Left Handshake Is Right

So I heard about someone misinterpreting something I did for the worse.

Occasionally, when someone tries to shake my hand, instead of shaking with my right hand, I will take their hand in my left. 

I’ll do this for various reasons such as arthritic pain or from dirt (like ink or cleaning ) from some prior work I was doing. 

But always when I extend my hand it is with warmth and friendship. 

However, I learned that one person took this handshake as a serious personal affront. 

They thought that I was “disrespecting” them intentionally.

So I learned that even the most everyday, mundane gestures like a handshake, but done differently, can be taken out of context and misinterpreted. 

Why do we judge others for the bad?

Maybe because we don’t trust, don’t want to ask, don’t want to know, or have had bad experiences in life that jade us. 

But sometimes a handshake is just a handshake whether with the right or left hand. 

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Cat Knob

So I just love this cat door knob. 

Carved in wood and a special tinge of African Egyptian art. 

Dark wood cat knob on light wood doors–looks warming and pretty classy. 

From the white glue in the background, it looks like it fallen off a few times, perhaps. 

But either way so cute–one of these on each on the French Doors. 

It’s a nice home decor and style–and the big cat eyes are so handsome. 😉

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Going With Happiness

We went to synagogue yesterday and the Sukkot celebration today at Chabad in Downtown Fort Lauderdale.

 

Such lovely warm and welcoming people–thank you Rabbi and Rebbetzin Schneur for your very gracious hospitality.

 

My wife and I both cried at the services and in getting in touch with our inner Torah spirituality.

 

Somehow, Chabad brings out the best in others, and they did it with us as well.

 

Here I stood next to the picture of the Rebbe and I looked into his eyes and was strengthened.

 

I remember many years ago, Dossy and I went to visit at Chabad headquarters in Crown Heights, New York and we received a blessing from the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

 

He told my wife to always go with happiness (“B’sever panim yafot”).

 

Today was a little fulfillment of that. 😉

 

(Source Photo: Dossy Blumenthal)

Mr. Universe of Leadership

A colleague at work told me about a book called Compelling People by Neffinger and Kohut.

The thesis of the book is that the most effective and powerful leaders balance projecting strength and warmth.

If you just show strength, then you would potentially be seen as dictatorial, a micromanager, unapproachable, all work and no personality, and maybe even a tyrant.

And if you just project warmth, then you would likely be seen as wimpy, emotional but not intellectual/skilled, managing by friendship and not professionally, and not focused on results.

That’s why combining and projecting a healthy balance of strength and warmth is effective in leading towards mission results, but also in being a “mensch” and caring for the people you work with.

You can’t have sustained strong performance without a happy workforce.

And you can’t have a happy workforce without strength to achieve meaningful work performance.

In funny, but in a sense Arnold Schwarzenegger is a good example of someone who combines the two.

On one hand, he represents the big and strong “Mr. Universe,” and was able to play in numerous action movies, such as Terminator, Predator, Conan The Barbarian, and more.

At the same time, Schwarzenegger always had a warm, softer side and stared in comedies like Kindergarten Cop, Twins (as the intellectual twin of street-wise Danny Devito), and Junior (where he undergoes a male pregnancy!).

While no one is good at everything and it can be hard to effectively balance strength and warmth, leaders that master this can become the real Mr. Universe for their organizations and people. 😉

(Source Photo: Left from Andy Blumenthal and Right from here with attribution to Eva Rinaldi)