The organization I work with, Extreme Response, is doing a Strategic Plan. It's been a great process of asking questions, listening to others, and simply evaluating where we are, where we're going and how we're going to get there. It hasn't been an easy process, and we're not finished yet, but it's been a lot of "good work". (I'll keep you posted on where and how we land!)

There's a book that has been on my shelf for a while that is a simple "Strategic Plan", and I thought today I'd simply share 5 questions and encourage you to use these questions to evaluate the organization you're leading or working with, and hopefully create some constructive conversation around these idea.

Peter Drucker, known as the "father of modern management" wrote a book years ago that has been re-released and updated, called "The Five Most Important Questions You Will Ever Ask About Your Organization". (order it HERE)

He simply asks some questions that I'm going to pass on to you and encourage you to think about today:

One of my favorite books of all time is Patrick Lencionis book, "The Five Dysfunctions of a Team" (©2002 Jossey-Bass) . If you haven't read it yet, stop what you're doing an order it HERE. If you work with other people, this book will help you build a team that really works.

One of the 5 dysfunctions is simply "A FEAR OF CONFLICT".

Lencioni shares: "The desire to preserve artificial harmony stifles the occurrence of productive ideological conflict."

He goes on to explain that when we don't practice healthy conflict on a team we're a part of, we don't get the desired results we're all working towards. Conflict, the right way, is a process of encouraging team members to share their opinions passionately, with the common goal of coming to the BEST decision possible for the organization.

Conflict can be very unhealthy, but it can also be liberating! When a team has a high level of trust, this kind of conversation helps us identify the key issues we need to deal with.

Last week we talked about a "service" mentality and going above and beyond what is expected. CLICK HERE to read the post. Thanks for your comments.

I'll share one note from Tim: He's referring to the Ladies and Gentlemen Sign I shared..."The darkness in the world provides windows for us to provide light. In response to your challenge, for me it starts with being intentional about showing kindness (and love, joy, peace, and patience) to everyone we meet"

Thanks for your thoughts Tim about how KINDNESS is a way for us to serve, love and bring encouragement to a polarized world.

Today I want to continue a little on this theme of "going above and beyond expectations".

2 things triggered this thought today:

First, in a conversation with my daughter Rheanna, she was sharing with us about a client that had an urgent need and had an opportunity, so she was responding by helping them meet a deadline. She shared that because of this, she was having to work on the weekend. Both my wife and I challenged her with her parameters, we pushed her to say no, and we tried to protect her margins and life. Her response kind of shocked me... she simply said that the client really needed this help, and she was going to do what it took to help them. As I thought about it, that's a great response. Thinking about last weeks conversation, that's "going above and beyond" to serve someone else. It's not about money, it's not about getting overtime and credit, and sometimes it's not even about having a morning off. In this case, there was a need, an opportunity, and my daughter could help meet that need. I think in the moment, I was reacting like a father and wanting to protect her. Instead, I need to continue to challenge her in her healthy parameters, but while doing that I can also celebrate her skills, her desire to serve a client, and her intuition about what to do and what not to do.

It's also easy to forget all the times I've given up my personal time to help someone over the years. Sometimes I've whined about it, but I still showed up.