Champions do Extra – Including Washing the Dishes
“They call it sweeping the shed!” Here I am, two years ago walking through the streets of Perth, Australia getting my first lesson on Rugby and the leadership style of the New Zealand All Blacks. I was visiting partners in Perth with Michael Watson, the regional salesperson. I didn’t know that morning’s discussion would turn to a discussion of sports, or how this would affect my future thought process on something as simple as washing dishes, or my views on leadership., but here we were.
So how did we get on to the subject of Rugby? I am chuckling to myself because the answer is unremarkable. We both wash dishes when we are in the office (Both in Sydney, Utah, and Cork). We wash any and all dishes that are waiting for a spot in the dishwasher, as well as loading and unloading. The reason of the WHY we wash dishes, was what had led us down a longer conversation of responsibility, service, and leadership.
Why am I talking about this two years later? A gift I was given for christmas, reminded me that these activities, were more important than might be initially apparent. So I share my thoughts with you, in hope to light others beacons, provide them support, knowing that they are not alone, and that they are appreciated.
You may or may not be familiar with Rugby, much less the New Zealand All Blacks. If you don’t know about them, or the background of “Sweep the Shed”, take a minute at the end of this article and enjoy these links:
As I have learned more about this leadership style over the years I find that Sweeping the Shed isn’t just about cleaning up or doing menial tasks, it embodies these tenets:
- Do any job that needs doing
- Lead by example, and with humility
- Own your mistakes – Be vulnerable
- Respond to vulnerability with help
- Show others their value, through service to them
These mindsets are fundamental to the mantra of the All Blacks – “Better People Make Better All Blacks”. All of the tenets are core to the mantra and are crucial to the way they interact, not only as a team, but also in every facet of their lives.
The important part of the dish washing conversation that Michael and I were having was digging up our motivations behind WHY we do the dishes. It isn’t about the recompense or recognition, the task is small and takes less than 5 minutes. We do it because it needs to be done. We do it because a clean working environment, and access to clean dishes makes everyone’s life smoother and more enjoyable.
We aren’t the only people who participate in this task, some I know, others I don’t. I don’t care if others don’t wash dishes; I’m happy to do it for you (though I do appreciate when people scrub their dishes after use). Because to put it simply washing the dishes was not the point of our conversation that day on the streets of Perth, and is not the reason for my sharing this memory today today.
I encourage others to build an All Black mentality no matter what your job or career aspirations. Remember that it is important that we never be too big to do the small things that need to be done! So I leave you with two questions to ponder and act on:
- How do you sweep the shed?
- Who is one person in your organization that performs these small acts of service? Tell them thank you and highlight their contributions in a quick post.
I look forward to seeing your recognition of others, and examples of your service on your posts in LinkedIn.
P.S. For those interested in what prompted my writing the article, go read the Culture Code by Dan Coyle. I appreciated the opportunity of introspection, and a self-check on my responsibility to participate in improving our company culture.
Kevin Steele
The article was originally published on LinkedIn on January 2020
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/champions-do-extra-including-washing-dishes-kevin-steele/