gdp's Comments

Weekly Leader : Experience Means Nothing - Judgement is Everything

Mon, 31 May 2010 02:19:12 +0000

Voytec - Thanks for your...spirited comments on my post. You are right - there were 32 years of collective experience between the two incidents. Though at the time of Van Zantens incident, the whole "no takeoff without clearance" rule was pretty well set in stone. So my point that his experience told him he shouldn't but he blew it on a judgement call is still valid (at least I think so, anyway). You are also completely correct in that judgement IS a derivative of experience. But experience is also a rotten teacher and experience with success can cloud (or trick) judgement. i.e. I have never been in a car wreck so my experience teaches me that I don't need to wear a seat belt. My judgment makes a different decision. As far as leading the spill response or not? well....just give me the number of the "well trained, well equipped professional team who can plug it." and I'll send them down there myself and delete my post immediately. Best, Mario

Weekly Leader : Experience Means Nothing - Judgement is Everything

Sun, 30 May 2010 16:27:08 +0000

Britt, you're an excellent writer and thinker. Thanks for the response. I have no illusions that politics will stay out completely, I just hope they stay off the oil field. Using my clearest crystal ball, I'm writing for the record that for every decision made (or not) that the investigation will uncover as "causal" - there will be some mid-grade engineer or tool pusher issuing strong and clear warnings to management: there always is. What I hope is that leaders collide with these people and judgement wins every time.

Weekly Leader : Twitter #Leadership #FollowFriday Project (@OpenJonathan @LeadershipNow @MiaChambers)

Fri, 5 Feb 2010 22:51:21 +0000

It's strange that I never made the connection between Mia and leadership, but you are absolutely right, Peter. Mia (@MiaChambers) is without question the most genuine and authentic leader in this fresh new(er) world of web and marketing. Without guile or agenda other than to help - Mia shows everyone (anyone) by example how to navigate through the fog created by the new tools of the net. And, she does it in a way that is confident, spot-on-right, and that simply makes all of us trust her - truly and genuinely trust her. That is the best of what leaders do.

NETGENPR : Supersizing the World. Is McDonald\'s Listening to its Customers?

Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:30:04 +0000

While I agree that you should get what you pay for, and calling the police when someone steals from you is reasonable - it is not an emergency, and she should have called the non-emergency number. She earned the citation.

Weekly Leader : Women will Never be Equal to Men

Wed, 6 Jan 2010 07:06:29 +0000

Yes Betty - but just for the fashion tips.

Weekly Leader : A Letter on Their Hearts

Sat, 5 Dec 2009 16:58:48 +0000

Debra - My sister Gina is my favorite person on the planet.

Weekly Leader : A Letter on Their Hearts

Wed, 2 Dec 2009 19:23:51 +0000

Thank you, Danny.

Weekly Leader : A Little Perspective

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 16:52:38 +0000

Thanks Sean - I'm certain you'll get through it. Focus on the actionable and not the emotional and your two-thirds done.

Weekly Leader : The Myth of the Turnaround Employee

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 09:31:08 +0000

Thanks Daren - and I know exactly the bottlenecks you speak of. And I guess that's the larger point. Pay attention to your true talent and they will stay - rise to the top - and not tolerate the systemic failures that hold people back. And your right, top 5%ers do not let process or obstacles stand in their way - but they often go around them by dumping on team for another.

Weekly Leader : A Little Perspective

Sun, 30 Aug 2009 00:17:00 +0000

Tim: Excellent question, Tim For me, the best way to apply perspective in a way that everyone can understand is to take those "big deals" to their logical conclusion. Regardless of life experience, nobody ever worries about what is happening, they worry about what might happen next. When you are on the edge, you're not worried about being too close, you are worried about falling...until you fall...then you're no longer worried about falling...you're worried about stopping. It is the uncertainty that causes alarm. So help them over their uncertainty by using your experience to help them draw there own conclusions about the possibilities. "Let's say that this all goes wrong - what will that look like? What is the worst that can happen?" That is a good line of questioning to help people realize that the "worst" thing often isn't unmanageable. Then - "If that happens that way, what can we do about it?" What is our plan then?" Your experience has reset your baseline for a bad day, Tim. For those with less...experience, talking their concerns out to the possible ends is often all it takes to set the fear of that thing aside and take meaningful action. Best, Mario

