Pegine’s Motivational Times Newsletter:

Title: You Can Not Do It Alone! Finding Your “Yoda”
Copyright Pegine Echevarria, MSW 2005
Date: June 2005 Volume 6 Issue 6

Face it; you can not do it alone! How many times have I told this to a protégé or colleague? In my leadership programs I have people engage in interactive activities that teaches leaders how to delegate their tasks. In my own office I seek to delegate, delegate and delegate. Sometimes I succeed, other times, well, that is the subject of a different newsletter.

I literally, wrote the book on women leaders being mentors in the lives of girls and women, I present to men’s groups, women’s groups, corporate groups and associations, sharing the benefits of being a mentor and finding a mentor, but today I have had to face the truth and share my truth with you.

I dislike having to seek a mentor (I originally wrote hate, but maybe that was a bit harsh). I dislike having to ask others for help or advice. I truly hate being vulnerable. If I have to ask someone for help or guidance, I sometimes feel that I will be perceived as weak, not together enough or unsuccessful.

Surprised? You shouldn’t be. I am still growing, evolving, progressing and learning, just like everyone else. As a new manager I remember the struggles of trying to be the “all knowing” boss while feeling fear, because I didn’t know what my job entailed…never mind leading others to success in their job.

Now, years later, I am hired as an expert on success, leadership and teambuilding, however there is so much I have to learn as a business owner, consultant and speaker. There is so much knowledge I want to acquire. I do not get crazed anymore about not knowing…I know now that questions, research and my network can connect me to the information I am missing.

There is a facet in my quest for knowledge that causes me angst and, I realize, that many of you feel as I do. That is that I have to take responsibility, get out of my inner ‘stuff’ and be vulnerable, so that I can seek and access my ‘‘Yoda’’. After seeing the new Star Wars movie I realized we all need a Yoda. Yoda, for those who have not embraced the Star Wars movies, is a mentor/guide/wise one to all of the Jedi warriors.

Great leaders know that they must have a Yoda to help them and guide them. Often great leaders surround themselves with people who know what they themselves do not. Many books share stories of great leaders who have monthly master mind groups, mentor meetings and wise, old friends who offer counsel. What many of those stories leave out is the internal growth these leaders went through, as they were becoming great, so that they were be able to seek, reach and listen to their Yoda.

For some this ability to seek counsel comes naturally, for others, myself included, we have to go through an internal process of growth to be able to say, “Yoda, teach me.”

The process includes being willing to:

• Be vulnerable - to know you do not know everything
• Trust others - trust that others have your best interest at heart
• Be positive - think positively, act positively and be positive
• Surrender - accept what is not working and do not fight what is being advised, be willing to listen, learn and implement

For Luke Skywalker it took several Star Wars films to reach the level of a great leader. The key of course is to be willing, willing to do whatever is necessary to be ready and then receive the support of your Yoda

This newsletter offers quotes, tips, strategies and action steps so that you can move through your process and find your Yoda.

Let me know your thoughts Pegine@pegine.com

By the way we NEVER, EVER give or sell your name and email address to anyone, EVER.

With you in mind,
Pegine

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In this months e-zine you’ll find:

• Pegine’s Thought of the Month
• Quote of the Month
• Try-its – Simple Steps for Magnificent Rewards
• Kick Butt Actions – Strategies to make an impact
• News from Pegine
• E-zine Recommendations
• Spam Alert – make sure your receive your newsletter

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Pegine’s Thought of the Month:

“Leaders are the first to take the step out into the unknown. That is why they are leaders.”
Pegine Echevarria, MSW

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Quotes of the Month:

“Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counselors there is safety”
Proverbs (Ch. XI, v. 14) Bible

“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.”
2 Timothy 2:2 Bible

"Mentor: Someone whose hindsight can become your foresight"
Anonymous quotes

That is why you fail. (In response to Luke saying, "I don't believe it.").
‘Yoda’, Star Wars

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Try-its:

In order to seek a mentor who will be effective, managers and leaders must be honest with their selves and realize that they do not know everything. Moving from one level to the next is like going from your comfortable home, city, state and country to a different country with different customs, languages and expectations.

If you did your homework, read books and spoke to experienced travelers, you would be excited and ready to see the country with your own eyes.

If you did not do your homework you would feel lost, insecure and frustrated. You would probably walk away from the experience exhausted, because you had to work so hard. You might be resentful, because people do not do things the way you want them done. This leads to your negative attitude, due to your frustration during the experience, because you chose not to do your homework, because you didn’t want to admit that you were vulnerable..

