Who Sets the Temperature on Your Team?

George is back with the second principle from Kyle McDowell's Begin With We: We Lead By Example. Using Einstein's line that example isn't the main way to influence people, it's the only way, he breaks down Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, a software engineer named Z who reset her team's standard on a Friday afternoon, and the question every leader has to answer: are you the thermostat, or are you the thermometer?

In this episode

• Recap of WE One — we do the right thing always — and why it means nothing on a poster or an email signature
• WE Two: we lead by example, opened with Einstein's quote that setting an example is the only means of influencing others
• Current reality and compelling vision, and the Chris Collins / Northwestern basketball turnaround
• Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls: the hotel room story from The Last Dance, and the moment Jordan chose not to walk in
• Thermostat versus thermometer — who sets the temperature in your organization, and who just reports it
• Z, the software engineer who reset her team's sprint standard on a Friday afternoon: "ain't nobody going home"
• The standard you set is the standard you get — Jordan on why a great player lands on a bad team
• Small standards that are really big standards: punctuality, cameras on in meetings, Danny Hurley's intensity at UConn
• The mirror test — your words and actions get replicated by your team whether you like it or not
• Two actions for the week: a 48-hour audit, and closing one gap