Lift Others Without Effort

This week, let’s turn to the bright side, and learn how great leaders uplift others. How do they raise our spirits, often with little effort, even during difficult times? One key might be found exactly 90,000,006 years ago.

Table of Contents

• THE ULLMEN INSIGHT: Lift spirits, ignite imaginations, and keep teams thriving...

• THE ULLMEN TRIO: Guests: Charlie Chaplin and Yogi Berra

• THE TRIO TAKEAWAYS: Lessons learned

• THE TRIPLE PLAY: Explore similarities, differences, and new possibilities

THE ULLMEN INSIGHT

I heard a leader tell a story that probably isn’t true, but it’s too fun not to tell… 

To show strong presence as a leader doesn’t always require gravitas and somber-seriousness.  The broader Leadership Presence principle is that the best leaders uplift others. 

They ignite our imagination about how to advance positive purposes, in ways we can feel great about. After we interact with them, we feel better than before. 

And that’s a truth that will stay true for… well at least 90,000,000 years more, plus or minus a few. 

Even on weighty topics, leaders with presence lift our spirits. 

As a leader, always look for ways to help others feel better about what they are doing, need to do better, or need to change. 

Remember, we don’t want to just make our numbers, we want to make a difference. 

You always want to help others believe in what they do, and be enlivened by doing it.   

How? 

Ignite imaginations with tension-breaking, purpose-driven stories. Give inspiring examples from the past and possibilities for the future. 

And ask those you are speaking to for their stories and inspiring examples, too! 

Another tool is to co-create them! 

Get creative! The more stories and anecdotes the better, because there’s nothing better to break up heavy spirits. 

Great stories raise spirits. 

Uplifting leadership doesn’t have to be a heavy lift. 

Without lightness of spirit, teams fossilize. 

So don’t let morale go extinct.

THE ULLMEN TRIO

Every week, John holds an imagined conversation on our theme with this week’s guests, Yogi Berra and Charlie Chaplain.

John Ullmen:

Yogi, Charlie - first, thanks for all the warmth and laughter over the years. I want to start by asking you: as leaders, how important do you think it is for leaders to use humor and other ways to uplift others, and raise their spirits? 

Yogi Berra: Thanks for asking. Yes John, lemme tell ya, humor’s like a curveball—you don’t see it comin’, but when it lands riht, it changes the game. 

For me, humor isn't about telling jokes all the time. It's about keeping things light, even when the pressure is on. Take the 1956 World Series against the Dodgers. Game 5, perfect game by Don Larsen, right? Tension was thicker than pea soup in that stadium. But in the dugout, before the game, Casey Stengel, our manager, he was pacing like a caged tiger. So I walked up to him, and I said, "Hey Casey, if we win today, do we get to play tomorrow?" He stopped pacing and this tiny little smile cracked across his face. The tension just went poof. Everyone started chuckling. It wasn't a knee-slapper, but it reminded everyone to take a breath.

Humor helps you keep perspective, and it helps everyone around you remember that too. It’s about lifting spirits. And sometimes, that’s the most important thing a leader can do – no matter how tough things look, remind folks that the sun will come out tomorrow.

Charlie Chaplin: That’s beautifully put, Yogi. Life has its ups and downs, and a little laughter oils the gears.

For me, humor has always been a form of defiance against the heavy weights of the world. It’s like saying, “You may try to crush us, but you won't take away our spirit.”

My world, as you know, was the world of silent film. And silence, paradoxically, can be incredibly loud with emotion. I learned early on, growing up that laughter could be both a shield and a sword. People suffer, yes, and they also crave release, a moment to forget their troubles. That's what I tried to give them with my movies. 

There’s a scene in that film where my character, the Little Tramp, is swallowed up by this monstrous machine, caught in its giant gears. Instead of portraying it as sheer horror, I choreographed it almost like a ballet, a ridiculous, chaotic dance with the machinery. During filming, I remember watching the extras, many of whom were actually struggling workers themselves. As we filmed that absurd scene, I saw them laughing, genuine belly laughs. And it wasn't just escapism. It was something deeper. Later, many of them told me that seeing humor in that struggle, in that symbol of overwhelming, dehumanizing forces, gave them strength. It allowed them to momentarily detach from their fear, to see the absurdity of it all, and to feel a shared sense of resilience. Laughter can be a shield against despair, and offering that shield is, I believe, part of a leader's true calling.

Yogi Berra: You know, Charlie, I never thought of it quite like that, but you're right. Here’s another story. So we were playing the '51 Giants, it’s legendary now. Bobby Thomson's shot heard 'round the world and all that. Boy, we were down.  But then…

THE TRIO TAKEAWAYS

Here are some more of the techniques I pulled from the extended conversation.  I will make them all available separately…

• The "Blitz Spirit" Screening

• The"Yogi Berra Name Game"

• The "City Lights" Discovery Game

• "Chaplin-esque" Empathy

• The "Chaplin Silence" Technique

• "The Listening Catcher" Technique

• The"Gold Rush" Playfulness Technique

• Be a "Yogi-style" Mood Reader

• The “Student of Human Nature" 

• The "Yogi Berra Stumble"

• "Yogi-isms" 

• Physical Comedy

• Count the "Base Hits," 

• Create "Clubhouse" Culture

• Be a "Great Dictator" of Hope

• "Infectious Enthusiasm"

• The "Long Shot" Perspective

THE TRIPLE PLAY

Great leaders grow their understanding of people by exploring similarities, differences, and possibilities, what I call “The Triple Play.”  Let’s practice this skill each week, with inspiration from our Trio guests.

1. Something THEY SHARE.

Short Stature, Giant Legacy. Both men were relatively short in physical stature (Berra was 5'7", Chaplin was around 5'5"), but their influence on their respective fields (and popular culture) was gigantic. They prove that size doesn't dictate impact.

2. Something THEY SEE DIFFERENTLY.

The Importance of Talking:

Berra: Famous for his "Yogi-isms," Berra valued communication, even if it wasn't always grammatically perfect. He has a long list of famous sayings, such as “Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded.”  “It gets late early out there.”  “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”  “The future ain’t what it used to be.” 

Chaplin: A master of silent film, Chaplin believed in the power of nonverbal communication. He could convey complex emotions and stories without uttering a word.

3. Something new THEY MIGHT CREATE TOGETHER.

To help us exercise our own leadership creativity, here we imagine the guests were alive today and joined forces to create something new. 

I’ll share one of my favorites next week, and I welcome yours in the meantime!

Last week our guests were Agatha Christie and Luciano Pavarotti, and this could be one of theirs:

"Murder at the Maestro's." An interactive, musical online game where players solve mysteries while learning about classical music and opera history.

Apply some takeaways this week!

And let me know:

• In what ways did you find this week’s newsletter helpful or informative?

• Do you have any personal stories that illustrate the takeaways?

• Let's keep learning together - ask any leadership questions for future newsletters!

Send your emails directly to me at [email protected], or simply reply to this email.

Until next week…

Let’s make things better,

John