Ingrid Martine spoke at the Alternative Health Forum at Unity of Wimberley this week. Her warm and friendly manner made everyone feel at ease and comfortable. She has a delightful way of bringing profound truth into clear, understandable words. Her warmth and cheerful disposition made the talk quite enjoyable. I like her book The Ungame–Fourplay to Business as UnUsual. She gets to the heart of innovative business management through a story about a leader who is learning how to do business in a new, unusual way. Ingrid is a coach and has a deep interest in ecology and sustainability of the earth’s resources. She is smart, creative, and engaging so I recommend her and her book.
Interface
August 2011 VACATION
What a beautiful word–“vacation.” We are going on vacation. We will vacate our house for a short time. Our daughter, Anna, will house sit, making it possible for us to leave. We are going to relax, rest, reinvigorate, renew, restore, replenish, and all those “re” words that mean making a new start. To get away, to let go of the daily work routine, to have a change of pace, and to refresh ourselves in mind, body, and spirit–that is what vacation means to me.
March 29, 2011 Speech to Interface Dealers Meeting-Cancun
CANCUN SPEECH TO LATIN AMERICAN DEALERS MEETING
March 29, 2011
Good Morning! What is the greatest resource on Planet Earth? Oil? Gold? Coal? Gas? What is the greatest resource at Interface? Yarn? Nylon? Machinery?
People are the greatest resource on this planet. At Interface, we are building a Strengths-Based Culture through our people and for our people. We follow a formula: TALENT (which is your life-long pattern of thoughts-feelings-behavior that can be productively applied) multiplied by RELATIONSHIPS (your friendships) and RECOGNITION (attention paid to what you do that is good) coupled with EXPECTATIONS (clearly set and positively designed in accord with your talents)….all of those factors will equal positive employee ENGAGEMENT. Employees who are engaged, working at what they do best will bring about engaged customers and engaged customers bring bottom line profit.
INTRODUCTION TO INTERFACEFLOR TRIBAL GATHERING
To my readers: I have had the privilege of participating in several “Tribal Gatherings” at InterfaceFlor in LaGrange, Georgia. These gatherings are led by Amy Lukken, who introduces herself as a “Joyologist.” Dayna Baumeister teaches them Biomimicry, learning how nature creates. The audience is made up of leaders in the various segments served by Interface. They come from far and wide and are talented folks in many fields. Architects, designers, technical people are some of our guests. They come not really knowing what the gathering is all about. Some have described it as a “think tank” and it is that but it also becomes much, much more. The recent one was held February 8-10, 2011 with focus on the people who are involved in multiple family housing. My part in the meeting is to introduce them to our Strengths-Based Culture. The following is what I say at the beginning:
“You have come here to be in community.Tribes were also formed into communities.These three days away from your regular, normal life are dedicated to creating something for the future that wants to emerge.You will be a part of a community of people who have talents, skills, and knowledge.Individually, you hold great promise; collectively you can change the world.You can become a culture of collaborative creatives.The C words, Community, Collaboration, Creativity, Circles, Change, Curiosity—form the structure for this brief experiment in social sustainability that will mark this moment out of time.
“SPOTTING STRENGTHS”
Written at 6:00 p.m. on October 13, 2010
Three subjects that reveal a person’s strengths in action:
I. Memories from the past that are satisfying. This includes actions, achievements, relationships, skills, or knowledge. Ask, with what am I most satisfied or what makes me most proud?