WHAT MATTERS NOW 1

What Matters Now

Daniela Dedvukaj
Siena Heights University
10/19/14












WHAT MATTERS NOW 2

In What Matters Now, Gary Hamel does a great job of analyzing and breaking down the
problems with organizations today. He goes into great detail about management and its
foundation, but this book can be used in more than just the business world. Hamel knows what it
means to be a successful person and what it takes to be a successful business. More importantly,
Hamel talks about concepts and advice that can be used in multiple aspects of life. Values,
innovation, adaptability, passion, and ideology are the five main topics in this book.
Hamel says, If you are a leader at any level in any organization, you are a steward of
careers, capabilities, resources, the environment, and organizational values (p. 3). This is the
first line of the book and a very important one at that. As a coach, a human being, and a leader,
one must know to put others before themselves. Nowadays we see too many unethical acts, too
many leaders taking advantage of the power they possess. Honesty, trustworthiness, and respect
seem to be harder to come across today. For this reason, Hamel puts such an emphasis on
stewardship and the reconstruction of values. He thinks that organizations should go back to the
beginning and ensure and instill values in its employees, if they do not exist. Weinstein (2011)
says that there are five simple rules that will enrich your life and all your relationships: 1. Do no
harm 2. Make things better 3. Respect others 4. Be fair 5. Be loving (p. 6). Having good values
and good relationships is so important in leadership and in life. These rules sound pretty simple
and they should be. As a society we are still dealing with corrupt leaders and businesses, which
is what motivates me to improve every day. I am the type of person that does not like to have
enemies. I would say I am an easygoing person and just want everyone to be happy.
In my personal life, I try my best to be the best. I truly care about people and their
feelings and would like to think that I put others before myself. While bettering myself, I would
also like to positively impact others lives. I know that I am responsible for my grades, my duties
WHAT MATTERS NOW 3

as the graduate assistant, a steady job once I am done with school, and the happiness of my
family and friends. To me, responsibility and values go hand in hand.
The topic of innovation is one that is quite commonly talked about. Before reading this
book, I thought innovation was only used when talking about the business world. I knew it was
important, but Hamel really got me thinking. Hamel (2012) says, A thousand years of social
innovation gave millions of us the right to self-determination. We are no longer vassals and
conscripts. We live in democratic societies where we are free to think and do as we wish (p.43).
Innovation has helped us make improvements in life and will continue to do so. Innovation is a
way of life and a process of constant change. Going from a student-athlete to a coach was a huge
change, one that made me adjust my way of thinking. As a player, I would question some of the
coaching decisions made and now on the other side of things; I am able to relate to both the
players and the coaches. My previous experience allows me to be innovative when something
goes wrong or just when a drill needs to be changed in practice. Hamel (2012) did a great job of
describing how to make a company an innovative place. He says we should encourage wild
ideas, build on the ideas of others, stay focused on the topic, have one conversation at a time, be
visible, go for quantity, and defer judgment.
Adaptability is the next topic that Hamel talks about. This is one thing that is absolutely
crucial in life and in business. Those who are not able to adapt to what is going on around them
are usually left behind. In all sports adaptability is a key factor, when we play a team who is very
technically skilled and good at keeping possession of the ball we know our style of play has to be
high-pressure. If we play a team who tries to always play long balls for their forwards to run
onto, we know that our defenders must adjust and play deeper than they normally would. If one
WHAT MATTERS NOW 4

