Progeny or legacy?

"I hope my kids don't turn out like me."

This was a phrase uttered recently by a friend of mine. It got me thinking of how I want my kids to be. As a parent, you hope you are raising your kids to learn from your mistakes and be better people. The big catch-22 is the fact that we're still making mistakes... even as adults. So how do you end the cycle...? Well, you don't. I've realized my kids will never be me - nor should they be - but they will be me-ish.

As much as we hate to admit it, we become our parents to a certain extent. I was amazed the first time I uttered my daughter's full name in anger. In that instant, I remember thinking, "How did I become my Dad???"

Recently, my son tripped the house alarm and called LA's finest to the house. As I was thinking of how much of a terror he was going to be... I was reminded that I was as much a terror - if not worse, when I was his age. How else do you explain my favorite shirt growing up that bragged: "Here comes trouble." So was he learning or did he have Dad's crazy genes or worse...was it both?

In the end, it doesn't really matter. My kids will be their own little people - as they should. The best I can do is to protect them, keep them safe, provide for them, and guide them as best I can.

And maybe, just maybe, they won't turn on me.

Knowledge

Sir Francis Bacon said, "Knowledge is Power." And while that's very true to a degree, it is really what we do with that knowledge that is powerful.

Knowledge that is kept to oneself helps no one but the ego of those that hoard it. On the other hand, knowledge that is disseminated not only empowers, but also enlightens. In the absence of information, people naturally speculate. They fill the information void with rumor, conjecture, and hearsay. How far you let that go, as a leader, is what separates the true leaders from the wannabes. As I've said before, a true leader trusts their people, even if only to say, "I don't know." It's only in an environment of transparency that the group can mature and grow.

Information is like flowing water. Regardless of how secretive you may want to be with it, it usually leaks out one way or another, so you may as well address it head on.

It's a true testament to a leader (and an organization) to share information so that everyone benefits.