hospital impact

by Jeff McKune

This past week was certainly busy, and the last half of it was packed with our annual leadership retreat. My head is filled with tasks and action plans as a result of our leadership development sessions with the Advisory Board. Then Joe Tye challenged us with building the invisible architecture of our organization. I have so many action plans that I need to develop, that I may start with an action plan for my action plans!

There is a strong sense of being equipped that comes out of a retreat. With all of the collective enthusiasm that accompanies that sense, I have to wonder how much will survive the onslaught of the reality of daily operations at the hospital. There has to be more than just "retreat-speak" that follows me back to the job. Certainly there are a myriad of projects that I could attempt to tackle. However, I know that time and energy are not unlimited, and that I still have to maintain some sense of balance in my life - time for family, friends, and self (exercise, reflection, and spiritual growth).

So now that I am armed, to which efforts can I fully commit? First, I will renew my commitment to formally developing my own leadership skills. If my dream is to help build a better hospital, to have a positive impact on healthcare, I have to start with building a better Jeff. That will mean taking a critical and introspective look at my skill set, determining where the opportunities for growth are, and committing time each week to addressing those gaps. My second commitment will be to focus on bringing out the very best in each member of my staff. What are their dreams? What baggage are they carrying that I can help them overcome? What would it take to make them feel like this is the greatest place on the planet to work?

Maybe armed and dangerous is not the right phrase: How about aimed and determined!

Did you recently return from a leadership retreat or similar experience? What initiatives were you able to take back to your organizations?