As I pause from a 9/11 day of remembrance to mourn again the loss of my trusted friend, coach, and mentor George Simmons, I honor him by sharing the power of collaboration.
Whether we’re talking about work, the pursuit of a personal passion, or the desire to make a complex dream come true, there’s no quicker way to realize success than engaging complementary resources.
George filled that role for me throughout much of my Xerox career. He made me a better man, a more skilled professional, and urged me to ignore boundaries and become a global thought leader in my chosen profession. What I learned from George thunders way beyond earning a living: George’s impact has had a multidimensional impact on what has blossomed into a rich, full life.
Earlier this week I finished the movie adaptation of my favorite novel (Tuki Banjo, Superstar). I did not do it alone. I enlisted the help of a trusted friend I’ve never met in person, Australian writer and director Tam Sainsbury. We were introduced electronically by Gail Cowan, a New Zealand talent agent.
Years ago when the idea of Tuki’s wonderful story germinated, I searched to find who represented young New Zealand actress Keisha Castle-Hughes. Keisha is the youngest woman ever nominated for a Best Actress Oscar, honored at age 13 for her role in a little indy film called Whale Rider. She does not need dialogue to carry a scene; she is an actress in the purest sense; Keisha’s non-verbal work can power the message. Gail is her agent.
At the time I did not write screenplays, I wrote short stories and books. I wrote the novel visualizing Keisha as Tuki. The book was well received by readers and critics. It sold out. And I cannot count the times I was told, “This should be a movie.” Tuki is a heartwarming story with emotional power.
But screenplays, not books, are the currency of the film industry and although Tuki was optioned for development, a script never surfaced. After a few years passed and I wrote a couple screenplays, Gail suggested I adapt the book myself.
I was afraid to. I had so much emotion wrapped up in Tuki’s story, her ensemble of surrounding characters, and their many interwoven layers of messages, I wasn’t sure I wanted to slit another artery to try and capture it all again.
I re-read the book last Thanksgiving, cover to cover, and thought about it. Novels can transport a reader anywhere but scripts are different. Film is a visual medium and movie goers only have what they see and hear to track the story. I fell in love with Tuki all over again and decided to try.
My initial pass at the adaptation was 200 pages, almost 100 pages too much. Film people budget a minute of screen time per script page and I was hopelessly long.
I needed help, called Gail, and told her, “A proud man does it himself. A smart man gets help. And I need help.”
Gail connected me with Tam in Australia, who read the book, read my pass at the adaptation, and dove in to transform what I had into what the story needed to become. She looked at it from behind the lens, the director’s view, and made the hard decisions I was not able to make. Her work was outstanding.
The end result is thrilling. We have a wonderful story, told beautifully for the screen. It’s up to the agents now to find it a home. There is zero chance I could have done it alone.
Complementary skill sets can do amazing things. I recently read a business book called Strengths Based Leadership by Tom Rath and Barry Conchie. They studied the styles and track records of skilled leaders and concluded that key leadership talents fell into four categories: Executing, Influencing, Relationship Building, and Strategic Thinking.
The gist of their findings is that it’s been proven time and again that leaders who move mountains know which of those four they excel in, and then surround themselves with talent to fill the gaps.
George coached me through a similar approach: park the ego, enlist your resources, work hard, and trust the process. Do that, he said, and you’ll reap the benefits.
Today marks a decade since 9/11 and next month is the twentieth anniversary of a charity group I founded in 1991, the No Bats Baseball Club. George was a founding member of No Bats, too.
For the club’s first five years I was very controlling and did not utilize my resources. As a result, I announced after our 1995 event that I was pulling the plug.
The guys didn’t want that to happen. When reading Rath and Conchie’s business book, I couldn’t help but reflect back on the growth and evolution of No Bats from a well intended event with a floundering future into a nationally respected organization that has since raised and donated over $1.1 million for a portfolio of spectacular charities.
My guys plugged the gaps, they solidified my shortcomings. Texas real estate title executive Ted Darby brought his skills at execution to the fold; others, especially young Dan Carroll from Chicago, strengthened our relationship building. Advisors like Jay Tucker in Austin have coached me smartly through some perplexing leadership decisions.
Just as my screenplay adaptation does not happen without Tam’s decision-making and execution, No Bats doesn’t continue to thrive without the pooled talents of men willing to help.
George Simmons, Tom Rath, and Barry Conchie were right: None of us is as powerful as all of us.
George would be proud that the lessons he instilled through the purest of motivations are still being practiced.
I honor his memory and remain eternally grateful.
anne says
November 27, 2011 at 6:47 pmReally helpful. I too try to collaborate but sometimes fall short as I get ahead of myself and get sidetracked on my actual strengths. Its so hard to put the billion and one modern day distractions aside and focus on one area at a time. How to do this I’m yet to master. Some say meditation. What works for you?
Ocean Palmer says
December 11, 2011 at 11:52 amChoice. You have to choose to dial in and stick with it.
As easy as that is to say, it is increasingly difficult to do. Short attention spans are getting shorter do the dopamine release of technology-addictive exchanges.
There are times and places for all activities between thinking and doing. Rather than let our heads work like a ping pong game, let’s treat them more like a golf match, or a hike on uncertain terrain.
Golf is four hours of distraction that forces players to think of nothing but the game they are immersed in. Everything else is blocked out. A good hike on uneven ground achieves the same purpose: It forces us to pay attention to where we’re going and how we’ll get there.
Exercise the brain. Focus on what matters. Stick with it until you’re satisfied it’s time to move on. There’s a discipline that goes with it.
Just because we live in an increasingly rude and interruptive society does not mean we have to be a part of it. Block out part of each day for think time, do time, non-distractive time.
Just recently something happened that underscores what happens when we lose control of our ability to logically dial into what is appropriate for the moment: Alec Baldwin got kicked of an American Airlines plane because he refused to quit playing a video game once the jet doors were closed.
How lost is a man who cannot comply with the simplest of things? Too lost, it appears.
There is a huge difference between being busy–which everyone is–and being productive, which far too few are. Strive to be the latter and block the airspace to get you there.