We’re all in Leadership Winnipeg (LW) for our own reasons. I’ll explain mine. I accidentally fell into this program. My boss came to me one morning and asked, “Darryl, we have belonged to the Chamber of Commerce for ten years and I’m not sure why and I need you to find out. And we really should take that no smoking sign down and put a Chamber of Commerce decal up instead.” You must understand my boss, the owner of the company, does not spend a dollar unless it makes sense. So I went to work.
After perusing the Chamber website, making a call and listening to a very well spoken gentleman, I went to my boss and gave him some guidance on what the Chamber does, presenting a few facts on a few things. Then he asked if we were getting a decal for the front of the building. I said yes, of course. But I also showed him something else. The LW course I stumbled upon the Chamber website, the year-long program I thought looked, well, very cool. Yes, cool. Cool blue if you must know.
He said do it. If it’s something I’d like and will add value to the company, do it. So I did. Within a day or two I was signed up and the rest is history. I filled out my profile, eerily read its contents upon arriving, and eagerly awaited September 29, 2017.
We had to start somewhere and with someone. I’m glad that somewhere was the Manitoba Club and the someone, Tom Carson.
Tom Carson was almost as good as the chocolate chip cookies. The chocolate chip cookies were round like the Insights Discovery color wheel. That color wheel is situated around a hub I’m still trying to understand.
I do understand the 30 of us in the room are all spokes, transferring power (or energy, perhaps?) from that mysterious hub to the edges of the color wheel.
Within this energy is all manner of creativity and talent, wonderfully represented and well spoken. And for what was spoken, I believe we all walked away remembering at least one super cool, really neat, keenly given or tactfully placed response that will echo into the next LW class, and possibly beyond.
I know for me it was a statement made by one of my classmates who said she was a spiritual person, and if I recall correctly, she sees the world as such. What she said seemed to be out of place with all the content that day but well delivered and important.
If there was anything I felt was lacking during our first discussion it was this spiritual, the spirited-ness that makes us human, the deep ethical and moral understanding of that still small voice inside, which makes us tick as much as well structured algorithms underlying a personality profile. Whether we dive any deeper into such things remains to be seen. In the meantime here are some hopes as I move forward in the coming months of LW:
- I will learn about something unknown within myself within the program.
- I will positively learn more about working with others.
- That I might make at least one friend among those who will become acquaintances.
- And that I might be able to have a few beers one late afternoon when a session ends with some of my LW attendees, if the universe sees fit.
See you next time.
Workflow Administrator
Genuine Truck Service
Leadership Winnipeg Class of 2018
