Table Of ContentDefining Moments
Navigating through Business and
Organizational Life
Peter Shaw
Defi ning Moments
Other books by Peter Shaw
Mirroring Jesus as Leader, Cambridge: Grove, 2004
Conversation Matters: How to Engage Effectively with One Another, London: Continuum, 2005
The Four Vs of Leadership: Vision, Values, Value-added and Vitality, Chichester, UK: Capstone,
2006
Finding Your Future: The Second Time Around, London: Darton, Longman and Todd, 2006
Business Coaching: Achieving Practical Results through Effective Engagement, Chichester, UK:
Capstone, 2007 (co-authored with Robin Linnecar)
Making Diffi cult Decisions: How to Be Decisive and Get the Business Done, Chichester, UK:
Capstone, 2008
Riding the Rapids: How to Navigate through Turbulent Times, London: Praesta, 2008
(co-authored with Jane Stephens)
Deciding Well: A Christian Perspective on Making Decisions as a Leader, Vancouver: Regent
College Publishing, 2009
Raise Your Game: How to Succeed at Work, Chichester, UK: Capstone, 2009
Effective Christian Leaders in the Global Workplace, Colorado Springs: Authentic, 2010
Seizing the Future, London: Praesta, 2010 (co-authored with Robin Hindle Fisher)
DEFINING
MOMENTS
Navigating through
Business and
Organizational Life
Peter Shaw
© Peter Shaw 2010
Foreword © Lesley Strathie, 2010
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2010 978-0-230-57720-6
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this
publication may be made without written permission.
No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted
save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence
permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency,
Saffron House, 6-10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS.
Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication
may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work
in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published 2010 by
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN
Palgrave Macmillan in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited,
registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke,
Hampshire RG21 6XS.
Palgrave Macmillan in the US is a division of St Martin’s Press LLC,
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies
and has companies and representatives throughout the world.
Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States,
the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries.
ISBN 978-1-349-36697-2 ISBN 978-0-230-30307-2 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9780230303072
This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully
managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing
processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the
country of origin.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10
Dedicated to Frances, with whom I have shared
many defi ning moments for approaching 40 years,
with thanks for her wisdom, calmness and kindness
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
Foreword by Lesley Strathie ix
Acknowledgments xii
Section A Introduction 1
Section B Living in the moment 9
1 Light-going-on moments 11
2 Milestone moments 17
3 Surprising moments 24
Section C Stretching the moment 33
4 Standing-back moments 35
5 Joyful moments 44
6 Making time go slowly 52
Section D Surviving diffi cult moments 59
7 Down moments 61
8 Crisis moments 70
9 Moments of anger 80
Section E Treasuring the moment 89
10 Making each moment matter 91
11 Accepting the truth of hard messages 99
12 Embedding learning moments 107
Section F Capturing the moment 113
13 Creative moments 115
14 Gripping the moment 123
15 Living with discord 129
vii
viii CONTENTS
Section G Creating future moments 137
16 Focus in the moment 139
17 Rhythm of moments 147
18 Creating moments for others 156
Section H The way forward 163
19 Seeing the pattern of moments 165
20 Next steps 168
Selected bibliography 172
Index 175
Foreword
It was October 2008 and I was about to address the National Confer-
ence for senior leaders of Jobcentre Plus. There had been much specu-
lation about the UK economy and, although unconfi rmed at that time,
the recession had just begun. I knew how capable the organization and
the people who worked in it were. And I knew how big a challenge the
recession posed for our organization, which had been through three
years of transformation and effi ciency improvements. As Chief Execu-
tive, I was responsible for enabling all the delegates to leave the confer-
ence feeling confi dent, with a spring in their step, ready to lead their
people through demanding times. The message of my speech was “This
is our moment,” and my senior team and I challenged ourselves to
“step up” to it. The phrase “This is our moment” became a mantra
across the organization. The people working in Jobcentre Plus responded
superbly to the extra demands placed upon them. They rose to the chal-
lenge of the moment with energy and pride, putting customers at the
heart of their response.
When I joined the UK civil service in the 1970s, I was initially on a
six-week contract as a temporary administrative assistant. My biggest
motivator from the early days was that I wanted to help people and I
wanted things to run well. I realized that there was within me the ability
to make a difference and make things better.
Defi ning moments happen when people have belief in you. I am for-
tunate to have worked for a number of truly inspirational leaders. When
I was reluctant to apply for promotion to the senior civil service because
I didn’t think I was the kind of person “they” wanted, my Director,
Stephen Holt, said to me:
What do you mean, you’re not applying? What is there not to want?
You are already leading 14,000 people to deliver operational services
to customers in London and the South East. Those who have spent
all their working lives in Head Offi ce would kill to have your CV,
and we need people like you in the senior civil service.
It was a turning-point for me.
ix
