Connext Nation's February Book Report

Don Kardux, Business Navigators, brings us his monthly view of a book that would be helpful for us to read!  Dob shares:

Bill Munn is a graduate of  Owens Illinois' corporate world. He rose through the ranks from Sales Rep in 1971 to VP Division General Manager with five steps in-between. 

In 1990 he left OI and started his consulting practice where his web site explains his focus. “Bill Munn helps executives manage teams to their greatest potential, customizing coaching plans to maximize the performance of each individual.”

His personal success provides the background of his nineteen years of experience with OI which resulted in the publication of “Lead or Be Led”

It’s a gem of a read and only 86 pages in length.

While the book is relatively short (Twenty –Eight chapters) it is packed with insight and practical action steps. The action steps (he calls them –Implementation Tools) are deceptively simple and therefore encouraging for the reader to use.

Bill didn’t write the following words. I don’t know who penned them but they represent  his view. “In order to do things on purpose, you must have a purpose.”

Two of the chapters really echo Marcus Buckingham’s Strength Based Management Approach and therefore resonate with me. The chapters are:

11.          Find your power alley

12.          What about weakness?

The book is worth the read and if you want more you can go to his website and click on his blog.

http://billmunncoaching.com

Oh Can-na-da!

OK,  well now I'm famous!  Or at least in my head I am!

Today I presented a short talk about blogging to the Canadian group called Leaders Without Borders.  The group regularly "meets" by teleconference for two hour blocks to hear industry leaders talk about a topic.  Today's topic was Networking.  I must admit that was laughing a little when Sylvia Martignani, a  project manager from the Ontario Federal Council emailed me her request..  The little voice inside my head was saying, "You better hope she doesn't find out that you're JUST a blogger and not really an expert!  So shush, don't tell her!


But all went well and I'm forever grateful to the participant Monica, who asked a couple questions at the end. 

BTW, I talked about how blogging can increase one's credibility with another person before you ever meet that person if they read your blog.  Networking and blogging certainly go hand in hand!

So what do you think you could blog about?

Hair Color

A couple weeks ago, I attended a Youth Leadership Toledo lunch. At the lunch the young gentleman that I sat next to, Alberto Serrano, a sophomore at Maumee, Ohio high school, made my day when he exclaimed about my hair. Now I have to tell you that I never want to be ordinary with my hair and it has been wilder in the past. Right now it still gets comments like Alberto's but for me its tame.

Alberto has beautiful, dark, shiny black hair. He told me that he wants to dye his bangs red but that he was discouraged from doing so, because it just wouldn't be right. This didn't come from his mom, by the way.

Alberto sent me a thank you note for coming to the lunch with the students and in the note he said that my image had given him the feeling that he should express himself sometime in the future, too. Maybe now is not the right time, but soon.

When I was in high school, boys were starting to imitate the Beatles' hairstyles. One coach refused to allow students with long hair (and if you look back those styles were mild) to try out for his team. I guess those were the times.

I hope that Alberto gets to color his hair soon. After all, what is important here. Hair or a well-adjusted, community-minded young man.

What is a Leader?

Two weekends ago at Camp CEO, our keynote speaker was Dr Anne Baker, Executive Director of the Toledo Zoo.

Her early Saturday morning talk was about leadership.

One sentence that I remember and have repeated so much since hearing it was: (And I may not have this quote perfect, here!)

"A leader listens so that she may change her mind."

That is a very short sentence. That is also a very powerful sentence.

Thanks, Dr. Baker for challenging me to think about whether I am a good leader.

Leaving No Stone Unturned

Success comes in many ways!

As I have written here before, I worked on Hannah's Socks as my Leadership Toledo project this year.

One questions that Doris and Vic Turner have asked is how to expand their non-profit from a small local organization to a larger national or even international concern.

This is something that I certainly have no experience to share. I am more schooled in the for-profit sector. But I am not one to let lack of knowledge slow me down.

Ever since they asked for help, I have asked everyone I met with if they can help solve this challenge.

