Don McMinn

My son-in-law Jonathan is an amazing, competent man. He’s a board-certified emergency room physician, served as a lieutenant in the Navy for 18 years with tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, is an instrument-rated pilot, and a master sailor. In his spare time he’s completing his MBA degree.

Recently, he helped a friend (I’ll call him Bill) reposition his 20-ft sailboat from St. Thomas to Ft. Lauderdale. Because the boat belonged to Bill, he assumed the role of Captain.

Bill is a novice sailor, but knows that Jonathan is an experienced one. A few hours into the trip Bill made a bad call (contrary to Jonathan’s warning) that caused the main sail to rip. A few days later Bill stubbornly overruled Jonathan’s suggestion about a pump malfunction so for the rest of the trip they had no fresh water for bathing and cooking. 

The entire trip was a debacle. It didn’t end as badly as the first and final voyage of the Titanic—they made it back alive—but it was rife with problems and avoidable challenges.

The greatest frustration was not the mishaps—bad things happen. Exasperation peaked because the problems need not have happened. It was immediately apparent that Jonathan was the best sailor on board. Why didn’t Bill recognize his own incompetence and Jonathan’s proficiency? Why didn’t he say, “Jonathan, you know a lot more about sailing than I do—you captain the boat; I’ll report to you.” Jonathan would have enjoyed serving as Skipper.

When I heard this story, I asked myself, “In what areas of life am I struggling to perform adequately, and there’s probably someone close by who would gladly help and do better?”

This is a potent lesson for leaders. The key to good leadership is surrounding yourself with people who are better than you at certain tasks and empowering and supporting them. Leaders, you can’t be good at everything so don’t even try. Selecting and leading a team of competent and focused people is the key to effectively leading an organization. 

Without support from others, it’s virtually impossible to advance in your life and career. And studies show that most people are willing to lend a hand—if you ask in the right way. 

We are reluctant to say them, but when spoken honestly and appropriately, three simple phrases will help maintain personal integrity and sustain peace in relationships.

“I don’t know.”

Often, when we’re asked a question but don’t know the answer, we make stuff up. Instead, we should just say, “I don’t know.”

In his must-read-book, In The Kingdom of Ice, Hampton Sides writes that in the late 1800s no one knew what the North Pole was like because no one had ever been there. The most famous cartographer of the day was a German professor named August Petermann. He was, supposedly, the world’s foremost authority on world geography. The world wanted to know what the Arctic was like, so Petermann wrote, “It is a well-known fact that there exists to the north of the Siberian coast, and, at a comparatively short distance from it, a sea open at all seasons.” He firmly believed that when a team of explorers finally reached the North Pole, they would find a tropical environment, complete with palm trees and perhaps a new race of humans.

Huh? Why didn’t he just say, “I don’t know”?

When was the last time you said, “I don’t know”? I admire people who use the phrase; I have little regard for people who should but don’t. There’s no shame in admitting that you simply don’t know.

“I made a mistake.”

When I hear someone say, “I made a mistake,” my admiration for that person escalates. My regard is diminished when there is stubborn refusal to admit the obvious. Politicians and leaders, in particular, are reluctant to admit mistakes, but it’s nearly impossible not to make mistakes when you’re leading aggressively and making a lot of decisions. To err is human.

Even when we do admit that a mistake was made, we have a hard time using the personal pronoun “I.” When Richard Nixon commented on Watergate, when Ronald Reagan talked about the Iran-Contra affair, and when Hillary Clinton spoke about Whitewater, they used the phrase, “Mistakes were made.” That doesn’t quite hit the nail on the head, does it?

Compare these responses to the most famous unsent message in history. General Eisenhower penned the following memo before the Normandy Invasion. Fortunately, it was never posted because the invasion was successful.

“Our landings…have failed..and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based upon the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone.”

When was the last time you said, “I made a mistake”?

“I was wrong; please forgive me.”

Only an infallible person can avoid saying this phrase, and you and I don’t qualify. Speaking this phrase doesn’t make you a bad person, it simply means that you messed up and want to make it right.

I once counseled a couple struggling in their marriage. In one of the sessions I asked the husband, “How long has it been since you’ve spoken these words to your wife: ‘I was wrong; please forgive me.’” Awkward silence ensued. At least he was honest when he replied, “Never.” They had been married 22 years.

I appealed to his logic: “What is the probability that in 22 years of marriage, you have never hurt or offended your wife?” Again, he was honest in saying, “No chance.” Their homework assignment was rather obvious: identify ways in which you have hurt your spouse, admit it, and ask forgiveness.

When was the last time you said, “I was wrong; please forgive me.”

We are reluctant to speak these three phrases, but we should, probably often. When we do, we’ll credibility with our family and friends and relationships will be strengthened.

When was the last time you spoke each of these phrases? In the coming weeks, find an appropriate time to speak each one.

