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The Leadership Advisor
"Helping Leaders Develop Leaders"
April 2008 - Volume 3 Edition 4
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"Humility is a strange thing. The minute you think you've got it, you've lost it." ~ E.D. Hulse

"Temperance is actively demonstrating moderation and self control in my life and my leadership." ~ Phil Eastman, Founder & President, Leadership Advisors Group

"The difficulties increase the closer we approach the goal." ~ Goethe

"In vino veritas" (In wine is truth) ~ Plato

"What lies in our power to do, lies in our power not to do." ~ Aristotle

Temperance
By Phil Eastman

We don't live in a moderate society! Considering the images and messages that are played continually for our ears and eyes that advocate "just do it," "go for the gusto," and "be all you can be," it is amazing that we show any restraint what so ever.

It was tempting to use another name for this particular aspect of character since, at least for the students of 20th Century American history, the word temperance is often associated with the "Temperance Movement" that saw the constitutional amendment banning the consumption of alcohol and the subsequent repeal of that same amendment some 13 years later.

In that vein, the word temperance is often associated with cold heartedness, self righteousness, and pious abstinence. The temperance movement became a failed social experiment in the legislative restraint of human beings' natural inclinations. For this reason and many others, the movement was a failure.

But why? Certainly from a public health standpoint the abolition of alcohol or any mind altering substance should be a good idea. There is ample proof that the over use of alcohol and illicit drugs can have a detrimental affect on people. The human and financial cost to society would likely make banning all mind altering substances good public policy. What this type of movement assumes is that making something illegal alone will curb individual behavior, but alas, history proves, it will not.

This is not to say that laws banning such substances might not have a dampening effect on some individual usage, but a law alone won't create temperance. In fact, laws alone will only serve to drive a particular act underground. For prohibition to have been successful it would have needed to combine legislation with real desire on the part of the nation to curb and eventually abstain from using alcohol. However, there was not such campaign.

Let's contrast the Temperance movement with a current equivalent, the environmental movement. The environmental movement is hardly new. We can look at history and see that people as far back as 1847 have been keenly aware of our need to protect the natural surroundings that we depend on for survival.

The movement has been bolstered by legislation that protects air, water, forests, and wildlife and yet those laws alone were not effective for changing the views of American's toward the environment. Coupled with the legislation that sought to curb the blind consumption of individuals and businesses, was a drumbeat of education that began with the introduction of environmental education in the public schools.

This generational approach to the ills of our consumptive behavior have had the effect of showing us why protecting the environment is important to the world, the nation, and to each of us individually. This constant flow of information eventually seeped in to the leadership of business, government and non-profit organizations and the realization of numerous years of legal and societal change have now created a country that is keenly interested proactively protecting the environment in ways that don't hinder our individual liberty but in fact enhance it.

Corporations are learning that the green agenda is one that must be embraced pragmatically which makes great sense for profit and shareholder wealth. Chipping away at the values and behaviors of a nation have taken several generations but now we are collectively aware of and have a desire to do the right things for our environment. In other words, we are beginning to temper our behavior toward our environment.

. . .to read the remainer of this article, please click on the Temperance icon above. . .

Phil Eastman is the founder and president of Leadership Advisors Group, a Boise-based consulting firm. Phil combines more than 25 years of leadership experience with his passion for consulting, coaching, and teaching to develop leaders, build teams, and improve performance. It is his desire to enhance leadership effectiveness for all of his clientele.

Phil earned a Bachelors of Business Administration degree in Management and Organization from Idaho State University. He is a graduate of the Pacific Coast Banking School at the University of Washington where he is also an instructor. Phil also holds a Master of Arts degree in Theological Studies from Bethel Seminary.
A New Vintage Wine Shop
By Lorene Rasmussen

According to a recent study conducted by Caliper, a Princeton-based management consulting firm, "Women leaders are more assertive, persuasive, have a stronger need to get things done and are more willing to take risks than male leaders."

The vintage - 2001; the vintner - Ilene Dudunake; the harvest appellation - A New Vintage Wine Shop; the viticulture area - fresh, exciting, risky, and rebellious.

Strolling through the little wine shop on a warm, sunny day in early October, I relaxed into the sights and sounds of the bustling morning chores. The wine bottles were lined up like vineyard rows with information cards dangling like grapes, describing what you might experience if you selected that bottle of wine.

At the back of the store sat a wine bar, a harvest of flavors were waiting to be shared one glass at a time. This is were I took my seat and starting visiting with Ilene while she went about her morning duties. "I hope you don't mind if I'm multitasking while we visit. Harry isn't coming in until later and I have a lot to get accomplished this morning," she said.

The shop's décor was remarkably simple and yet incredibly chic. The pastiche of grapevines, wine barrels, and other vineyard motif was warm and inviting. As I sat there, taking it all in, one clever sign caught my eye, it read: "Let us know if you valet parked. We don't have valet parking." I could tell I was in a first class "non- wine snob" shop.

"My job is to de-mystify wine for people," Ilene said as she unloaded a case of something from Napa Valley. She continued, "If I don't know an answer, I can claim ignorance without it bothering me since I still have a lot to learn." As she picked up one of the bottles, carefully handing it to me, she noted, "I don't like to taste the earth; I want to taste the fruit. Some wines out of the Napa Valley are pretty earthy." I examined the bottle and handed back as she waited on her first customer of the morning.