Bingo! This week I had coffee with Kristen Cajka from the American Red Cross. We had met previously when she attended one of our Certified Networker graduations representing the favorite charity of the MVP student in one of our classes. Being so named means that the charity gets a little extra PR at the event and they also get a huge check for $50.

Kristen gave me Megan Meyer's name. Megan is with the Center for Non-Profit Resources. I e-mailed Megan the question asking for help. She e-mailed back saying that the answer has many variables. She suggested that we meet. So on the 27th of this month, Megan, Doris Turner, President of Hannah's Socks and I will have breakfast and chew this very topic along with our food.

Now on to the next challenge!

I have learned so much this year being part of the group that worked on Hannah's Socks for our Leadership Toledo project. The best part of finding out what I don't know is that I can make it part of what I do know!

Leadership Toledo, Project Day

Friday was another stupendous Leadership Toledo day.

This time the six groups reported on the projects they worked on all year. Each project helped a non-profit become better or more successful.

What we all realized from this exercise was that as we went through the year, we all learned something that we didn't expect to learn.

One group had their non-profit go belly-up after they had invested quite a bit of time into it. Not to be discouraged, they chose another organization to work with, The MADD Poet's Society. At first the society wanted help finding a space to meet, but once that was accomplished, the LT project group went on to help in other ways.

That was the theme of the day with all six groups -- flexibility in finding out what was needed was important, because it was usually different from the original stated need of the non-profit.

I don't think that has anything to do with the ability of the non-profits. It just said that like many of us, when we are too close to the situation, it is difficult to see what is really happening.

Have you ever worked on a project, only to realize mid-stream that the plans needed to be changed?

Climbing the Ladder of Success

Yesterday, I told you about the Girl Scout Camp CEO weekend from the business game point of view. Today, I'll relate our experiences at the climbing wall and the giant's ladder.

Having spent the morning inside, it was fun to get out in the sun. The strong wind kept the the temperature a little colder than jacketless weather. We received instructions from Christy Gustin, the Girl Scout Program Director. She explained that probably at some point high up on the wall, that we'd feel like we couldn't go any further and that they would encourage us to push just a little more.

It was exactly as she said. There seemed to be a point about 3/4's of the way to the top, where the wind was really blowing, and the hand and toe holds were a little more tenuous. That's where so many said, "I'm ready to come down." Christy would encourage a little more effort and the rest of us would shout our support. In every instance the climber was able to go higher and many were able to push to the top.

The giant's ladder, was just that. It felt like I was in the world of Gulliver! This was a rope and wood ladder. The rungs of the ladder were 4 x 4's and the distance between the rungs was no less than 4' and the top most one stretched more than five feet. Two people would climb at the same time, helping each other. Some pairs were better than others. Mentor, Paige Scarlett and student, Ju Leigh Serpa were so graceful in their climb that it seemed as if it were choreographed.

On both the wall and the ladder, each of us were asked to set goals for what we wanted to achieve. This meant that each person could decide her own performance levels.

As I watched people get "stuck" and then push on, I realized that I was watching a visualization of the world of business. Some business people decide that they are too scared or tired to push on. Others, especially those with outside support, may get stopped, but figure a way to keep going.

Hopefully, next year at this time, I'll be telling you about new aha's from the 3rd annual Camp CEO. But in the meantime, where have you been stopped in your business life, and what helped you to push on?

Leader Toledo, Diversity Day

Yesterday I was blind.

Yesterday was another day of Leadership Toledo.

Yesterday was diversity day.

We met at The Ability Center where we were divided into six groups. Each of us received a disability. Mine was blindness. I donned a pair of black-out goggles. Some people had walkers, others were in wheelchairs, some had hearing loss and others had limited vision. The one that challenged one high school student was not being able to speak.

Each group went from station to station to find out different ways the center helps people with disabilities. What is really neat about this organization is that many of the staff have some form of disability, so that when they are working with clients, they can very much empathize.

Here's what I noticed. When I couldn't see what was happening I became less engaged in what was going on. I think I do a lot of lip reading anyway, because of my hearing loss, but not being able to see facial expressions certainly limited the level of communication that I was able to receive.

