How do you change your mindset to become indispensable to your organization?

1. Are You A Linchpin?
Al Meyers
November 9, 2011

2. Remember This?

3. We All Experienced It

4. What Do You Do? Look For Inspiration……
“These are times in which a genius would wish to live. It is not in
the still calm of life, or the repose of a pacific station, that great
characters are formed. The habits of a vigorous mind are formed in
contending with difficulties”. - Abigail Adams, January 12, 1780

5. ……….Then, Develop Plan B

7. My Plan B: Make A Community Impact

8. Do You Recall This Very Successful “Plan B”?

9. What is a Linchpin?
• Management
• Labor
• Linchpin – someone who:
• Invents
• Connects others
• Makes things happen
• Creates order out of chaos
In other words……linchpins are INDISPENSABLE

10. Average Is Over
• Do you want to be just a cog in a
giant machine that is easily
replaced?
• Leaders don’t get a map or set
of rules
• This requires a different attitude
Source: “Lynchpin,” by Seth Godin

11. Where Are You On This Hierarchy?
Source: “Lynchpin,” by Seth Godin

12. Have the Courage to Create
“If you have a great idea, do it; if you
don’t do it, it doesn’t exist”
- Anonymous

13. The Paradox of the Safety Zone
• The more you hide, the riskier it is
• The less commotion you cause, the more likely
you are to fail, be ignored, expose yourself to
failure
• Your leaders want to hear your creative ideas for
continuing to improve the performance of the
mortgage services division!
Source: “Lynchpin,” by Seth Godin

14. A Few Signs Your “Lizard Brain” is at Work
• Rushing your work, sending out
defective ideas/products, hoping they
will be rejected
• Suffer anxiety about what to wear to an
event
• Do excessive networking with the goal
of having everyone like you and
support you
• Demonstrate a lack of desire to obtain
new skills
• Excessively criticize the work of your
peers, thus unrealistically raising the
bar for your work.
Source: “Lynchpin,” by Seth Godin

15. If Only…….
“If you don’t want to do something,
one excuse is as good as another.”
- Yiddish Proverb
Complete this sentence:
I could be more creative if only______________
What is the single most important thing you need
to achieve excellence at UCBI Mortgage Services?
Source: “Lynchpin,” by Seth Godin

16. Ishita Gupta’s Meditation
Founder & Publisher of Fear.Less Magazine
Choose to change your perspective.
Choose to flip the switch in your mind. Turn on
the light and stop fretting about with insecurity
and doubt.
Choose to do your work and be free of distraction.
Choose to see the best in someone, or choose to
bring out the worst in them.
Choose to be a laser beam, with focused attention,
or a scattered ray of light that doesn’t do any
good.
Source: “Lynchpin,” by Seth Godin

17. Teamwork is EVERYTHING
“Coming together is a beginning.
Keeping together is progress.
WORKING TOGETHER is SUCCESS.”
- Henry Ford

18. A Video Interlude on Success
“Success is a Continuous Journey”

19. Remember the “Boundary-less” Organization?
• Transcend artificial boundaries of bureaucracy
• Continue to use “virtual methods” of
communication and empower employees
• Work as a team – and self-directed – towards a
common goal!

20. How to Create? Diversity Drives Innovation
Source: “The Medici Effect, Breakthrough Insights at the Intersection of Ideas, Concepts & Cultures,” by Frans Johansson

21. Consider Forming a “Dense Network”
• Coined by University of Virginia Professor James
Davison Hunter in a book published Fall 2010:
To Change the World
• Dense Networks drive change and include
certain key elements:
• Passionate Focus
• Inspirational Leader
• Use of Symbols
• Link to an Institution
• What would a Dense Network look like within
UCBI Mortgage Services?

22. The Seven Abilities of the Linchpin
• Providing a unique interface
between members of the
organization
• Delivering unique creativity
• Managing a situation or
organization of great
complexity
• Leading customers
• Inspiring staff
• Providing deep domain
knowledge
• Possessing a unique talent
Source: “Lynchpin,” by Seth Godin

23. The Law of Linchpin Leverage
• The more value you create in your job, the fewer
clock minutes of labor you actually spend
creating that value
Source: “Lynchpin,” by Seth Godin

24. What is the Ultimate Goal?