If you studied and prepared, you acknowledged that you were vulnerable. You realized that you did not know what to expect, or what the country would be like. You knew that this was a weakness that you needed to overcome.

As a manager and leader you must realize that you do not know everything. You do not know the potential of your next career opportunity, you may not know what senior management thinks and you may not know how relationships are managed at upper levels.

• If you have been passed over for a promotion
• If you are not actively participating in planning your career goals
• If you are focusing energy on trying to figure out the game.

You are not taking step one to finding your Yoda, you are not being vulnerable.

To be vulnerable you must be willing to:

• Open yourself to the possibility of growing as a person in your emotional, spiritual, intellectual, fiscal and physical dimensions
• Allow yourself to search and probe the past for hidden or unresolved emotions, feelings, or grief responses that lie at the root of current immobilized emotions, feelings, or actions
• Try out of new behavior traits, attitudes, or beliefs in the pursuit of personal growth.
• Have unrelenting pursuit of truth and clarity about self through the requesting, encouraging, and welcoming of honest feedback about oneself, even if such feedback is negative.
• Take chances and try new experiences, challenges, or activities even though the outcome is unsure”
(From James J. Messina article called Becoming Vulnerable)

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You can be a mentor to those individuals interested in increasing productivity, increasing their ability to achieve, and increasing their ability to manage and be part of an effective team by forwarding this issue to your staff, co-workers, and business associates.

Perhaps they need guidance regarding their networking skills. My e-book, "Go Fish: For Friends, Business and Opportunities", is theirs FRE* when they sign up for my fr*e Monthly Motivational Times Newsletter at www.pegine.com. This networking how-to book will teach them to be more successful by making them more confident and better prepared to meet people when they go to meetings, conferences and parties!

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Kick-butt actions:

In the June, 1995, issue of Academy of Management Review: it states “Organizational trust [is] the willingness of an employee and employer to be vulnerable, to be open to one another and to take risks for one another.” As a manager and leader you must have the willingness to take risks with your employees and with your superiors.

Risk with your employees:

1- Laugh with them
2- Ask for feedback about your leadership (one on one)
3- Take a 1/2 day each month to work along side a person, team, or area. You will learn what your staff is experiencing and having difficulty with. You will then be able to find and offer solutions. You will be a team player and admired leader.

Risk with you superiors:
1- Say hello when in the elevator with your CEO, President or other superior. Introduce yourself.
2- Ask your direct supervisor:
a. What do they admire in you
b. What do they wish you would do more often
c. What is one behavior/thought/action, which, if improved or changed, would have a tremendous positive impact on your career?
3- Ask a superior to lunch or breakfast. Ask for their story, how did they get where they are.

Are you willing to take the risk?

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News from Pegine:

The summer kick off includes programs in Mississippi, Louisiana, Orlando, Indiana Arkansas and Florida.

The BUZZ TV segment was picked for a second year.

The new recruiting video for The Army National Guard is receiving rave reviews from recruiters around the country. Did you know Pegine’s son is in The Army National Guard?

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ORLANDO

Having a conference or meeting in Orlando??
Pegine is less than two hours away.
That means you save on travel expenses…because there are none!
No missed flights, no surprise costs just an incredibly entertaining, informative outstanding presentation.

Contact her office at info@pegine.com

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E-zine Recommendations

www.AchieveEzine.com a wonderful site that I recently came across. It is filled with information that will help you achieve.
Outstanding contributions by some of the best self-help authors in the world accompany this weekly newsletter about what works in his life, and what doesn't. Click here to visit Friday's Inspiration or www.n-spire.com
Josh Hinds has one of the most comprehensive motivational and self help sites on the web. He is also a great guy. Go to his website at http://www.getmotivation.com to get inspired.

You may have heard that Attitude is Everything! Jeff Keller is the master of attitude. I’ve received his material for over seven years and always find nuggets of truth! www.attitudeiseverything.com

www.AsAManThinketh.net If you have not read the classic motivational book, As A Man Thinketh, now you can for free as an e-book, just go to this great site and sign up for their free newsletter.

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Words used to describe Pegine:
"Audacious, bold, brash, brazen, brilliant, clever, comical, daring, dynamic, ebullient, effective, effervescent, enterprising, enthusiastic, exceptional, fresh, humorous, knowledgeable, perceptive, relevant, smart, superb, superior, talented, vivacious, vivid and witty!"
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• Networking
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Contact (904) 280-8806 or info@pegine.com

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