 

Time is a precious commodity. If traded on the commodities market, its value would be incalculable. But alas, time cannot be bought or sold. And while the length of our lives varies and is unpredictable, the number of hours we have in each day is fixed.

Many books have been written on how to maximize your time. Read them and learn. You are the steward of your own time.

This essay focuses on the negative influence that we can have on other people’s time. In other words, if you want to waste your own time, that’s up to you, but don’t waste other people’s time. Likewise, I don’t want to waste your time.

So let’s agree…

Be punctual.
If you have an appointment with someone at 1:00 p.m. and you arrive at 1:05, you have squandered five minutes of her time. To be on time you must be early; it’s nearly impossible to be precisely on time – time is moving too fast. For instance, if a meeting starts at 1:00 you can’t walk in 1:00 – that occurs in a milli-second and then becomes the past. You must arrive before 1:00.

Be organized.
When you are responsible for a project that involves other people, be organized or you’ll waste their time. Predetermine what needs to be accomplished and the quickest way to do it.

Plan ahead.
Plans exist in the future. The past is history, the present is reality. Always have a plan for what the future can look like. Spontaneity can, at times, be useful, but not as a way of life. Sound planning will undergird effectiveness and efficiency.

Be decisive.
Often, it is wise to postpone a decision until it must be made – careful contemplation and monitoring changing variables are good reasons to delay a decision. But when a decision needs to be made, do so. And don’t overthink minor decisions; that just gums up progress.

Be quick, not slow.
By and large, slow is not good. Jack Welch, former CEO of GE would ask his protégés, “Who wants to be slow?” It was a rhetorical question; I hope no one raised his hand.
While it’s good to be thorough, careful, wise, circumspect, cautious, and deliberate – don’t be slow. Maintain a quick pace.

Monitor conversations and keep them on track.
When you and I are talking to each other, let’s pay attention to what we’re talking about and use our time wisely. For instance, don’t spend time talking about irrelevant topics and don’t even spend too much time talking about a relevant one.

A man (whom I did not know) once approached me and said, “Don, I know you lived in Austin, Texas, for a few years. Did you know a man named Ted Wallenburg?” I replied that I didn’t, but he spent the next four minutes telling me all about Ted, a man who had no connection to our lives. Why did he do that?
Also, don’t repeat yourself. When you and I are conversing, I will listen carefully and comprehend what you’re saying. I get it. So you don’t need to say it again. If I don’t understand, I’ll ask for clarification. Circular dialogue (getting caught in a verbal cul de sac) is a waste of time.
And let’s carefully consider the topics we want to discuss and allocate our time wisely. If we have only 20 minutes to converse, let’s try to address as many topics as possible.

Anticipate
When I was 13 years old, we lived next door to an engineer whose hobby was rebuilding Volkswagen engines. One summer I served as his apprentice, so on warm summer evenings we rebuilt engines in his garage.
One of the first lessons he taught me was, “Don, try to anticipate what needs to happen next and act accordingly – hand me the right tool, fetch the next part to be installed – always be thinking two or three steps ahead in the process.”
That’s a great lesson to learn because it saves time.
Understand what can happen simultaneously and what must happen sequentially, and act accordingly.

Pay attention.
President Reagan was buried on June 11, 2004. It was a dreary, rainy day. Nancy Reagan and her family stood in the drizzling rain to watch the casket being taken from the Capitol Rotunda to the National Cathedral. A young military escort held an umbrella over Mrs. Reagan to shield her from the elements. In a moment of mental lapse, the young man allowed the umbrella to drift off to the side, exposing Nancy to the rain. She reached up, grabbed the man’s hand, and yanked the umbrella back into place.

Ouch. I can just imagine what the young man’s commanding officer might have said to him after the funeral: “Son, your only job today was to hold an umbrella over Mrs. Reagan. That’s not a difficult assignment. Millions of people were watching. What were you thinking?”

A Boy Scouts leader used to tell his boys, “If you are early, you are on time. If you are on time, you are late. If you are late you owe everyone ice cream.”

I like that. Let’s not waste each other’s time.

For the past 12 years I’ve led groups of friends on annual, international trips. We’ve been to Paris, London, Europe, the Mediterranean, Baltic States, Russia, Israel, Peru, and North Africa. We’ve never had a malfunction or bad experience; just memorable, life-enhancing moments.

Please join me this fall 2022, on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the cradle of Western civilization. We’ll visit Rome,  Athens,  Istanbul, Ephesus, three Greek Isles and Naples, Italy. 

This month, I’m hosting two virtual information meetings on Zoom.

Thursday, March 17 at 6:00 p.m.
Thursday, March 24 at 6:00 p.m.

During the meeting, we’ll discuss the itinerary and logistics and I’ll answer all your questions.

If you want to participate, just email me at [email protected] and I’ll send you an invitation. Or call me at 214.783.4414.

Here’s a brochure about the trip. Travel with Friends – 2022-Brochure