Because we moved from station to station, I needed someone to help me move around. Ron Dike, one of the members of my LT class, made it his job to be my leader. Ron and I had never really talked before, as we had never ended up in any of the smaller groups together. At first, I was tentative with my movements, but as Ron proved that I could trust his expertise, I became much more sure. For me it was an interesting exercise in building relationship without having conversation other than the directions or the description of what was happening that Ron was giving me.

What are some ways you see relationship develop that go beyond conversation?

Leadership Toledo, Media Day, Part C

As I mentioned in two previous posts here and here, Leadership Toledo Media Day, was packed full!

Today, I'm going to share a few of my observations about our visit to the one daily paper we have in Toledo, The Blade.

We were first met by Kevin Cesarz, who oversees the online presence of The Blade. Kevin feels that this is the way newspapers of the future will exist -- that most of us will read our news online. He asked for a show of hands from our group as to how we read our news. Overwhelmingly, I would say 90% are online readers.

Kevin explained that the online group both leads and follows the "paper" news. They can give later-developing details on a story after the printing deadline and overnight, they can add breaking news to the website, so that early readers get news up to the minute.

One Leadership Toledo classmate asked Kevin what would happen to The Blade if it did indeed become a paperless paper. Kevin smiled and said, "Well, there is a whole production crew that would not be needed. Paper delivery people would also lose their jobs. At this union-based paper, I am sure that there would be a huge howl of protest when and if that happens in the future.

Our next speaker, Dave Murray has been at the paper for 28 years, half of that time in the union and half in management. He gets a call daily from John Robinson Block, the publisher, asking him to give John the news of the day. Dave reads the highlights from a handwritten scrap of paper.

Dave regaled us with stories of his work demonstrating his no b/s personality. He shared that he's only been fired twice by Mr. Block. Obviously, I guess the firings were soon rescinded, but that shows that Dave is willing to stand up to Mr. Block, something not many people do.

Block may be the reason many people don't like the Blade. His news seems to always shine a negative light on Toledo. Dave Murray would argue that the statistics would prove that they have just as much (or more) positive news, but the perception out there is that John Block is not a nice man.

Dave did go to Block's defense by telling us that we would not have The Medical College of Ohio, now part of the University of Toledo, if it hadn't been for Block. Block's mother died when he was five. Years later he read a statistic that people with a teaching hospital nearby were healthier. Knowing how his mother's death had affected him as a child, that one small statistic launched him into action. That year, Ohio was electing a new governor. The two candidates were DiSalle and Rhodes. DiSalle was from Toledo. Even so, Block told Rhodes that the paper would come out in support of his campaign if Rhodes would promise funding for the teaching hospital. The Blade did come out in support of Rhodes and Toledo has a teaching hospital.

The above story is a wonderful report of how Block has done good for the community. But I had to admit that as I was sitting there, I wondered how many times Block has used that power in a less than savory way.

If you had the power of John Block, how would you use it?

Leadertship Toledo, Media Day, Part B

As I mentioned in part A, the Leadership Toledo Media Day, started at WGTE Public Broadcasting station.

I was amazed at all they do. I just thought they were a TV station.



Not only do they have several TV and radio stations, but they also provide a huge educational component to the community. They do this in several ways.

Of course, their programming is focused on the gathering and producing of local history, especially in relation to larger events. A program that is already produced and ready to broadcast on Feb 28 is about how World War II affected the Toledo population at the local level. Many citizens were interviewed of which a smattering will make it to the screen. Even so, the history has been documented for future citizens to refer to.

Another educational component is how the station supports the professional development of teachers, especially with the use of technology. Not only do teachers gain skills in how to use technology in their classrooms (Smartboards, class websites, digital photography, Internet safety) but they can also access a whole library of topics to use for lessons with their students. There is a 75 page printed media guide that lists just about any topic known to man. Subject headings include everything from African American Studies to Women's Studies with Art, Science, Careers and Health just a few in-between. Some listings are just the video and others are "kits" including student activity books, books and something called manipulatives!

