9 June, 2025 0 Comments

On Being A Steward

June 9, 2025 By Leave a Comment

“Leaders need to be stewards of the things that work and innovators on new initiatives

and the things that are broken. Fix gently with humility.”

I saw this quote recently and I immediately wrote it down.

I can’t find who said it, but I wish I knew because I believe every single word. Especially the gentle part. Especially the humility piece. We are short of both these days.

I think we’ve lost our sense of stewardship and that should alarm all of us.

Being a steward asks us to be responsible with the gifts we’ve been given. Stewardship demands that we take care of the assets we’re tasked to protect.

In business it means we should never endanger the enterprise. In life it means we need to tend to those we cherish and in leadership it means don’t destroy, enhance if you can, but don’t break things that cannot be replaced.

Sadly, I believe we’ve lost the essence of leadership which is service. Too often, “leaders” position themselves as people to be served when their job is to serve others.

The best leaders make us feel safe when they are on the job, not fearful of retribution.

If you think I’m talking about the national situation– I am. But I’ve seen this dynamic play out on the local level too.

It’s a ruinous model.

It chases away the very people you need to build value, it screams stay away when we need to be inviting talent to the cause.

A corollary of this style of “serve me” leadership is the emergence of sycophants.

These are people who overlook every misdeed. They accept every lie, excuse every boneheaded decision and look the other way when lines are crossed. These types only hold the “other side” accountable.

That’s also ruinous.

I’ve seen this dynamic play out locally and nationally as well.

We are in a moment when everything we’ve previously cherished seems to be at risk.

Every ideal, every fact, every value, every bedrock of society seems to be under assault. All at once.

As a result, many of us don’t feel safe. There’s an aching sense that the once firm ground beneath our feet is shifting as if we live in quicksand. We reach for the life raft and a wave carries it away.

I’m reminded of a consultant that Boca and Delray used to use for City Commission goal setting.

Lyle Sumek was a former city administrator turned municipal sage. He travelled the country consulting with large and small cities. He saw what worked and what didn’t. I worked with him for 7 years. I thought his counsel was invaluable.

Lyle taught us the concept of ‘municipal math’ which I also believe applies to states and nations.

Basically, municipal math posits that it can take 20,30, 40 or more years to build something but only a few months to destroy what’s been built. It can take 10-20 years to restore what’s been lost–with no guarantee you’ll be able to do so.

Municipal math is cruel and unfair. It’s also a rock-solid truism. See Square, Old School for a local example.

Hence the need for stewards.

We’ve seen the guys with chain saws and the elected officials who tune out common sense and destroy beloved and valued institutions but the stewards…well they are a rare breed. They may have gone the way of the dodo bird. And that’s a shame. A costly damn shame.

Odd & Ends

Interesting stat:

A recent National Association of Realtors report confirms what many are seeing: the median age of homebuyers continues to rise, with the median buyer now age 56  which qualifies them for AARP benefits. The average repeat buyer rose from 45 in 2004 to over 60 in 2024, so the same generation is still buying the homes 20 years later.

Perhaps most troubling, however, is the rapid increase in age of first-time homebuyers over the past 10 years, which now sits at 38 years old—up from 30 in 2010.

Something has to give folks, an entire generation can’t get started.

Congratulations to former Delray Assistant City Manager Bob Barcinski who received his 40 years of service pin recently from an association of City Managers.

Mr. B. —as he is affectionately known—was a remarkable public servant, a quiet hero behind the scenes of so much progress in Delray Beach. He’s retired now and last I saw him (a week or so ago) he looked relaxed and happy. Well done, my friend.

 

More congratulations to everyone’s friend Captain Gary Ferreri of the Delray PD.

Capt. Ferreri was named “Supervisor of the Year” at the recent Delray Citizens for Delray Police Gala at the Opal Resort.

Over the past year, Captain Ferreri supervised multiple specialty units—including Vice, Narcotics, Criminal Intelligence, and our Problem Oriented Policing Teams—while also leading the successful rollout of Delray’s new downtown camera system. From securing funding and selecting equipment to managing installation, his work has helped strengthen public safety and modernize our policing infrastructure.

