The last “small boat” post encouraged you to pay extra attention to your impact on others.  Did you do it?  What did you notice?

 If you’re like me, you may have been surprised—sometimes pleasantly, sometimes not—by what you observed.  I’m a Dad of two young children, and I paid extra attention to how my mood affects them.  When I was relaxed, rested and ready to engage with them, we generally had great encounters.  We took delight in each other and everyday circumstances (bath time, for instance) as you often can with small children (not always, but often).

 When I was not rested and relaxed, and I treated our interaction (bath time, for instance) as something to finish quickly before I could move onto something else, I generally led us toward our worst behavior.  And storms that didn’t have to happen, happened.  My behavior triggered them.  The small boat that is our family rocked (and not in a good way).

 Whether you’re a parent of small children or a manager in an organization, you set the tone.  If you want small boat behaviors from those around you, you need to model the way.  And you need to take care of yourself so that you have the wherewithal to do that.  (That’s a developmental edge for me.)  It takes energy and conscious intention.  And sometimes it takes a fresh realization of how your unconscious behavior, your “default mode,” can shape the reality of the voyage for everyone onboard—and even send ripple effects across the water.

The next post will have some further managerial tips for eliciting small boat behaviors.  I needed to write what I wrote above and leave it here for now.