And this is all free!

Another initiative is the reading program that they are working on. They are one of five stations nationwide chosen for this grant. They have produced a children's program called Word World (say that fast five times!) and also have a program for early childhood reading development and the parents of these children. Their statistics show that the children they are reaching in this program have been read to a TOTAL of 24 hours when they begin school. You say, "24 hours, that sounds like a lot?" Think about it. That's over a minimum of five years, probably closer to six for most children. Do the math. That is somewhere between 4 - 4.8 hours PER YEAR. ONLY ONE HOUR EVERY THREE MONTHS. (Advantaged children usually have been read to in the range of 1500 - 1700 hours when they start school.)

Of course, much of the funding for a public broadcasting station comes viewers just like you and me. Little did I know how far those dollars stretch.

My year in Leadership Toledo is certainly helping to know where stuff is in Toledo. What I didn't realize that I'd find out was the depth of what each entity offers.

By the way, Leadership Toledo is having their annual breakfast on March 7. It would be a super opportunity for you to find out more about this wonderful organization. You do need to have a reservation to attend. If you are in the NW Ohio area and would like to attend email me at debby@cnpofohio.com.

Leadership Toledo, Media Day, Part A

Media Day!

That was today. Another fun-fill, fact-fill and interesting Leadership Toledo day!

Have you ever wondered what news you get to read or hear and what articles get buried?

We all met at WGTE Public Broadcasting Station to begin our day. After a very interesting presentation of ALL that WGTE does, we became news editors. We were given short intros of stories that had been pulled off various news feed lines. In small groups we had to decide which ten articles we would include in our newspaper, which six would make a TV newscast and then finally which three would make our radio newscast.

As we were trying to decide which articles we would choose, I said, "Now wait, what reasons or criteria are we using to choose the articles?" In other words, are we trying to gain reader/listenership or do we have another agenda? One person in our group commented that we didn't have time to do that, as we only had two minutes left to finish our task.

After completing our choices, a panel of three (one from newspaper, one from tv and one from radio) helped us to better understand what goes on every day when such decisions are being made.

Brian Trauring, WTVG 13 ABC, shared that yesterday, right about the time when they needed to have a lead story designated for the five o'clock news, there were rumors swirling around town about the firing of a certain city employee. (Our mayor is prone to lopping heads off at the drop of a hat.) He said that everyone at the station pounded the phones trying to get the "real skinny" on the story/rumor. While trying to get to the bottom of the story, Brian was also trying to decide if the rumor about this high profile person, made the rumor a news story anyway. He said that cooler heads than his convinced him not to run the story. It was interesting to hear because the time constraint he described was exactly what our group had just experienced in theory. Only he had really lived through it just 12 hours before. And he probably does it every day.

Tom Watkins, Cumulus Broadcasting, shared that at one point during his radio career, his boss came back from company meetings and shared that some higher-ups wanted Tom to "lean more to the right" in his show. His boss also said that he was not telling Tom to do this. Tom did not. But that brought forth a lot of questions from the Leadership gang about how the news might be slanted or altered. All three on the panel including Kim Bates, The Toledo Blade, city editor, agreed that their job is to produce an unbiased as possible report. They did admit that all reporters or news people do have opinions (after all they are human, too!) but they do try to stay as neutral as possible.

Tomorrow, I will tell you a little bit more about all the good works of WGTE and then in the next couple days I will tell you about our afternoon at the Toledo Blade - the paper everyone loves to hate.

On the way home I got to thinking -- what would happen if all national political candidate's stories were banned from the media? Instead there would only be a special website run by neutral observers, where candidates filed white papers on their platforms. (I know, I know, websites are considered media, but you know what I mean.)

What do ya' think?

Sock It To Me!

Ya' just never know.

I met with Bryon Traynoff last week. He is a new member of my BNI chapter and owns BT Home Revitalizing. We spent some time chatting, getting to know each other. As a result, Bryon, asked what other things I was involved with.

