A coming of age

Please join me this Sunday from 2:00 - 4:00 pm at the Bay & Bloor Indigo store in Toronto for my second book signing.   

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Ask any Australian to explain why April 25^th is so important to them and you'll get a peek at what lies deep within the Australian psyche.  The response will be honest, heartfelt and rather somber which comes as a bit of a contrast to the usual jovial and happy-go-lucky demeanor of most Australians you meet in your day-to-day life.  Yes, me included!  J

This date is permanently etched into the hearts and minds of every Australian and signifies the unofficial birth of our nation.  

Although Australia officially became a nation on January 26^th, 1901 it continued to have its identity inextricably linked to the British Empire.  This was particularly evident with the onset of World War I on August 4^th, 1914, when Britain declared war on Germany.  In those days when the mother country declared war, then subsequently so did each of the Dominions within the Empire.  Almost immediately Australia was asked to raise an expeditionary force to support her Majesty’s government in the prosecution of the war in Europe, to which it answered the call dutifully.

Prior to the WWI, Australia had a population of less than five million people, of which more than 416,000 men joined up to serve in the armed forces, which is almost 10% of the entire nations population...staggering numbers!  In those days, the ratio of Australians born within the United Kingdom or were from first generation parents was almost 90% so not really a surprising number - in fact many Australians in those days considered themselves English first, then Australian.

This expeditionary force was to become known as the First AIF (Australian Imperial Force) in which the First Australian division and the 1^st Australian Light Horse Brigade were initially formed and dispatched as quickly as possible to the conflict in far off Europe.  However, as their troops ships steamed across the Indian Ocean toward Suez the Ottoman Empire came into the war on the side of Germany and so the Australian forces were disembarked in Egypt to block any move by the Ottomans in the Middle East.

Okay, great history lesson but why is April 25^th so important?

In those days, Winston Churchill was First Lord of the Admiralty and concocted a plan to aid Russia and take the Ottoman Empire out of the war by taking Constantinople (modern day Istanbul).  Easier said than done Winnie!  

To get to the Sea of Marmara from the Mediterranean you must approach it via the Dardanelles.  This narrow waterway was both well mined and had large forts guarding the approaches on either side and so a plan was devised to land an amphibious force then attack overland and effectively roll up the right flank which would allow the British, Commonwealth and French forces to open up the sea-lane and then lay siege to Constantinople.

So just before dawn on April 25^th, 1915 a division of Australian and New Zealand forces made the amphibious landing at a place called Gaba Tepe on the Gallipoli peninsula in southwest Turkey.  In the pre-dawn darkness the forces were landed about 1.6 km north of the intended beach and immediately came under heavy fire from the cliffs above - not that there should have been cliffs if they had landed in the correct location.  

The carnage that followed the was horrific, with over 2,000 casualties in the first day alone yet the tenacious Australian & New Zealand Army Corp (later referred to in communiqués as the ANZAC forces) doggedly held onto, and secured by nightfall a rather precarious beachhead which ran along a couple of miles of beachfront to a depth of about 800 meters inland from the landing site.  

The ANZAC forces persevered at Gallipoli, although in a state of stalemate until December of 1915 when the forces were eventually evacuated.  The cost of the campaign for Australia alone was over 8700 dead and a further 15,000 wounded from a force of 30,000.  

Today April 25^th marks a day of remembrance for all those that served and died in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations, and for the sacrifice of all those that have served.  The first ANZAC day service was held in 1916 and over the years the importance and significance of the day has ebbed and flowed with the sentiment of the nation and world events.  
Today's emphasis on ANZAC day is a far cry from that of my childhood, when the Vietnam war was at its peak and with the anti-war movement in full cry.  In those days ANZAC day was just another day with very limited focus or attention paid, if anything a day not wanting to be remembered... However, over the past 25 years there has been a significant shift and resurgence in the importance of ANZAC day and its impact on Australian history, culture and self identity.  

