Once again I will be bidding farewell to a colleague this week. Not to the great high rise in the sky, but he is off to pastures new. So as always I will write on the farewell gift card a quote from good old Douglas Adams the above memorable line.
I have worked with some truly remarkable people over many years, in many countries, on a myriad of projects. But there are only three of them who I have learnt something unique, and the guy who is leaving tomorrow is one of those three. So what makes these three so special? Out of hundreds of people I have worked with, why should they stand out from all the rest.
They are all very different but share some key characteristics: charismatic leaders; very bright and inspirational; but above all their frightening honesty. The honesty manifests itself in how they manage to get individuals to perform better as a project team than they could ever achieve as individuals. They manage this be looking people in the eye and telling them straight what is expected, when they have succeeded and when they have stuffed up.
These days honesty is in short supply. We are bombarded with spin and pseudo reality, employment longevity is often determined not by how good you are at what you do , but by how you fit in. The honest leader is not perceived as the best leader, when in truth he is the leader people want to have supporting them.
So I wish my colleague well in his new endeavour, and the enterprise he will embark upon will be successful and a place where many would want to be.
PREMDALE CONSULTING 