He’s also a great guy so this is extra special to see him being recognized.

I also want to take this opportunity to thank Police Chief Russ Mager for his 29 years of service to Delray.

Russ resigned last week and will be replaced at least on an interim basis by Darrell Hunter, a fine man and officer.

I watched Chief Mager climb the ranks and always respected his dedication to the job and the community. He will be missed and remembered.

There’s a whole lot of “stuff” playing out in both our police and fire departments right now. I’m rooting for cooler heads to prevail. I will say this based on 38 years of closely witnessing the impact the police and fire departments have had on our town. There is no better investment than public safety. None. These are expensive services–I get it—but they are essential services. Whatever you like or enjoy or value about Delray Beach was made possible because people felt safe to invest here. We can lose it, if we are not careful. And remember municipal math is cruel.

Finally, congratulations to Delray’s own Coco Gauff, French Open champion!

 

 

9 December, 2019 0 Comments

The Dangers of Ego & The Value of Good Stewards

December 9, 2019 By Leave a Comment

You can still move the big rocks without breaking everything.

I’m fascinated by the strange tale of WeWork.

The seemingly innovative co-working company with the brilliant branding and patina of cool has imploded before our very eyes.

First, the company abandoned its long anticipated IPO, then it fired its high-flying CEO Adam Neumann, then it cost its largest investor Softbank billions of dollars and now comes the human fall-out with one-third of its employees—about 4,000 people—being laid off just in time for the holidays.

Merry Christmas.

Bah humbug.

It was only a short time ago that those people were working for the most publicized start-up in the world, a company once valued in the tens of billions for a boss who flew around the world in a $60 million jet and summoned the heads of stock exchanges to his home so they could audition for his business.

Now he’s gone– albeit with a platinum $1.7 billion parachute— a huge reward for an egomaniac who hurt a whole lot of people on his team by serving his ego and ambition over the bottom line.

It’s quite a tale, but sadly not an unfamiliar one.

We all know examples of people who crash into our lives, businesses and organizations armed with bravado, ego, bold ideas and often a whole lot of charisma.

Some actually have the goods and deliver. But many crash and burn and sadly take a slew of people with them.

A few years back, I was asked to talk to a wonderful group called Creative Mornings. The topic I was assigned was genius, a challenging topic to distill.

Since giving that talk, my feelings have evolved somewhat on the topic of genius.

While I still admire those who are blessed with genius, I have become more acutely aware of its darker side.

Mr. Neumann of WeWork is clearly a genius— on some level at least. He took an idea—co-working—and made it so cool that cities that were able to attract a WeWork saw it as validation that they were an “it” place.

Softbank poured billions into Neumann’s vision which went beyond co-working to a fully fleshed out lifestyle brand. And then it crashed, under a tsunami of hubris.

A similar fate happened to the founder of Uber, whose ride-sharing idea, swept the world but whose arrogance and over the top “bro” culture ultimately forced his dismissal.

Another good example of a supreme talent who wore out his welcome is Antonio Brown, who recently gave a pep talk to the Atlantic High School football team. I’ve been told the talk was great, but Mr. Brown went from being a top wide receiver making millions to unemployed after a series of bizarre incidents which ultimately led him to being bounced from the NFL. The descent was really fast.

When egomaniacs fail, they fail fast.

There are other examples too.

Mark Zuckerberg is undoubtedly a genius, but his creation Facebook, has suffered from issues as a result of privacy lapses, data breaches and the spread of misinformation.

His formidable technical genius is often undermined by a personality that is often unwilling to own issues of his own creation. Or maybe it’s the realization that even he is not smart enough to fix what’s dangerous about his own platform.

Regardless, while I remain a fan of genuine genius and appreciate its presence in art, song, design, business etc., I’ve come to appreciate the concept of stewardship and the importance of good stewards.

Sure there is a place for the game changers and disruptive mavericks. There is also a time when the dishes need to be shattered, but there is also a real need for people who are responsible and talented stewards.

A good steward knows they are in their position for a set period of time. They know that many have come before them and that many will follow them. They have respect for the past, seek to understand it and do their best to shape a brighter future knowing someday they will hand off to another leader.

