Michele Norris, host of NPR’s All Things Considered, addressed over 1,500 motivated leaders and supporters of the YWCA of the Hartford Region today at the Connecticut Convention Center. As the keynote speaker for the YWCA’s 15th annual In the Company of Women luncheon, Ms. Norris advised the people in the room to take their vitamin C.

Take your Vitamin C

C = Cooperation. Work with others. You can’t do it alone. Ask for help. There’s strength in that.

C = Be a Copycat. Most successful leaders emulate what works for other people. Don’t reinvent the wheel when there’s a proven system immediately available to you. Remember, imitation is the highest form of flattery. (I call this Modeling Excellence.)

C =  Cut out certain things in your life. Learn to say “no” which will free you up to say “yes” to the things that really matter in your life. Think about how often you actually do raise your hand and say “yes” and look at what it is costing you in energy and time. Ms. Norris’ colleague, Cokie Roberts advised her on multiple occasions about the importance of learning to say “no.” In one humorous moment, Cokie told Michele “If you have trouble saying “no”, then try this phrase: ‘I couldn’t possibly….’  Add a certain facial expression and a strategic pause after saying it and amazing things happen. People leave you alone. Michele suggested that we all try this out, but cautioned the men in the room that this phrase may not work for them. They may need to find their own alternative phrase to just saying ‘no.’

C = Companionship. Friendships can do amazing things for you, personally and professionally. Friends are a great resource. Take care of your friends and your friendships and they will last you a lifetime.

C = Calm. Find some calm in your day, so that you can hear the quiet inner voice. We are all tethered to our cell phones, IPhones, and Blackberrys (or Crackberrys as she called them). We must have time to disconnect in order to re-connect with ourselves.

C = Comfortable shoes. Wear comfortable shoes. High heels may look good, but on the stage, they simply don’t make sense.

C = Conversations. Learn to continue the tradition of oral history in your family. Search and encourage the hidden stories to be shared. Find out more about the people who raised you, what they did and what they endured before they were sucked into mortgages and marriages. Encourage them to talk about what they never talk about. Ask the question: “Tell me something about yourself. Where did you come from? Who are you? What have you experienced in your long life?”

This last C lead Michele to share more about her upcoming book to be released this September. The title of the book has recently been changed to “The Grace of Silence.”  She expressed that there are many stories that go untold and many heros that never make the history books. This new book was inspired by a series of radio interviews that she conducted in the run-up to the 2008 US presidential election.

Does Race Matter?

In 2008, Michele Norris and her NPR colleague Steve Inskeep conducted a series of conversations with voters in York, Pa., about race and its role in the 2008 presidential election. Steve and Michele met with a group of 13 voters — a mix of whites, blacks and Latinos — from this swing state several times this fall to dig a little bit deeper than election polls. You can listen to the audio recordings of this enlightening conversation about race on NPR’s web site.

Listen to the tales

Michele Norris closed her inspiring keynote speech by inviting each of us to have a conversation with our family members about their stories and their experiences.

Who in your family has extraordinary tale to tell? Encourage them to share that story with you. Be patient and gentle with them. Food will help that conversation. With each forkful, with each question, listen to ‘grace of silence’ but put the power back by breaking the silence.

Want to hear more?

1. You can pre-order a copy of Michele Norris’ new book “The Grace of Silence: A Memoir” in audiobook format (gotta love that voice) or in hardcover book format. Due out September 2010.
2. You can participate in the YWCA Stand Against Racism nation-wide event being held at locations around the United States on Friday, April 30, 2010.
3. Follow Stand Against Racism on Facebook
4. Learn more about the vital programs of the YWCA of the Hartford Region and its mission to empower women, eliminate racism and promote peace, freedom, justice and dignity for all.

My technology coach, Rob Bronson, just showed me a YouTube video from Lisa Nova, the self-proclaimed Twitter Whore. Her videos made my blood boil and compelled me to share my thoughts.

Lisa Nova has created quite a brand for herself. Her videos on YouTube have attracted quite the following. As of today, viewership of her three videos are in the millions:

• Twitter Whore – part 1:  1,861,420 views
• Twitter Whore – part 2:  1,069,507 views

On the one hand, Lisa’s videos on Twitter make a powerful point: people are spending enormous amounts of time tweeting about ridiculously things. The need to have followers and to get attention has has risen to new disturbing levels. “Add me”  “Love me”  “Follow me” “Tweet” – Lisa repeats in her parody videos – is becoming the new social epidemic.

On the other hand, poor Lisa has created a personal brand for herself, one that no doubt will hurt her future career prospects (unless she chooses to stay in the field of soft porn and on-line entertainment). Why on earth would she position herself as a whore in any context? If you think I’m being prudish or over-reacting, check out her other video Sloppy Drunk LisaNova with 7,023,939 views. Would you hire Lisa as an employee in your organization after seeing this video?