I told him about Leadership Toledo and how my sub group is working on helping Hannah's Socks become a better and larger non-profit. Hannah's Socks accepts donations of socks and then gives them to the various shelters for those who might not have socks, or at least dry socks.

Bryon said, "You want more socks?"

That was Thursday.

Today is only Monday, but in that time, I have talked with Bryon's dad, George Traynoff, who had talked with his friend, David York, who manages American Knitting in North Carolina. George told me to call Candy, who works for David. With that one phone call, 30 dozen pairs of socks are going to come Hannah's Socks way. That's 360 pairs of socks. And Candy said that we can ask for more.

All because Bryon was interested enough to ask questions.

Thanks Bryon!

On Point!

While I was away, I missed a Leadership Toledo day -- this being culture day. I was disappointed to not be here, but have gotten a report on the day from both Erika Harris and Brad Augustyniak.

Brad told me that he appreciated the time they spent with the young ballerina in the morning. "Now, don't get me, wrong, it didn't make me want to be a part of the ballet scene, but I did come away with a greater appreciation for what it takes to be a ballerina." He was amazed at all the time it took to get to the proficiency that this dancer exhibited and he was totally taken aback about the dancing shoes.

Brad said, "Did you know that professional ballerina's change their ballet slippers every three days or so whereas the students can use theirs for three or four weeks? And each pair costs $80!"

I am sorry that I was not able to see the dancers, view the art at the art museum and listen to the symphony practice, but through Brad's ears and eyes, I did get a little bit of culture day.

Thanks, Brad!

P.S. And speaking of culture the Dale Chihuly glass exhibit at the Phipps Conservatory in Pittsburgh has been extended to Feb 24. If you have any chance at all to get to Pittsburgh to see this exhibit, you will thank your lucky stars you did. It will take your breath away over and over and over as you step into each new room.

Say That Again

Okay, here it is.

I am hard of hearing.

I have been struggling with this for about two years now. Every time I see the specialist, he says that I am not yet ready for a hearing aid. But I think I am. (I'm not going to get one of those ugly flesh-colored ones either, no sireey, I'm going for the pretty ones!)

With the everlasting cold I seem to have right now, my hearing is even more affected.

As a result I have a very important message today.

Ready?

If you want others to hear what you have to say, especially we who are hearing-challenged, project your voice. If a microphone is offered, use it. If you are making a comment or asking a question from the audience, please stand to do so. That helps to get more umph behind your voice.

During this past week, I missed out entirely on the presentation of the main speaker at a chamber luncheon, (there was a microphone available, but it was not adjusted properly) and at our Leadership Toledo gathering where we were reporting on our morning group visits, many times I could not hear the presentation and 100% of the time I could not hear the comments or questions. (There is nothing more frustrating than to not hear a comment, but then to have the speaker say, "Yes, that is a perfect example of what I was talking about.")

I know, I know, your remedy is for me to sit in the front row and yes, that would help. But as a speaker, I know that my job is to project to the people in the back row. If they can hear my talk without reading my lips, then I have achieved my goal.

As a group leader, encourage the above. Some people don't like to talk into a microphone because they've not done it before, but as a leader, I feel it is your job to set the "tone" of the event. Most don't think to stand when making a comment, but will do so if told.

Huh? What'd you say?

Leadership Toledo, Part VII

Okay, yesterday was medical day for Leadership Toledo. Again, I was not looking forward to this topic. I was sure it was going to be a boring day of listening to talking heads tell us about the hospitals in the area.

By now, I should know that Dave Schlaudecker, the executive director of LT, will create a day that has interest. He didn't let me down this time, either.

We were all again divided into smaller groups and my group was assigned to the Center for Creative Instruction on the Health Science Campus of University of Toledo. This is the old Medical University of Ohio, before the merger with UT.

Wow! This is the most amazing jewel that most people don't know about. The Center does everything from create and manage websites for all of UT to creating DVDs to be used in teaching, marketing, recruiting and whatever other use can be dreamed!

