By Doug Van Dyke, Leadership Simplified, www.leadershipsimplified.com

On occasion, I recommend that clients watch a movie. No, not because they need escapism. Although escapism is fairly therapeutic these days. Rather, I observe that certain movies subtly drive home a point that can positively influence a work situation. For example, the movie Pleasantville is about tolerance. After watching Pleasantville, one leader, whose team was struggling with diversity issues, purchased 400 videos and required that her entire team view the film. It was easy to engage team members during the subsequent debrief because they were so drawn into the movie. As a result, the team really dissected their diversity situation, as well as how they could emulate some of the positive behaviors they observed in the movie. The result: a heightened level of awareness, many modified positive behaviors, and a fun basis (i.e., characters in a movie) with which to reference tolerance.

There are other movies I recommend for topics such as optimism, hope, salesmanship, and grit. Please visit the blog post on my website (www.leadershipsimplified.com) entitled Leadership at the Movies to view my selections. Feel free to comment on the blog and leave additional suggestions of your own.

Recently, I saw a movie that I added to my list. The movie was Slumdog Millionaire and not only did it take home the little gold guy at the Academy Awards, but its content addresses two important leadership areas: possibilities and perseverance. For those of you who have yet to see this jewel, and I will not give away specific movie details, the main protagonist possesses the ability to engage positive possibilities. Trust me, his situation is dire, yet he is able to repeatedly enable positive outcomes. Sometimes he has help (lots of it), while other times he creates positivism on his own. He also possesses more than optimism or deluded hope. He shows tremendous perseverance during his quests.

How and why does he persevere? Primarily because there is no other alternative – he must move forward. Secondly, he blends resources, experience, intuition, and positive vision to create palatable outcomes. So my challenge to you leaders is fourfold:

0. Resources. In a time of dwindling resources are you best using yours? Chances are, you and your team have to do more with less. Are you training your people on how to handle flourishing while resources are diminished? More importantly, have you shared important collaboration tools with them on how best to get along while being challenged with higher performance demands and increased stress?
   Bottom Line: Savvy leaders communicate available resources to team members, and utilize collaboration tools such as Working Agreements to drive team accomplishment. 
    
0. Experience. Probably you have lost some talent due to attrition or cutbacks. Do you and your team maintain a knowledge base? Do you have an easy to access reservoir of information? Is it easy for team members to add their thoughts, facts, and experiences to the knowledge base?
   Bottom Line: Experienced leaders share knowledge readily. They also seek to capture and catalog mission critical nuggets of information from team members.
     
0. Intuition. Not to sound sexist, but female leaders tend to do a better job than male leaders of using their intuition to make decisions. Yes, yes, many men out there “listen to their gut.” But by and large, data rules in the world of testosterone. I very much like data. But let’s face it, there some critical times that we need to fall back to our intuition. How many times have you said to yourself: “I knew this was going to happen, I should have listened to my instincts?”  
   Bottom line: Know the facts. Review the data. Pick your spots, and listen to that inner voice – it is usually on target.
     
0. Positive Vision. I love the news – being informed. However, if I hear one more story that reports facts and then purposely presents a negative twist, and adds a message of doom at the end, I will _______ (insert your regurgitation word of choice). Do not get caught up in the negative media blitz. Listen to the facts of course, but use your noodle and perspective to paint the appropriate picture for your team. The United States still has a $13 trillion economy. There is some serious business going on out there.
   Bottom Line: Opportunities are everywhere. Think strategically and tap in to them.   

Here is the deal: You are a fine leader who is more than likely enmeshed in a challenging situation. Bravo – good leaders are required during tough times. Take a moment and escape. Go see a good movie. Grab some popcorn while you are at it. Careful with the butter. Now be creative and capture some positives from the film. Deliver those to your team with a fresh perspective that enlightens your business circumstance. Sounds far-fetched? Try it. You might just garner the little gold guy of leadership. Until next time…be well.    

Doug Van Dyke is a leadership and communication consultant, executive coach, and business planner. His book, Leadership Simplified, as well as audios and video are available at the Productivity Store of www.leadershipsimplified.com. To learn more about consulting services, coaching, and training, or to have Doug speak at your next event, contact him today at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or at 941-776-1121.

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