They may not get the attention of the maverick change agent or genius, but they understand their job is to protect, enhance and position their organization for future success.

Sometimes I wonder whether that concept is lost on politicians.

So when a Senator blocks a Supreme Court pick or a President ignores Congress or attacks institutions are they unaware that they have now normalized those behaviors and therefore those “favors” will be returned? When we act as if we are the last people who will steer the ship, we risk sliding into a cycle of bad behaviors and reprisals. What gets lost in the cycle of rewarding friends and punishing enemies is the actual job of governing—or any sense of stewardship. Yes, someday you will pass the baton so please don’t break it in pieces.

I’ve seen this dynamic play out locally when newly elected leaders question past decisions without the benefit hindsight and context. What might have made sense in 1991 may not make sense in 2001 or in 2019. Or it just may— if you take the time to understand and look at the big picture.

None of this is to say we shouldn’t try and do big things. We need to move the big rocks, as we used to say in Delray.

But just make sure that when you move them you don’t crush what’s underneath. And always strive to keep your humility. Because, even if you are a genius, you don’t have all the answers.

Adam Neumann built a great brand at WeWork. But it crashed and burned and cost thousands of families and investors dearly. It crashed because the genius whiz kid thought he could do no wrong.

That’s a sure recipe for disaster whether you are a CEO or run the corner store.

A better mindset is to wake up a little scared and try and anticipate what can go wrong. A better way to lead is to try and protect the future.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 January, 2016 0 Comments

Paying It Forward: Our Responsibility To The Future

January 4, 2016 By Leave a Comment
Exponential results occur when you pay it forward.

Exponential results occur when you pay it forward.

I came across a magnificent story a few weeks back in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
It was a story about a “one man redevelopment machine”, an older gentleman who fell in love with the beat up town of Foxburg in Clarion County, Pennsylvania.
Where others saw blight, Dr. Arthur Steffee saw beauty. So he put his money and his convictions where his heart was, buying up old buildings and opening businesses such as a winery, a pizza shop and other retail stores.
At age 83, chances are Dr. Steffee won’t be around to enjoy a return on his investment. At least in the conventional sense. But in the more important measures–heart, soul, satisfaction and love–he most surely will.
Dr. Steffee embodies the mindset of a steward–the type of leader who understands that his or her role is to leave a place better off than when you find it. It’s a simple concept really. But it requires selflessness, vision, fortitude, patience and a long term view of leadership too often lacking in our society.
“We will never get out of it what we put into it,” he said. “The point is to leave something behind.”
Yes it is. That’s the whole point.
Over the holiday break we went to see the movie “Brooklyn” which chronicles the experience of a young Irish immigrant who leaves her home and her family for a new life in America.
The film is achingly beautiful. You literally find yourself tearing up for most of its two hour running time. Not because the film is especially sad, but because it rings so true and it captures the homesickness, sacrifice and strength of our immigrant relatives who risked it all so that we–future generations –could enjoy the opportunities of America.
I thought of my own grandparents who came from Russia, Poland and Latvia not speaking English or having any marketable skills other than a tremendous work ethic, unfathomable strength and a desire for their children and grandchildren to be here in the land of opportunity.
My wife’s mother came from a tiny village in Italy as a teenager leaving behind all that she knew for a taste of America.
In my family, within one generation, we experienced a fair amount of success. My father, a first generation American went to an Ivy League college and enjoyed a long and successful career as a pharmacist and businessman.
My wife’s mom became a widow at a young age and raised five children all of whom have experienced success in this country.
Stewards and our immigrant parents and grandparents believe our lives should be about about creating opportunity–to leave something behind as the good doctor in Foxburg, PA., says.
It’s not all about us, our pet peeves, personal drive times, annoyances and tastes. Sure, we can’t ignore the present but we need to focus our present on creating opportunities for others in the future.
That’s our jobs. If we do so, history will treat us kindly and reward those who will benefit from our vision, sacrifices and hard work.
If we ignore the future, it will surely bite us and our children.
“We will never get out of it what we put into it”, said the doctor. Maybe, but in many ways we will. The point is to leave something behind.