put or personal feelings aside and see what is in the best interest of the organization. As leaders we are to help aid people to carry out their goals.
IX. When Promoted.
Lesson to be learned is to have confidence in yourself when moving to the next level of your career. Not having the confidence that you can fulfill your new duties is a natural reaction. If your supervisors felt that you could not carry out the objectives that will be placed before you. They would not have given you the position. I remember when I joined the Army. I had my degree prior to the military. This gave me the opportunity to choose between going in as an officer or as an enlisted soldier. I chose to go in as an enlisted soldier. Why did I choose this? After listening to several people that had been in the military, it sound likes officers did not get much respect from the enlisted soldiers. Enlisted soldiers feel that they work harder than the officers. The only reason they get the respect is because of their rank. So I went in as an enlisted soldier because I just have the personality to work my way up the ranks. I felt like this would be the only way to be able to see and feel the whole picture. What’s humorous, because I had a degree, I was the top ranking in person in my class. So what do you think happened? I had to be Platoon Sargent. There goes the comfort zone. My goal is to start creating these occasions for myself.

X. Never cast plans in Concrete Lesson to be learned is to leave room for flexibility in any given state. I never leave room for flexibility. This always stresses me out. As a leader I should be able to adapt to unknown factors.

Critique I found the book to be very enlightened. You can always learn something from someone else’s life experiences and what lessons they learned from them. Not everyone’s path will be the same. I think this book is a great addition to the curriculum. I won’t just pick up a book. So I was glad that this book was introduced to me. Sometimes people think that they are out there alone and sometimes a little wisdom is all we need for motivation. People have different qualities about themselves that makes them handle circumstances differently.

Reference Page
Kaltman, Al(1998), Cigars, Whiskey, & Winning Leadership Lesson, New York: Prentice Hall Press.