As summer draws to a close, Jeff Van Fleet, Lighthouse President and CEO, is thinking about the events that helped mold him into the person he is today—specifically, an instance with a youth-group advisor who wasn’t nearly as mature as her age might have suggested…
| We don’t always agree here, and that’s okay. In fact, I enjoy being surrounded by passionate, sharp-thinking, step-in-and-make-it-happen people—people who have an opinion and are willing to share it. |
I hope you are enjoying the last days of summer. It’s a really beautiful time of year so I hope you take the time to enjoy the change in seasons. I want to thank all of you for being such faithful readers. Taking this time, once a month, to quiet myself and share something meaningful is very fulfilling for me. It is an opportunity for me to pause and reflect on leadership topics that resonate with me—topics that often spur me into action that I might not otherwise undertake.
I’ve been thinking about how my experiences decades ago have influenced me today. When I was a teenager, I had the opportunity to be the President of our Church’s Youth Group. I helped plan events, run our meetings, and present our ideas to the Church leadership for approval. As such, I had the opportunity to work with many adults, from the Priest and senior Church Leaders to the janitor. In doing so, I noticed that, regardless of their job, what they looked like, or how much money they had, some people were always pleasant and respectful—and others not so much.
One particular instance that sticks with me almost forty years later was when we had the opportunity to bring in a big name R&B band as the headliner for a Church event. Our advisor had the connections to make it happen, but I remember feeling pressured by her to go along with her plan. I didn’t like my hand being forced—and after much discussion with our Youth Group, we ultimately decided to get a local high school band instead of the national headliner. Her response really shocked me. She acted like a spoiled brat, threw a fit, and quit her role as our advisor. She literally walked away from her responsibility because we made one decision that didn’t go her way!
That was the moment I realized that just because someone is of adult age, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they act like it. It was instrumental in forming my views on how to treat people—which subsequently helped me create our culture at Lighthouse.
We don’t always agree here, and that’s okay. In fact, I don’t want to be surrounded by “yes” people, and I’m sure you don’t either. I enjoy being surrounded by passionate, sharp-thinking, step-in-and-make-it-happen people—people who have an opinion and are willing to share it. At Lighthouse, we encourage healthy debate and refer to it as “respectful dissonance”.
That dissonance is a big part of who we are. Heck, it’s practically our business model! We’re here to help you improve your software quality. To do that, you sometimes have to accept that your current processes aren’t good enough for where you want to be—you’ve got to be open to that kind of dialogue if you want less defects, delays, and budget overruns. Change is difficult; it takes commitment, honesty, and trust—and, frankly, it takes guts.
As I reflect back, I owe a debt of gratitude to that “not-so-adult” advisor. She planted the seed of change in a young, impressionable 16-year-old boy that continues to make me and Lighthouse who we are today. I encourage all of you to create a culture of “respectful dissonance” in your business, your community, and your home. Keep me posted on how it goes. As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic.
Until next time, have a wonderful month!
Keep having fun,
Jeff Van Fleet
President and CEO
Lighthouse Technologies, Inc
Software Testing | Quality Assurance Consulting | Oracle EBS Consulting
