Secretary Robert Gates on leadership

This past week, I saw Robert Gates give a talk to promote his new book about how organizations can be reformed so that they work more effectively and efficiently for both their staff and the people they serve. He argues that all too often, the missing ingredient is courageous leadership. Though he focused on governmental institutions, many of his points are broadly applicable and good food for thought.

Hardly a day passes in the life of any American without having to battle one or another bureaucracy. It doesn't need to be this way. I believe institutions – bureaucracies large and small – can be fixed. Changed and made more cost effective and user-friendly, efficient and responsive, and shaped to meet new problems and challenges.

It's a combination of pragmatism and optimism that of late I haven't seen enough of in government.

More quotes below.

"The Giver"

The Giver's bearded face

While visiting a friend some time ago, we got on the topic of dystopian novels, and it came out that I'd somehow missed reading "The Giver" – 1994's Newbery Medal winner – while growing up. I immediately recognized the cover art so I'm sure I'd seen his bearded face at the school library, but for whatever reason I never pulled the book from the shelves.

When I finally got around to renewing my library card late last month, I glanced over my one-day reading list and saw that "The Giver" was by far the oldest item on it, so I checked out the ebook version and was quickly hooked¹.

Minor spoilers below!

Smell the roses

"If you don't write it down, it doesn't exist." —Linda Ginzel

I used to do a lot of journaling. Even as recently as a couple of years ago, I'd write almost daily – certainly at least weekly – jotting down ideas, impressions, emotions, and the like as the mood took me. I wasn't really trying to keep a biographical record or preserve ideas or anything of the sort. It's more that the act of writing helped me process my thoughts, helped declutter my mind.