Floricane LLC

Appreciating the Gifts We're Given

A couple of years ago, I found myself working side-by-side with Charlie Luck, president of Luck Stone Corporation.

That wasn't so unusual. Charlie and I had partnered on dozens of communication, strategy and business culture activities over my decade with the company.

What was unusual was the conversation that followed the pause in our work that day.

It was personal, meaningful. It gave me pause, and made me think deeply.

Essentially, Charlie asked me if I'd taken the time to connect with and thank specific people in my life for the gifts they'd given me in our relationships, or to apologize for my mistakes. He asked, he said, because he'd recently done exactly that, and was struck by the power of the conversation.

I hadn't, I told him. Not, at least, in the relationship that may have needed the most closure at the time.

Fast forward to July of 2009.

It had been nine months since I had left Luck Stone, one of 150 people laid off in November -- ultimately part of a 40% companywide reduction in force from a 2006 peak. I'd been running nonstop trying to get Floricane off the ground, and I was beginning to get my feet beneath me.

It was, I thought, time for that conversation.

This one was with Charlie. We met for coffee a few weeks ago.

Without going into many details, it was an important discussion -- and personal. I began by thanking him for everything he had given me over my 12 years with his company.

I walked away from that conversation struck by its power. The simple power of appreciation and gratitude.

I'm not sure I can even imagine my life without the gifts that Charlie Luck had scattered throughout the last decade or so of my life. Walking away from that without personally acknowledging it would have been the biggest leadership failure of my life.

We should have such conversations daily. All of us.

"Next Steps" Evolves Along Multiple Paths

The Greater Richmond Chamber's Stephanie Kirksey and I launched the Next Steps program last winter to help dislocated workers (the new term floating around for the newly unemployed) begin crafting a new foundation for their next career move. More than 40 people made their way through the four week program, meeting every Monday morning to reflect on their core values and learn new ways to engage in their career search.

The program migrated away from the Chamber in the spring for a number of reasons, most notably an invitation from St. Michael's Catholic Church in Glen Allen to offer the program to participants in its Jobs Assistance Ministry. I teamed up with a local coach, Eleanor Rouse, to reshape and deliver the Next Steps program -- stripping out many of the tactical job search components around which others in the community are providing excellent support.

Next Steps evolved into a program geared toward helping anyone facing a life transition, including unemployment. Eleanor and I focused the content and facilitation toward helping people get their arms around their core values, a personal vision (for their life or career) and the beginnings of a strategy. There were 50 participants in the second program, which ran through July.

Eleanor and I took a breather of our own for a week or two before regrouping to decide what the next step for the Next Steps program might be.

Like most things in life, the next step showed up without an invitation. Not that it was an unwelcome party crasher.

No, there are now as many as four next steps taking shape for the program, including a third four-week session of the program that Eleanor and I hope to deliver later this summer. We're also talking to a local university and a regional employment transition center about how variations of the program might be of value to their constituents.

Keep your eyes peeled for news about the third Next Steps program -- and pass the information along to anyone you know who is in the midst of a transition of their own.

Second "Evening at Morton's" Covers the Arts

When Morton's the Steakhouse, The Hodges Partnership (THP) and Floricane came together earlier this year to brainstorm a new series of community conversations, I'm not sure any of us knew exactly what the end product would look like.

The nugget of an idea for An Evening at Morton's was to help build brand awareness for Morton's and ultimately showcase the Shockoe restaurant as a destination for good food and good conversation.

We'd all sort of hoped it would look like an upscale version of "Dinner and a Movie" or a less uptight version of "Meet the Press". The initial idea called for a partnership with a TV station to actually film a conversation over dinner, edit it and broadcast it locally. Budgets, timing and other intrusions of reality meant that we had to turn to other media resources.

In April, we launched with a conversation on sports in Richmond. The five-person conversation was facilitated by Josh Dare of THP, while I hung on the sidelines "live blogging" the wide-ranging discussion for the Evening at Morton's website. An audio recording of the sports discussion was later added to the site.