"In vino veritas" (In wine is truth) - Plato

On May 16, 2001, A New Vintage Wine Shop was blessed by a Greek Orthodox Priest and then opened for business. On that auspicious day the cork came out of the bottle, but that wasn't the true beginning. The beginning started when Ilene was in college and had the chance to spend time in Europe where she discovered her passion for wine. Her return to the states didn't mean she went back to college, instead it meant she followed her heart of adventure and ultimately ended up helping a good friend open the Coeur d'Alene Resort in Northern Idaho. That experience paired her wine passion with hard earned, in the trenches, business experience.

Starting a new business is hard enough but starting a new business as a woman in uncharted territory like organic farming or the wine industry, can be emotional suicide. Just like tending a vineyard all the way to harvest can have environmental obstacles, Ilene faced a few of her own. The first one was persuading her husband Harry that the wine shop would be a successful enterprise. However, once he was on board, he invested his own money into her shop.

In the same study sited earlier, Caliper notes that "hand in hand with being a risk-taker is being innovative . . . it's critical in the 21st century that you stay open to new ideas, because the business environment is different then it was 15 or 20 years ago." But in application, we both know that many people still operate as if it's 1983; an era when few women were warranted the title of visionary or entrepreneur.

The biggest obstacle Ilene faced was financing. Even though her credit was excellent and the business plan was sound, she was turned down numerous times for "valid reasons." The irony is, one of the banks that wouldn't loan her money before she opened, presented her an award for successful women in business. Of course now they would love to do business with her.

After what seemed like forever, Ilene was finally introduced to Lou Ratto from Syringa Bank, a locally owned bank in the Treasure Valley. Lou was able to take her business plan, see pass the risk, and envision the same dream Ilene had for the shop. On February 27, 2001, papers were signed, a loan was issued and The New Vintage Wine Shop was bottled. One might say the shop has been maturing like fine wine ever since.

During one of Ilene's low moments, she thought about quitting! She wanted her dream but wondered if the Treasure Valley was ripe enough for it. Her feelings changed when her son Taylor, then 6 years old, came out of his room with a jar of coins and said, "Mom, I'll keep saving my money and we will make it happen together." Together the family has made it happen!

By the time the shop was celebrating it's fifth anniversary, the customers were more like the folks from the television series, Cheers, "where everybody knows your name . . ." In fact, over 200 of Ilene's devoted customers threw a surprise anniversary party at the beautiful Falcon Crest golf course, complete with gourmet meal and perfectly paired wine. I guess, Caliper must have sited Ilene in their study when they stated, "Women do have a more inclusive way of leading. . .they try to bring more people along with them."

Not all of Ilene's customers are that devoted. One afternoon while tending the shop, a man came in to find the perfect wine. Ilene was helping him make his selection when he coarsely remarked, "Did your husband buy you this shop just to keep you out of his hair?" At that point, Ilene kindly explained to him that she was the majority owner and she didn't appreciate his attitude. Ilene removed the bottle from his hand, he walked out the door, and has never returned. (which is just fine for Ilene)

About the time I was ready to wrap up our conversation, a young salesman came in to introduce a vineyard's new line. They invited me to partake in a wine tasting. It was then I really watched Ilene work her magic. The salesman lined up 3 bottles, prepared a small pour. Ilene went to work swirling and sniffing, savoring and sipping. This one was fruit forward, that one has too many tannins, and "oh my, can you taste the oak?" Between the two of them, I learned why I liked one over another and which one wouldn't go with my husband's fabulous grilled salmon.

Like decanting a fine wine to separate the sediment before drinking, Ilene had her own decanting to undertake. The sediment that should of held her back from tasting the sweet flavor of success became the catalyst for this feminine visionary to hold on to what is important. Ilene's dream continues to be realized daily as she goes about tending the shop, sharing weekly on 94.9 fm The River, and even after 20 years in the industry, still learning. Yes, it was a bold and risky pursuit for Ilene but the payoff is a "peak, mature bouquet."

A New Vintage of Business Leaders is #4 in a series of interviews with local leaders, business owners, and personal heroes.

Lorene Rasmussen is the Partner for Business Operations which guides and supports the daily and strategic operations of Leadership Advisors Group. She combines a unique sense of fun and organization to insure operations run smoothly and that clients receive the highest quality service possible.

Lorene earned a Bachelors of Business Administration degree in marketing from Boise State University and is a certified Life Coach through Genesis Enterprises in Seattle, Washington. Revisiting Ilene's story for this month's article has rekindled Lorene's determination to participate in Marine Corps Marathon again this year. If Ilene can go through her own setbacks and come out on top, Lorene doesn't have any "valid" excuses to not participate. . .
Leadership Advisors Group will help you and your organization succeed by:
  • Developing effective leaders.
  • Creating strategic plans that drive organizational progress and team unity.
  • Delivering change management to achieve strategic results.

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". . .man must desire life like water and drink death like wine ~ G.K. Chesterton

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Phil Eastman & Lorene Rasmussen
Leadership Advisors Group

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