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Military Leader | Change Management Practitioner | Global Continuous Improvement

'Success in life is about yourself...significance is about others.' This past weekend, the Lonestar Battalion said goodbye and welcome to old and new command leadership...the man you see here is Zachary Humbles, P.E., the now-prior Battalion Commander of one of the largest Engineer Battalions in the US...a hefty flag that he carried for years. He and I talked at length this weekend about maintaining team momentum. How important it is that we do what is best for the Soldiers and continue preparing them for the future fight. This led us to discussing where we could drift in the near future, as leaders at all our levels transition in the coming months...potentially shifting to base success solely on easy-button metrics that could muddy quality training and suck the soul out of the team...but make our bosses extremely happy 😂 As I've had the luxury of watching and reflecting on this transition of leadership, I have realized that we all have the choice. 👉 Do we choose to be leaders of success, or do we choose to be leaders of significance? 🔹Success has guaranteed metrics. It is manageable and clear and trackable, which is what makes it so attractive. We checked a block, we moved up by 5%, we are "green"- SUCCESS! But significance... 🔹Significance requires trust and support. It requires vision as you wade through a sea of gray- 1,000 situation-dependent answers. It requires "feel"... It is the true art of leadership...all intangible, immeasurable things. Are both possible? Of course. ⚖️ But it's a balance... not a check sheet ✅ As a continuous improvement leader having worked across multiple industries, metrics are a critical enabler if they are built from the end state and not arbitrarily. When you start with your end client or customer, ask what you want their experience to be, and work backwards from there...it's usually a safe bet you're moving in the right direction. However...thing is...metrics are a slippery slope. The significance path ultimately has areas that aren't easy to track, and so there is natural tendency to focus priority on the things that are trackable...drifting to manage successes instead. When you notice yourself drifting, keep in mind that metrics aren't the only way to track if a team is moving in the right direction... the only way to track the untangeable is by being present. ⭐ Pop into your leader's town hall or meeting and give them kudos in front of their team. ⭐ Ask them to brag on their team and help them navigate leadership challenges. Be there. ⭐ Ask how the end client is doing (not in a survey...actually ask!). General Norman Schwarzkopf said that the truth is, you always know the right thing to do... The tough part is doing it. You can do this ☺️🥳🤩 Thank you Zachary Humbles, P.E. for doing the right things right, and welcome to where the grass is greener and we are "the same different" Wes Hunnell 🥳 looking forward to working with and learning from you.

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Foley Hart, MSW

Military Leader | Change Management Practitioner | Global Continuous Improvement

2mo

James Stafford I bet you have endless knowledge to drop in here for us 😂 don't be stingy! Hope you have a great week!!! 🥳

The battalion was incredibly fortunate to have you as a key leader, you clearly advanced the team and the collective capability! Metrics are important so long as they measure what matters. The Chief of the Army Reserve (CAR) guided us to focus where greatest gains are had and sustained, in force strength thru soldier application to purposeful task. Tough, realistic training, done safely. The historic focus on administrative metrics was well intended but did not connect to the application and practice of soldier roles; clearly and routinely communicated all across the formations. A soldier could be considered 'ready' or 'green' without having been afforded the challenge to learn the nuances of success in their role in practice. To get 'sets & reps'. The CAR's guidance requires asking the question about what matters vs what is a comfortable, administrative habit, that 'looks good'. The desire to conform to an apparent norm or culture at the expense of practiced skill is common. More uncommon is the leader that is willing to support, create, and drive original training that speaks directly to the most current functional demands and capabilities.

Eric Western

Empowering Individuals and Teams to Overcome Obstacles | Strengthening the Army NCO Corp

2mo

The way you describe success vs significance reminds me of reading about the difference between Doing vs Being. "I'm going to DO what it takes be promoted to the next level" - success -vs- "I'm going to BE a good leader" - significance That and the difference between finite players and infinite players in Finite and Infinite Games were the first things that came to mind. Finite players play to win the current game, they play for success. Infinite players play to continue playing, they play for significance.

Rhonda F. 🌸

51K Followers | Executive Assist. to VP, Data Infrastructure Product Management, HPE Fellow, VP & Storage BU CTO , Vice President, Storage Platform & Supply Chain Operations & Sr.Dir. Primary Storage & Data Management

2mo

Love this Foley. Good Morning ☀️

Pam Bowser

Compliance Manager

2mo

Foley, I love this so much! As I slowly get my feet wet in a multi- tasking, somewhat likely complicated new role, I will keep the balance of significance and success in mind. 💪🏻✅🙌

Aaron Stoesz

Military Leadership, Training, Modeling and Simulations

2mo

Congratulations Sir on a job well done!

Lori Shields, PMP

Deputy, PEO Maritime, U.S. Special Operations Command

2mo

Great photo! Congratulations, Zach!

Preston Bissuett

Army Officer (EN & CA). Powersports professional.

2mo

Nice. I always like to see good things happening to my prior units. Congrats to all.

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