One particular aspect of their work that they are very proud is the DVD Anatomy & Physiology Revealed. It is so wonderful that the publisher McGraw Hill thought so too and CCI works directly with this company to publish the DVD along with an anatomy textbook. McGraw Hill markets it directly to professors, but the DVD can be purchased at Barnes and Noble if you have a high school biology student in your life. This small group of 15 people are now working on the second edition, which is probably at least a two year project.

In another project they were asked to build a website and animation that explained the clinical trial for renal artery stenosis in order to gain more people in the trial. Now that's a mouth full, isn't it?!? The funding for that is from a grant from CORAL. (which I'm not sure what that is) They were successful in this project and then it was decided that both French and German versions were needed, too. They had to find local talent that could do the voice-over in those languages. Interestingly, the French version was done by a stay at home mom, not a a professional talent.

Roy Schneider is part of this small staff and has worked at CCI for 30 years. He started out loving both art and science. His dad told him that his art would never take him anywhere, but when he was working as a hospital orderly, one doctor realized Roy's talents and the rest is history. He is widely recognized and has won an award (that I cannot remember the name of) but it is the Oscar of his world.

Our time was way too short at this part of the medical world of NW Ohio. When we asked why we had never heard of this facility before, the answer was that the staff is all so busy with the multitude of projects that they just don't have time to do marketing or PR.

This was only the morning but I now understand that when we talk about the medical world here in the Toledo area, that there is a whole lot more than just hospitals.

Thanks, Dave. You make me so glad I am a member of this year's LT class.

And by the way, for those of you in the NW Ohio area, LT has an annual breakfast in March. If you'd like to find out more about it, touch base with me.

Leadership Toledo, Part VI

Today was another fun-filled day with Leadership Toledo. Or actually it was a morning.

Our focus today was Government.

Hmmmm - Ya' gotta know that I again wasn't too excited about the topic going in.

But LT really has done their job in making all these days be educational and exciting.

So for the first hour this morning we all became part of a giant game. Divided into eight groups, our group goal was to play Governmentricks with the objective of getting as many points as possible.

This was set up like Trivial Pursuit, except that all eight groups played at the same time. For each color that we landed on there was a corresponding set of questions. Some of the categories were: financial, quality of life and general trivial questions. Then there were squares that each represented a governmental entity. When we reached a square, say Maumee, the question was about the city of Maumee government. If we got the question right, we got to put the piece of the puzzle in our game piece. I am so glad that Nick Malone was in our group as he was able to answer almost all the questions. I know I had the look of wonder on my face the whole time and was always saying to Nick, "How in the world did you know that?" I am embarrassed to say that I was only able to answer two of the questions during the whole game.

This game was a wonderful way to get us all involved. What I got from it is that there is a lot I don't know and also that there is a lot to know!

Once we totaled our game points our next speaker Mike Beasley, Lucas County Administrator, gave us a challenge. We were to decide whether we want legislation to legalize gambling and in what form. Once our group decided what we stood for, we had to convince other groups to our side to get a majority of the points. The winners combined the points of three groups to get their majority and agreed they wanted riverboat gambling and would split the proceeds to the three government entities represented in their coalition. One of the left out groups said, "Wait a minute, Maumee is on the river, how can you leave us out?"

Mike laughed and said, "That is a prime example of what happens when legislation is being brokered."

I'm still not much more knowledgeable about government than I was this morning. But I do have a sense of the complexity and that perhaps this complexity could be our downfall. Simplifying government is easy to say, but it probably is an even more complex task!

Oh yeah, later on I found out that there is a difference between economic development and community development, but that's for another day.

What would you change about our government - federal, state or local?

Leadership Toledo, Part V

The post is a little late, as my last Leadership Toledo meeting was last Wednesday, but that also was the day that I caught a 5 PM flight to the BNI conference. So you all will pardon me, right?

Wednesday, November 14, was education day.

Our leader, Dave Schlaudecker, had sent us an email that had this quote about the day we were about to have, "We have no control over what you experience at a school." Couple that comment with the fact that we were divided into nine groups, additionally the students from Youth Leadership Toledo were paired with us and that I was assigned to an inner city elementary school made for some negative anticipation inside my head.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

Mapquest got me to the school with only one small hitch. Really it wasn't Mapquest, just the streets are kind of kinked down near the school. No big deal.

