This past week the business editor of my local newspaper called and asked me to write a column for business leaders regarding the current financial turmoil.  The following is the article I wrote, and which can also be viewed at the newspaper’s website.

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Few current business leaders have had to navigate the turbulent waters of economic difficulties that we find ourselves in today. But we can learn from those who have studied accomplished leaders and identified characteristics of successful companies that have weathered difficult times.

Richard Peterson, who researches the neurological responses associated with financial decisions, says there is a difference between fear and panic. Fear is largely anticipatory — assessing potential risks. Panic is characterized by an urgent pressure to act immediately. In fact, Peterson clearly reports: “It takes tremendous effort and fortitude to ‘keep one’s cool’ when frightened.” Panic then can lead to poor decision-making.

Jim Collins, in his classic study “Good to Great,” proposes that one key characteristic of leaders of successful companies is the ability to confront the brutal facts yet never lose faith. He states, “You must maintain unwavering faith that you can and will prevail in the end, regardless of the difficulties, and at the same time have the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.”

In his best-selling book, “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” Stephen Covey identifies being proactive as the first core principle for successful individuals and business leaders. In difficult circumstances, he encourages leaders to ask: “What is our response? What are we going to do? How can we exercise initiative in this situation?”

Daniel Goleman, one of the foremost researchers of emotional intelligence, proposes that optimism is a core characteristic of successful leaders. Effective leaders “persist in seeking goals despite obstacles and setbacks,” and they “operate from hope of success rather than fear of failure.”

So how do effective leaders respond in times of uncertainty and fear?

• Assess the potential risks.  The critical factor is to try to accurately assess the reality of the risks. It is crucial to differentiate between facts (what do we really know) versus conjecture (what might happen). What are the risks posed to your organization? To the best of your ability, determine how reality-based the risks are.

Consider constructing an “if-then” decision-making tree regarding the risks you see. Arrange the options from “best case scenario” to “worst case scenario” (the likelihood of both extremes is usually small), with the scope of possible outcomes in between. Then try to identify the results that have a higher probability of occurring and what impact they could have on your organization.

• Determine strategies and actions that can manage the risks.   Individuals who focus on fear tend to stop at risk assessment. Leaders who are proactive seek to actively manage the situation and move to determining what steps can be taken to minimize the risk. “What can be done to minimize the probability of ‘x’ happening?” “If ‘x’ does happen, what can we do now to limit its negative impact on our company?”

• Look for potential opportunities.  In addition to assessing potential risks to the organization, successful leaders also scour the marketplace for potential opportunities to capture. Your key competitors may have difficulties because of cash flow issues or not be able to access credit needed to finish projects. There may be assets (property, machinery, inventory) that can be purchased at a steep discount for cash.

• Communicate proactively.  Lack of information increases anxiety. So take initiative to talk with your leadership team; let them know your thoughts and listen to their concerns. Communicate with your customers and your vendors; find out how current circumstances may affect them.

• Model courage and optimism.  A “we will figure this out” attitude is contagious. These are difficult times. But the opportunity exists to step up to the challenges we face by demonstrating courage and resiliency.

Major (repeated) upheaval in the financial markets.  Hurricane Ike.  Flooding across the Midwest.  Concerns about who will be elected President (from both sides). Bombings in Pakistan.  Political turmoil in Bolivia and Venezuela.  The negative, worry-producing news keeps coming.

What’s a person to do?  Ignore it?  Stress out?  Drink more? (I heard a news report that beer and wine sales are up significantly in the last 6 months.)

Previously, I have written about the role of thankfulness and gratitude in helping us live more contentedly. Rather than pontificate on the subject further, I thought I would share the things in my life that I am thankful for — and then encourage you to make your own list.

I love:

Sunny, warm fall days with clear blue skies.  Cool fall evenings with the stars out.   The contrast of the sky blue with the late summer dark green grass and leaves.  Going to high school football games with friends on Friday nights.  The pagentry of college football games on Saturday afternoons with all the colors, sounds of the marching bands, and faint smells in the outdoor air.  Sitting around bonfires with young people and old friends.  Teaching others how to split wood and build a fire.

