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The Villains of Rudolph, Santa, and Frosty – A Fun Holiday Analogy to our world of Consulting
I really enjoy watching the old classic Christmas specials. I think Santa Claus is Coming to Town is my all-time favorite, and love that both Mickey Rooney and Fred Astaire lend their voices. While watching Santa, Rudolph and Frosty this past week I noticed that they each had a character or two that made their jobs much harder. Similar to some engagements we’ve all had, there is always that one person who makes our job more difficult. Is there any lessons from the Christmas specials that we might apply to our job? For those of you who know me, and my fixation with Christmas, I think there are several lessons we can apply for sure.
The young Kris Kringle only wanted to do his job by delivering toys to the children of Sombertown, but Burgermeister Meisterburger made toys illegal. Doesn’t it seem like there is always someone trying to block you from doing what you need to do at work? Thinking creatively to find a solution is imperative to our success. Santa takes the advice of a penguin to deliver toys down the chimney. While he is discouraged several times, his song, “Put one foot in front of the other…”motivates everyone to take on the challenge and get those toys delivered.
Professor Hinkle is a classic bad guy who we all have had to deal with. He had a magic hat, a wonderful tool that brought a snowman to life! He was failing at his job as a magician and never knew how powerful his hat was until the children put it on Frosty’s head. Hinkle later says, “if that hat has magic, I want it back.” Isn’t it so typical to see that one guy at work only want to take credit after you’ve shown others the capabilities of the tools we are supporting? I think we have an opportunity every day to help the Professor Hinkle’s of our daily lives realize the potential of the tools that are sitting right in front of them. Transfer of knowledge should be our number one focus at any client.
Have you ever been put in a role that you weren’t fit for? Rudolph’s pal at the North Pole, Hermey, struggles with his job of making toys. It just wasn’t really his skill set. The Elf manager finally does a great job later realizing they could use an Epic Wisdom expert and moves Hermey from the toy maker department to Dentistry. We should all look at our teams and make sure we identify the strengths of each member to ensure best possible outcome and quality of the delivery of services. I would love to go on with Rudolph, the Island of Misfit Toys alone reminds me of so many engagements over the years. I’m kidding!!
Thank you to all my readers, we will see you in 2019. Happy Holidays to you all and have a wonderful Happy New Year!
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