Fast-forward to mid-July. The conversation turned to something Richmond continues to do well -- arts and culture. "Arts in Richmond: Culture at the Crossroads" pulled together key artistic leaders from the symphony, the theater and dance communities, First Fridays and the African-American community.

The arts discussion participants included Janine Bell, founding president and artistic director, Elegba Folklore Society; David Fisk, executive director, Richmond Symphony; Ana Ines King, founder and artistic director, Latin Ballet of Virginia; Harry Kollatz, columnist/staff writer, Richmond Magazine, and co-founder of the Firehouse Theatre Project; and Christina Newton, founder and director, Curated Culture.

THP's Tony Scida live blogged this session, while Mox-eMedia's Jonah Holland kept pace on Twitter with running commentary. I facilitated the conversation, which essentially meant that I stayed out of the way.  The live blog and Twitter stream of the arts discussion can be found here.

The audio recording is also online.

What really differentiated the two evenings -- the sports talk versus the arts talk -- was the energy level of the participants. Chalk it up to having three extroverts at the table -- one of them a no-holds-barred rumba instructor -- or timing.

We had a few dozen folks hanging out online listening to the portions of the discussion that didn't get caught up in some technical glitches, and we tried to answer a few questions from the Internet. But for the most part, the discussion just flowed naturally along, which is exactly what Morton's AnnMarie Grohs was hoping might happen.

In October, we'll be back with the third Evening at Morton's dinner. The focus will shift to the state of the nonprofit community in Richmond -- how it's coping with the recession, what's new on the landscape and what lies ahead. Stay tuned.

Gunning for Newpreneur of the Year

It was a total whim, but tonight I sat down and penned my 500 word submission to Inc Magazine/Alibaba's Newpreneur of the Year award contest. I used every single word, and here's what I said about Floricane:

Floricane is a strategic and creative facilitation consultancy. A "floricane" is the fruit-bearing vine of a bramble bush.

True to its name, Floricane is in the business of helping organizations bear new fruit. We encourage our clients to take a hard look at their organization. We guide them strategically in the creation of a future different from the past. We help them push past the brambles.

After 12 years of reinventing myself through three career changes -- from strategic communications to project management to leadership development -- at Luck Stone Corporation, a privately held construction materials company in Virginia, I found myself on the front end of last winter's wave of unemployment.

Within a week of being laid off, I had interviews lined up. At the end of one, my wife asked how it went. "Great," I told her. "It would mean a 60% cut in pay, three steps back professionally. Their stock is the lowest its ever been and they're braced for another round of layoffs."

I started plans to launch Floricane the following week.

Between mid-November and mid-January, I met one-on-one with almost 250 friends, former colleagues, mentors and community leaders. I left every conversation with more connections and good advice.

"Don't try to be everything to everyone. Find the tip of your spear," said one small business owner.

"No one will hire you because you're smart," said another. "People will hire you because they like and trust you."

"Don't wait until the end of your first year to plan your second year of business," a third told me. "You'll either be out of business, or you'll be too busy to be strategic."

I am 41-years-old. My wife, Nikole, and I had a seven-month-old daughter when I lost my job.

I recently had coffee with Charlie Luck, my old boss. I thanked him for many things, including this simple and compelling fact: I have spent far more time with Nikole and Thea (now a toddling, talking gem) than I would have had I remained at Luck Stone.

I spend an hour with Thea every morning. I come home at the end of every day and have two hours with my family; I cook dinner to relax. In between, I run hard. I juggle business development, and the design and delivery of Floricane's services. I manage the books and write the contracts. I blog, tweet, eat and sleep. I've never worked so hard in my life.

And I wouldn't trade it for the world.

The economic recession not only pushed me into the role of a newpreneur, but it has provided more business than I can deliver alone -- most smart organizations are asking hard questions about their future, and admit they need help.

In nine months, Floricane has become an established brand in the Richmond community. Over the next nine months, I expect to triple my consulting business and launch two new training products to a national market. I'll also be taking a vacation with Nikole and Thea.

The Newpreneur of the Year award won't make me more successful. But it can help.

If I make it to the finals, I'll be counting on your vote.