Fresh, perfectly ripened fruit — blueberries, blackberries, red (and black, when I can get them) raspberries, wonderful golden juicy peaches, slightly tart and crisp apples, sweet juicy grapes, cool watermelon on a hot day, sloppy mangoes (that’s how I am when I eat them), refreshing pineapple, cantalope that freshens your mouth when you eat it at breakfast, zingy pink grapefruit, fresh limes in limeade, there’s probably more.

I also love sounds: Cicadas in the woods.  The rhythmic buzz of grasshoppers, crickets & other insects when walking through a field of prairie. The breaking of waves on the beach.  Rolling thunder in the distance at night.  The wind in the trees (especially cottonwoods and eucalyptus).  The unique swoosh of the wind moving through the needles of pine trees in the mountains.  Children’s laughter when they are playing and running.  Music of all kinds — soothing classical orchestral music, energizing classic rock from the 70’s, foot-tapping quick paced bluegrass, the angelic sound of a women’s choir, the rousing fullness of a strong men’s choir, and the wonder of a talented musician playing a solo on their instrument.

I could go on.  But you get the idea.  Think of your senses — what do you enjoy the feel of? the sound of? the taste of? being able to see? what aromas bring you pleasure?

And while I’m am thinking about it — I am thankful for eyeglasses, for hot showers, for cool refreshing drinks with ice, for clean water, for quality medical treatment, for pain medication, sleeping in a comfortable bed with no bugs, being able to walk and run, for my wife and kids, for my friends.   Life is good.

Now it’s your turn.  What is good in your life?

Many of you may not know that I was born and raised in Lawrence, Kansas — where the University of Kansas is located. As a result, I grew up going to KU football and basketball games with my dad. And I continue to be a devoted Jayhawk (their mascot) fan.

So if you happen to follow college basketball, you know that we are in the midst of “March Madness” and the NCAA championship tournament. This weekend and Monday, April 7, are the final games in San Antonio. And it so happens that the University of Kansas basketball team will be playing in the championship game on Monday night, after winning their game on Saturday night against North Carolina. We watched the game with some friends and had a great time celebrating the win.

Interestingly, at the same time I am enjoying the KU basketball team winning games, I am also reading a fascinating book called Thrilled to Death: How the endless pursuit of pleasure is leaving us numb by Archibald Hart. I have read other books by Dr. Hart and have appreciated his insights. One of his premises in this book is that we are intensely seeking pleasurable experiences in our culture — to the point of burning out the “pleasure center” of our brain and eventually making it increasingly difficult for us to experience the pleasure we desire.

Dr. Hart then goes on to differentiate between happiness (or life satisfaction) and pleasure. He states, “Happiness does not depend on glitzy, pleasure-filled experiences. It comes more from a feeling of deep contentment or the appreciation of the finer things in your life. . . True happiness is more enduring than pleasure.” He goes on to share that happiness seems to be more related to relationships — a good marriage, close friends, and lots of time socializing with others.

So, how does this relate to basketball and KU playing in the NCAA Championship game? Well, I have often been dissatisfied with the tournament experience. Although it does provide a clear champion from the playoff tournament (as opposed to the college football system which does not), I have often felt a general distaste for the result — or at least the way the media and many people talk about the results — that there is only one “winner” (the champion). So, no matter how many games a team won throughout the season, no matter how well they played in spite of adversity, there is a message that they didn’t succeed enough because they didn’t “win it all”.

This just doesn’t sit right with me, when reflecting on how life really is. Are you only successful when you are at the top of the competition, with no one above you? And given the short time frame (one year maximum), you are only the champion for a short period of time (it is shorter in business.)

The personal application is this. I am enjoying the ride. It was fun to see KU win their league championship, and then the tournament games. Saturday night was a total hoot and I am still relishing the memory of seeing them play well. But if they lose Monday night, they aren’t “losers” — and my life won’t be wrecked. (This is not a ploy to play down expectations - they very well may win.) But for many people, and for myself in past years, “winning it all” is the only result that will result in happiness — which may speak to why so many people in our country are unhappy. If you have to be the best, if everything has to go your way for you to be happy, you will be unhappy most of your life.

Let’s go back to Dr. Hart and Thrilled to Death. He gives a number of suggestions which he calls “happiness boosters”. Let’s look at them and see how they really relate to deeper aspects of our lives than just temporary circumstances.