Principal Diane McGee met us at the door and ushered us into the library where breakfast snacks and juice awaited us.

Wow, what a school. Toledo Public Schools is going through a large revamping of their buildings, and this school is brand new. It even has been renamed. The old building that was torn down was known as Cherry Street School and now they are proudly known as Rosa Parks School. TPS has lost enrollment numbers in the last couple years to private and charter schools. Diane proudly told us that they ended the school year (in the old building) at less than 200 students and began the year with 289 students. Certainly the new building made a difference, but Diane makes the building come alive. Each grade has three classrooms, so the class size is only about 17 students per classroom.

Her teachers have been there at this school for many years. As we visited classrooms I saw so many dedicated and fun teaching methods that I wanted to stay all day.

Each day begins with announcements at 9 AM. A small group of students helps with the pledge and the EXERCISES. Yep, that's right. They have a healthy living initiative. Each morning the students roll a big dice (what is singular for this word?) that has various types of exercises listed on each side. We did toe-touching, jumping back and forth over a line and jumping jacks. Diane does the exercises right along with the students. We also participated and I've got to tell you that after a minute of jumping over the line and a minute of jumping jacks, I was winded!

The kids were all very well-behaved. Diane said that really they have few problems in this area. The biggest challenge is helping the kids to understand the difference between home rules, community rules and school rules. For example, in the community if someone says something even slightly bad about your mother, you have to fight. Obviously, at school that is NOT the course of action.

After our visits, the LTers and YLTers gathered to report back to each other the strengths and weaknesses of each school. Of course, money was an issue for many schools. We again divided into groups to figure out how what challenges are facing our education system as a whole and what we might suggest as solutions.

For me, LT is doing helping me to expand my horizons. I want to stay connected with Rosa Parks School beyond just our morning there. Diane McGee is a wonderful beacon for this neighborhood and I want to be sure I figure out a way to help.

Thanks, Dave, for providing an opening for my positive inner city experience and helping me to reset my attitude.

When has education or enlightenment helped to change your attitude?

Leadership Toledo, Part IV

Tuesday was another Leadership Toledo day. The second one this month and it was a special day.

For those of you not familiar with the LT program, we choose non-profit groups to assist with whatever needs they may have as part of our responsibilities this year.

This is how it works.

A request for submissions is sent out to the various non-profits in the area.

An LT volunteer committee winnowed the large number of entrants to ten finalists.

Tuesday, each group had twenty minutes to present to us to help us understand their needs and also to sell us on the idea of linking with them.

Only six would be chosen. Our LT group numbers 54 participants this year, so that means each project would have about 9 people working on it.

The way the groups were organized was interesting. At a verbal signal, all of us were instructed to gather around the sign on the wall that denoted our non-profit. We knew that if there were too many of us that we'd have round 2, round 3, etc. until the groups were evenly divided.

Two projects garnered most of the people. Those two projects had an emotional appeal and the plus the presenters had known how to use that emotion to their advantage.

Those groups that needed more bodies were given the opportunity to speak to the rest of the us to try to convince us to move their way.

The spokesperson (see picture at the right) for the small group that had chosen The Harvest Theater spoke more passionately about his choice than the "official" representative of the theater had. He said, "I will probably volunteer on my own for one or both of the projects where all of you are standing, but let me tell you why I volunteered for the Harvest Theater project. We all know about how young people are leaving Toledo because of lack of opportunities and culture. Those people are my age. I want to help this group become a stronger entity so they can add one more reason for my generation to stay here in Toledo. If you want to be part of that, come help me."

Two people immediately joined his group.

I was impressed. But I shouldn't have been, because we all know that emotion sells and then people justify their purchases logically.

I did not move, because in my heart I wanted to help Hannah's Socks, but I'll tell you about that another day.

Would you have moved to the Harvest Theater project because of the thoughtful plea?