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will happen usually does happen. Obviously, one needs to be practical. Certain goals Many exercises show how well-
might not be realistic, but starting with green light thinking as to what might be functioning teams communicating
possible is better than limiting oneself right from the beginning. Locally, who would within themselves outperform
have ever believed Collier County would have the longest life expectancy and be groups which are in dysfunction.
the healthiest and happiest place in the nation? Our Metropolitan Statistical Area MBA students are typically
(MSA) this past year was first by a hundredth of point of 190 MSAs according aggregated into teams at the
to the most recent Gallops-Healthways Survey. http://www.well-beingindex. beginning of the program because
com/2015-community-rankings in most real businesses, teams
In August, 2016 Kiplinger Letter named Naples as the best place to retire— rather than individuals are more
another example of optimism. This recognition is amazing, especially considering functional and productive.
that it wasn’t long ago when our part of southwest Florida was known as a small and
NUMBER 6: COMMUNICATION
sleepy fishing village. Our local leaders have been optimistic with their green-light
thinking as Naples has evolved to be the jewel it is.
You cannot assume people know what is going on.
Most people need to hear something seven times before
NUMBER 3: COURAGE they can remember the message. Jack Welch, the famous
No one ever said it was going to be easy, but if you do the right thing often former CEO of GE, said you have to deliver the message
enough, you get the right result. Being around altruistic and self-motivated people until you are sick of it, and then you have just started. Think
and having these two characteristics yourself will reinforce your will to stay the how often advertisers try to get in front of you to get a
course and do the right thing for long-term success. Getting caught up in the day- message across.
to-day drama and noise associated with people who are short sighted, egocentric, Having everyone on the team agree with the goal and
and selfish is not only deleterious for innocent bystanders but also harmful for these understand the plan, as well as participate at the correct
negative folks. time and in the appropriate manner, makes for success.
Courage is doing the right thing, and grit is the ability to stay the course even The opposite is so true. Asking folks to repeat a message
when the going gets tough. Taking a chance on a new service or group when a long- back takes a little more energy and time initially but is
standing anachronistic group becomes too mercenary, unconcerned enough with well worth the effort. Even summarizing a conversation,
quality, or inflexible is the correct course even when the short-term consequences ending a meeting or engagement with a quick wrap-up,
are costly in terms of resistance or loss of reputation and income. Don’t be afraid to and enumerating a list of “to dos” are much more effective
be innovative. After the initial “hit,” everyone is much better off as new best practices than just assuming that everyone is on the same page.
are developed and shared across the nation.
NUMBER 7: CELEBRATION AND FEEDBACK
NUMBER 4: RELENTLESS PREPARATION Positive feedback is very important and too rare in

“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!” is a saying attributed to Benjamin today’s society. Three or four wins combined with one
Franklin as well as a few other notables. Even though the originator is uncertain, not-so-good outcome turns out to be the best mix to
the message is strong and important. Learning new ways to care for patients—be it foster progress. All wins or all defeats are not as good as
infection prevention, placement of central intravenous lines, or response to a mass having a therapeutic blend. Children who are successful
casualty event such as a fire, flood, or hurricane—all proceed better when everyone in elementary school are best served by the combination
has practiced in a mock drill. of mostly positive feedback with some opportunities for
As an institution, NCH practices for all of these unwelcome events knowing improvement.
that sometime we will be stressed with the real emergency. For the non-emergency Having day-to-day constructive criticism is part of
patient care therapeutic procedures, we train on life-like manikins in a simulation our socialization process. Isolation and lack of feedback
lab. These manikins, computer controlled and able to mimic real patients with tears, at any age is deleterious for development and progress.
grimaces, short bursts of words, heart beats, EKG rhythms, and other human-like Celebration is part of the socialization process that gets
responses, engage the care team as if they were in a real life situation. After the people together by doing good for each other. People
clinical scenario is over, the team debriefs with the coach, learning what they did who live well into advanced age typically have a group of
well and where they can improve. Again, relentless preparation makes the difference. friends who socialize daily at mealtime or by taking walks
together. At the opposite extreme, isolation is very painful
and among the worse punishments created—exactly why it
NUMBER 5: TEAMWORK is reserved for particularly bad behavior in prisons.
No one is as smart as all of us. Surrounding oneself with good people and using Many books on leadership with additional and different
everyone’s good attributes will give a much better result than trying to be the Lone comments employ some of the seven elements enumerated
Ranger even though he had his faithful Tonto. Knowing yourself, both good and above. Many different styles of leadership also have special
bad qualities, is a good starting point. And if you can’t identify any weaknesses in places in specific situations. In general, even top-down to
your own personality, just ask your wife or significant other. If your mate doesn’t have participatory to servant leadership all use some of the seven
some suggestions for you to improve, then you have a co-dependent relationship and attributes in different amounts to yield successful outcomes.
an even bigger opportunity for change. Leadership is not a mystery. Explore, see what works for
you, and become a leader.
Life in Naples | February 2017 47