Key point #1: you must carefully manage your public persona and use good judgment in what you do and say on-line. It never goes away. It’s a permanent, world-wide record of your credibility and image.

Is it really our intention to get  attention at any cost?

In many ways, technology is aiding and abetting misdemeanors in professionalism. These can have significant career management consequences. No one can refute the power of social media and its growing importance in the way we communicate, connect, promote and get elected. But we must be aware of its shortcomings and dangers.

Social media fills our desires to be in constant touch with others, to be accepted, to be noticed, and to be liked by others.   This is especially true amongst young people, who are now growing up with social media as the norm for communication and interaction.

I do worry that the art of conversation and quality communication is being sacrificed for expediency and instant gratification. Technology offers us the ability to communicate to millions, very inexpensively, and instantly. When it comes to communication, what’s more important: quantity or quality? How will this affect our relationships long term?

Avoid Palaver

When I coach professionals in giving high engagement presentations, I urged them to avoid palaver, or idle chatter. This is especially important during the openings and closings of your presentations. In 1:1 conversations,  a certain amount of small talk is appropriate to ensure rapport and to make people comfortable with you.

I think it’s safe to safe that there is a great deal of meaningless chatter on these social media sites.

I just checked my Twitter page and reviewed the content uploaded by my “friends and followers.” Some of the tweets had relevant substance (in my opinion), while other tweets were throw-aways, time wasters, meaningless chatter. Here’s an example “Good Morning! Happy Friday All!” While this is a nice thing to say, and I know that you are still alive and kicking, the message lacks substance.

Key point #2: If you don’t have anything meaningful to say on-line, don’t say anything at all.

Now, I know what you are thinking. Meaning, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. Who am I to judge what is meaningful to others. Who’s to say that this article is meaningful and worthy of reading or responding to. Certainly, my YouTube videos don’t have nearly as many views as Lisa Novas.

Key point #3: Personal vs. public thoughts – discern what’s appropriate

As a fellow motivated leader, I ask you to consider the idea that what you say and how you say it impacts your professional image, reputation and even your outcome. Every time you send out a communication, be thinking about how this behavior and message and style reflects on your personal leadership brand.

Before you hit that “reply all” button or Tweet something that feels important to you at the moment, stop and ask yourself:

• Is there a better way to respond?
• Is there a more appropriate channel or way to communicate what I need to communicate?
• Should I just let this urge pass me by?
• Is non-response the best response?

Now, the irony of this article is that I fully intend to share it with my friends on Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin. I’m curious as to what opinions and reactions others have. Does it make your blood boil also? Or should I have just let this one pass me by, saved myself hours in writing and chosen to ignore Lisa Nova and her videos?

We can all learn from Toyota’s current public relations disaster. It could happen to any one of our organizations. No one is immune from mistakes on a grand scale.

Successfully managing through costly and publicly-visible problems requires leaders to have a particular skill set and mind set. It’s called crisis management: the art of anticipating big problems before they happen so that you can handle them more effectively if and when they happen.

A willingness to address unpleasant truths. Sharpening your “crisis management” leadership skill set and organizational capability must be developed BEFORE the the proverbial poop hits the fan. Yet few companies “invest” in developing this organizational competency or training with their executive teams.

I found the following passage enlightening from a UK on-line magazine.

“The most effective crisis management takes place before the problem escalates out of control during the “incubation” phase. Some of the biggest potential crises have been identified and addressed before they ever escalated out of control: this is crisis management at its best. This requires an organisational culture that is vigilant for potential crises, has open lines of communication from staff to management, and a willingness to address unpleasant truths”. – Jonathan Hemus, guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 9 February 2010. Read the full article

An unforgettable experience. You only ever have to experience a crisis once to understand the importance of crisis management. It changes you in profound ways. It shows your character and your values, not to mention how well you can maintain your cool under extreme pressure. It can bring a team together in ways that no other business challenge can. It can also reveal other true leaders within the organization, those who perhaps fly under the radar screen and don’t have the fancy titles or authority, but have a natural proclivity to manage through crisis well. Yes, there is a gift in the crisis, if we choose to embrace it that way. It can make us personally and organizationally stronger. Our vulnerability, humility and willingness to learn makes us stronger.

Practice makes ready. They say that if it doesn’t kill us, it makes us stronger. Why not use the learning from our own business crises (and personal crises, for that matter) and the crisis experience of others, like Toyota, to shore up our weaknesses and round out our leadership skills and organizational capability. Perhaps as business leaders we should practice our crisis management skills regularly, like elementary school kids do with their fire drill rehearsals? We just need to think of all the potential “fires” our businesses may be susceptible to. Combustible problems comes in many different sizes and shapes.