As many of you know I have a direct connection to the First AIF with Grandfather Conolly, who enlisted on November 11, 1916 and spent the next two years fighting on the Western front in France with the 49th Battalion, Australian 4^th Division.  Even after being wounded and gassed during the first war he again enlisted in early 1940 for the Second World War and this time served in the Coastal Defense forces guarding installations, ports and docks in Northern Australia – although much to his chagrin as he wanted overseas service at the ripe old age of 58.   In addition uncle Graeme (Grandfathers son) fought in Papua New Guinea with the 49^th Battalion, most notably in the bloody northern beaches campaign at Buna and Gona against the Japanese forces.

My other connection with the ANZAC tradition inevitably takes me back to Papua New Guinea when I hiked the Kokoda track.  Feelings of deep sadness washed over me during two equally poignant occasions during my time in Papua.  The first was when we held a short service at Isurava, situated deep in the mountains and set amongst one of the most beautiful natural jungle backdrops - peaceful, serene but with a bloody and violent past where the Australian and Japanese forces clashed heavily in 1942.  The second was when I walked slowly amongst the hundreds of rows of white crosses at the Bomana War Cemetery just outside Port Moresby, and noticed two brothers who were buried next to one another and who had been killed within a day of each other during the battle for Gona. 

I can't even imagine receiving a telegram (yes, now I'm dating myself!) to say that your son has been killed in action, but to have two telegrams arrive within hours or days would be incomprehensible...

So this Saturday morning when you're all tucked up in bed I'll be heading out to attend the ANZAC day dawn service to remember all those who sacrificed so much on my behalf. 

Lest we forget…


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This weeks photos are from a trip to Hilton Head Island, in South Carolina.  Enjoy my prelude to summer!

Vivid colors with early morning dew

Sunlight on water

A thousand reflections in the water

Sail cloth overhead

Early morning pool

Sea grass at first light

Footprints 

Wind blown sands

Four leaves and shadows

Early light on the beach

The runner

Sun peaking through the clouds

Sand dunes

The bikes at dawn

The ultimate question...

Just one more week before my second book signing - Sunday April 26th from 2:00 - 4:00 pm at the flagship Indigo store at Bay & Bloor in midtown Toronto.  If you'd like to learn more about Indelible Adventures come visit my website.

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I truly believe that passion is the secret sauce to a happy and successful life and that by its very nature is the difference maker in almost everything we do, whether its in a relationship, hobby or your job it has the ability to soothe the disappointments, as well as heighten the highs all the while keeping you motivated.  J 

What I find most fascinating is to ask someone about their passions and then sitting back to see the fire in their eyes, the excitement in their voice and the animation of their limbs as they take you on a personal journey that enlivens their very being.  It’s an amazing starting place for a conversation especially when you’re getting to know someone as you truly get a candid glimpse into the real person and who they are and what’s most important in their lives.

Over the years I've used the ultimate question in a couple of different contexts but with amazing results each and every time I use it.

As the final interviewer, or “closer” in the numerous hiring cycles that I've been involved over the course of my career in I always ask only one question. 

This is what I call the ultimate question, it’s free flowing form deviates from the regular interview framework and thus, allows the interviewee to get beyond the resume to where you see who they really are to  hopefully uncover what makes them passionate.  I think I personally like the question because of its simplicity: “tell me about something that you're passionate about”. 

There were two clear and distinct groups when it comes to answering the question.  There were those that were completely stumped, and although they'd often have incredible grades from well known universities, amazing resumes and been a through a rigorous battery of interviews prior to getting to this final hurdle they have no idea what I’m looking for – this confounds and frustrates this group of people.  Many ask me to repeat the question, some stammer, others smile nervously all the while trying to stall and figure out what I wanted to hear, or at the very least how to answer it “correctly”…whatever the hell it was this crazy guy was looking for in the first place.

Yet for those that have a true passion they smile broadly and without hesitation launch into describing the depths and nuances of their specific passion at length.  You could literally feel the energy beaming from them as they speak about what is most important to them and why.  Not only do you feel the energy but you see it manifested in every aspect of their being.