Weekly Leader : A Little Perspective

Sat, 15 Aug 2009 22:35:27 +0000

Steven: I was saddened at your reminder of the Cynthia Wood's tragedy. I remember reading about Roger Stone's heroics and sacrifice. (The "crew" Mr. Conway mentioned was trapped because he pushed two students out of the vessel as it foundered, leaving no time for him to save himself.) Your own actions that day leave no doubt that you are one of "those guys." Thank you for your dedicated service and mostly for your selflessness. Like the perspective you have well earned, it is a rare thing. Mario

gCaptain.com — A Blog About Ships : Marine Flares - More Than Meets the Eye

Sat, 6 Jun 2009 20:17:11 +0000

On the disposal of flares - the laws for hazmat disposal varies significantly state to state so to dispose of pyrotechnics, the best advice is to contact the local municipal fire department. Road flares and Marine flares are very similar and almost always have the same disposal requirements; and fire departments use (and dispose of) a LOT of pyrotechnics. Some states (MA) do a good job of identifying places to take unwanted marine pyro ( http://www.capecodextension.org/pdfs/Flares_FS_5_... ). As far as training goes, it is illegal to discharge marine distress signals unless it is an emergency...unless...you have permission from the Coast Guard and (usually) the fire department. Often, CG units and/or CG Auxiliary units have Pyrotechnics demo/training events. Contact your local USCG Station for information in your area.

gCaptain.com — A Blog About Ships : Marine Flares - More Than Meets the Eye

Fri, 5 Jun 2009 09:31:42 +0000

No necessarily an advantage - but it is important to know that if they are all you have left, and the search aircraft is close by, daytime smoke devices make excellent signals at night.

gCaptain.com — A Blog About Ships : Failed Trans-Atlantic Rowing Attempt Costs U.S. Tax Payers

Thu, 4 Jun 2009 19:31:50 +0000

There are fines for breaking the law - its just very hard to define "unreasonable risk" and make it illegal.

gCaptain.com — A Blog About Ships : Failed Trans-Atlantic Rowing Attempt Costs U.S. Tax Payers

Thu, 4 Jun 2009 15:35:53 +0000

Clearly, Charlie has a surfeit of personal belief, accompanied by a deficit of personal ability. Otherwise known as letting your alligator sized mouth get your hummingbird sized.....well, you know what ..into trouble. However, it is not the taxpayers money that is the shame. The CG budget is not going up this year by 80K to pay for this rescue - we fly a predetermined number of hours per year whether on rescue or training (Katrina sized disasters to one side). The real shame is that to get him back required other people to risk their lives offshore. That is easier to do when the person you are going to get got into trouble while engaged in their profession (shipping, commercial fishing) or in a reasonable (otherwise safe) voyage on a private vessel. But when the risk comes because you failed at a useless stunt design only to gain attention, the risk starts to feel (just a little maybe) equally useless. Officially though, we are very happy to help out. disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author are not necessarily those of the Department of Homeland Security or the U.S. Coast Guard.

Weekly Leader : The Rest is Important

Thu, 28 May 2009 23:19:06 +0000

Thanks for all the comments - and thanks so much to @CraigTeich (via @MiaChambers) for the article retweet. I'd write more, but I am busy planning my kayak trip. Cheers!

Weekly Leader : Where Are The Leaders? (Washington Post)

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 01:20:42 +0000

I would only comment that the Financial Titans of and Lions of Legislature that David Rothkopf longs for from our past are the ones who let the usery laws disappear, and created the financial vehicles and laws pushed us to the edge we are falling over. I dont miss them...

Weekly Leader : The Opposite of Mentoring

Wed, 4 Mar 2009 19:01:28 +0000

Marcia - You may have learned from those experiences - but you weren't expected to. The people who gossiped about you had no desire at all to teach you anything. That you did learn something is a testament to your attitude, but that doesn't mean it is the preferred method of teaching. The world (and the businesses we engage in) provides plenty of "gauntlet" opportunities to make it through without the leaders of the team adding their own. Don’t ever confuse making things harder with making them better - simply because the harder part leaves scars - and that makes them tougher. It may do so, as it did in your case - but I guarantee it makes the team weaker. Mario PS - if you dont get support from the team at home, then you aren't really at home yet.

Weekly Leader : The Opposite of Mentoring

Wed, 4 Mar 2009 14:25:17 +0000

I agree with everything you said, Marcia. Its just that your comments were about listening and self-defensiveness; neither one of those things are even possible if the person you're talking about isn't in the room when you say them. Being self-defensive is a bad thing, I agree. But, not having the backbone to air your grievences to the person you have a problem with.... That is far worse. (...and it's almost always caused by personal insecurity) Mario

Weekly Leader : Five Classic Harvard Business Review Leadership Articles sponsored by Microsoft

Wed, 4 Mar 2009 10:43:26 +0000

Everything Daniel Goleman has ever written is required reading. (hint: I am not kidding)