1. Intentionally do something unselfish for someone else every day.

2. Give yourself permission to make mistakes and quickly forgive yourself.

3. Give up expecting others to be perfect – just accept them as they are.

4. Whenever anyone offends, you forgive him or her without delay.

5. Try to simplify your life – do a make over from top to bottom.

6. Make sure you get enough sleep and exercise every day.

7. Spend as much time as you possibly can with those you love.

8. Spend twenty minutes each day in quiet reflection or meditation.

9. Each day, take a few minutes to write down all that worries you –and then cross out the ones you have no control over.

10. Every night before going to sleep, remind yourself of five things you are grateful for.

Clearly, these are not the typical highly pleasurable activities usually focused upon in our stimulation-seeking culture. But, as Dr. Hart argues, these are the types of activities that bring the deeper, longer lasting pleasure associated with true happiness.

So, if you watch the KU-Memphis game on Monday night, think of me. And when you go to bed, regardless of who wins, think of those five things for which you are grateful.

Emotional intelligence, Feelings, Happiness, KU basketball, NCAA 2008 mens basketball tournament, Optimism, personal development, Positive psychology, Stress management

This week I have been reflecting on the role of optimism and hope in life and business.

(These thoughts aren’t real “deep” or well-developed, but rather some initial musings.)

In the past 10+ years there has been a significant movement within psychology that focuses on the positive side of life (aptly named, positive psychology; see the work by Martin Seligman and others.) This was partly in reaction to psychology and psychiatry’s historical focus on problems — mental illness, psychiatric disorders, dysfunctional relationships, etc. But it was from the realization that a core aspect of many successful people’s lives was their positive view of life. Individuals who achieved higher levels of success in their chosen area often seemed to have a cheerful demeanor, an attitude of “looking forward” to the future (rather than a dour, pessimism) and a “let’s find the silver lining in this dark cloud” mentality and seemed to help them overcome challenges and barriers encountered. See the classic book, Man’s Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl or the movie Life is Beautiful directed by Roberto Benigni, for examples.

Optimism seems rooted in hope. Hope that circumstances will get better. Hope that your toil and sweat will pay off in the long run. Hope that something good will happen today (or tomorrow). Interestingly, hope often must exist in the face of circumstances which do not support it — bad news, pain, being wronged by others, receiving unfair treatment, things breaking, others not keeping their word, seemingly random negative events that keep happening to you.

What is the basis for hope? Some research suggests that some people seem naturally predisposed to having a more optimistic and hopeful view of life (unfortunately, we can’t choose our genetic pool.) Other research and reports from those who have lived through difficult circumstances indicate that keeping focused on the moment enables people to survive and keep going — they focus on today and what they need to do to make it to tomorrow. Within this present-orientation, having loved ones you care about, and a belief that your life is part of a larger purpose in the universe also seem to be related to maintaining an optimistic view while experiencing difficult circumstances.

How does this relate to business life? I think that optimism and hope are core components of perseverance, which we have already identified as being a key predictor of success in one’s profession. Why persevere if there is no hope of things turning out well? (I do think some people persevere just because they are tough-minded, and refuse to give up.)

Interestingly, I think “rest” is an interrelated issue to perseverance, as well. We are more tempted to give up when we are tired (emotionally and physically). Conversely, after a restful weekend, holiday or vacation, we are ready to tackle the problem again. Additionally, social support encourages us to persevere as well — working in teams together, having someone who gives you verbal encouragement to keep going, etc.

And the goal is to succeed — to reach the desired end in mind, whether that is a specific achievement (an “A” in a difficult college course, reaching your sales goal for the quarter, losing two pounds this week, etc.) or having come through a process successfully (making it through the week without losing your temper, treating your customers with integrity, to have played the game to your fullest ability and effort even if you don’t ‘win’).

Obviously, a hidden question becomes: What are my goals and are they really worth pursuing? Many “successful” individuals (in terms of wealth, influence, fame) reach their goals and thus, are “successful”, but realize upon reaching their goals that the goal was hollow, ephemeral, and didn’t bring them the fulfillment they expected.

More questions and issues than answers, but I am left with the questions:

*How can I increase my level of optimism and hope?

*What can I do to keep persevering in spite of obstacles and challenges (and weariness) encountered?

*Are the goals I am pursuing really the goals I want to achieve? (And am I missing the more important goals along the way?)