I suppose what I’m looking for is intangible, the essence of who they are and what motivates them because in my mind these are the people that I want on my team.  I want to be surrounded by passionate, motivated, and curious individuals that can be coached and molded to perform whatever role I need them to execute.  All teams need this type of energy and an infectious “can-do” mentality but finding it can be sometimes difficult.

Over the course of my career I’ve applied the ultimate question in no-business related occasions with great effect as well. In 1995, as the playing coach of the Canadian Australian Rules football team we embarked on a ten-day tour of the UK where we were scheduled to play a number of practice games against various London clubs leading up to the big clash between Canada and England. 

After arriving and acclimatizing to the time change I set about getting to know each of the players on the team, given that there were representatives from all of the clubs in the league, some of which I hadn't met prior to the tour and therefore clearly had my work cut out for me given the very short timeframes. 

My objective was to understand each of the players, irrespective of whether I knew them well or not on an individual basis, with the intent of getting a feel for the best way to motivate them.  Invariably over the course of the week I made it a point to ask each of them the ultimate question, and as usual some laughed whereas others launched right into their passions.  Not surprisingly it worked like a charm and I was able to really connect with a core number of players that formed the nucleus of the team, and if I could influence them they would in turn influence the other players given their relationships.  

My reasoning was that as we built toward the final game against England I needed a personal connection with each of the players, ensuring that there was a high level of trust between me, as coach and them as players to get the maximum performance from them on game day.  The insights that I gained by asking the ultimate question enabled me to understand the key triggers for motivating them each individually.  Clearly powerful stuff!

What I didn’t know at the time and which came as a complete surprise but as an enormous boost was the completely bias story that the Times ran the day before the big game. As you would expect they were extolling the strengths of the English team while playing down the touring team as a second rate and under manned squad, but in a way that felt like we were being dismissed as easy-beats.

Armed with this article, which I tore from the newspaper and posted in our change rooms, (so that each and every player could read the story and decide for themselves if they were going to just lay down like the article seemed to suggest) was the perfect prop to use along with the specific conversations I was about to have with the individual players about their opponents, our game plan and how I wanted them to play their position. 

As I began my pre-game speech I could sense they smarted from the comments in the newspaper and more importantly their national identity had been seriously called into question. At this point the momentum was already at fever pitch. 

Even though we played in front of a large and boisterous crowd that day, I felt that the result was a foregone conclusion from the moment I looked into their eyes during my pre-game talks, I could see and feel the fire and passion as they prepared for the game.  Even today, if you ask any of the guys who played that day I think they'd all agree that we were in the zone and no one was going to get in our way of victory. 

What I remember most is the connectedness that I felt with each of my teammates and that underlying camaraderie which bound us together over a very short period and how much more I knew about each and every one of them after our tour.

How would you respond to the ultimate question?  What are your passions and how does it make you feel when you talk about them?  

Something to reflect on... J 

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This weeks photos come from my collection of Sydney, Australia that I took a couple of years back. Enjoy!

The Sydney skyline looking from Mrs Macquaries chair

The bridge climb - notice all the groups.  It was fantastic and well worth the effort!

Taken from the south shore pylon, looking toward Kirribilli and the north shore

The iconic Sydney Opera House - designed by the famous Danish architect Jorn Utzon 
and opened in 1973

Looking toward Circular Quay and the main ferry terminus for Sydney

What photo album would be complete without a cute Koala eating a gum leaf?

Nap time - which turns out to 23+ hours per day...

The Iceberg Pool at Bondi Beach

From the cliff overlooking the Iceberg pool looking out across the Pacific ocean,
yes this was a winters day in Sydney

No matter what time of year there are surfers and swimmers at Bondi 

Cosmopolitan Sydney - the harbour city

Sunset on the harbour and the view of the southern pylons

At sunset...say no more!  It's beauty is breathtaking...