of our players gets hurt, we have to fill that spot in with the player who will best fit the teams
needs at the moment.
Siena Heights University is a great organization that is undergoing new changes every
day. Everything from the way scholarships work to the application process has changed in the
past year or so. Campus is growing and more buildings are going up. To help Siena
accommodate to all of its students more housing is in the future plans. All of this is being done to
make improvements and be able to compete with some of the other universities. Hamel says,
Those early management pioneers, a hundred years ago, set out to build companies that were
disciplined, not resilient. They understood that efficiency comes from routinizing the
nonroutine (p.87). He goes on to say that adaptability sometimes means going against what is
considered routine. Google is a great company to refer to when talking about breaking the
routine. Employees are able to let their creativity take over and are given the space to let their
minds wander. It is a very unorthodox idea of how to run a company in others eyes, but it works
for them and they continue to be successful.
Even in my personal life I have to adjust and adapt to new things every day. Whether
these new things are big or small, change can be tough. If it is tough on a personal level, I cannot
even imagine the complications within organizations built on this idea of routine. In my
professional life, I will be open-minded and really listen to what coworkers have to say. I know
that there is never one right answer and will do my best for the organization and the people I
work with to find the answer that is right for us. When I think of being a future leader I think of
adaptability as being versatile in the way I work with people. Different backgrounds and
personalities may need to be motivated differently. Nobody is the same and the important thing
WHAT MATTERS NOW 5

is to know who each individual is. For these reasons I think adaptability is one of the most
important of these 5 topics.
Hamel says, Today no leader can afford to be indifferent to the challenge of engaging
employees in the work of creating the future (p. 142). The best way to motivate and inspire
others is to set an example. If a leader can show their passion in the workplace others will follow.
I really believe that passion creates a positive environment that boosts drive and determination.
Scooter, the womens soccer coach, has been at Siena for over 20 years as a student and coach.
The passion he has for coaching and improving players is truly amazing to see. When I came into
the program I did not understand where this passion came from. He loves his job more than
anyone I know and he shows it daily. The reason I think we are such a successful program is
because he showed us what Saints pride is. I love to help others, love soccer, and just love to
spread happiness. As corny as that sounds, I really am passionate about people and making them
proud. If you do not love what you do that negative energy will spread to others. Passion can
make all the difference in the workplace and in life.
Last but not least, Hamel talks about ideology and its importance. Hamel says, Finding
an accommodation between competing ideologies isnt about compromise; its about getting the
weighting right in every circumstance and at every moment (p.182). He says that 4 things are
needed to create this balance: an idea of the ultimate goal, situational awareness, good sense, and
personal incentives (Hamel, 2012). Everything in life needs balance, plain and simple. I could
not agree more with the way Hamel believes organizations should be run. We are so set on this
idea of managers being the rule police and making sure deadlines are met, but managers are so
much more than that.
WHAT MATTERS NOW 6

Leaders should be empowering and encouraging creativity. Hamel says that managers are
stuck following this ideology that is stunting growth and creativity. My goal is to empower and
help people. I want to give people credit when they deserve it and help them when they struggle.
This is why it is going to be so tough for me to leave Siena and the girls that I coach. I have built
bonds with each of them, different in their own ways, but a relationship nonetheless. I love when
the girls confide in me and sometimes it might just be the little things, but I feel like I am
fulfilling my purpose in life.
On another note, in one of the graduate classes we had to do a presentation about
individuals and groups. Steve and I decided to demonstrate an Albanian dance and the Polka and
compare it to dancing here in the United States. We took part of our cultures and related them
back to the material we had to present in class. The teacher loved it and we were able to get the
class to interact and join us at the front. We veered away from standing up at the front of the
classroom and just using our PowerPoint like we normally would. It paid off to try something
different. The class loved it and the teacher kept referring to our dance in other lessons as well.
Hamel goes into great detail about organizations and leaders. He gives some great advice
that I can use in my academics, personal life, and professional life. Writing this paper, I realize
there are things I need to work on and things that I should use more of. This book gave me
confidence and reassurance that it is okay to step outside of the box. The message that stuck out
most is the one about balance. If I am having a stressful week with soccer and school I like to do
something fun. It can be something as little as going to get a coffee or just taking a break and
hanging out with friends for awhile. It can be easy to get lost in all that is going on around you
and that is why I love that Hamel emphasizes balance in this book. Values, innovation,
adaptability, passion, and ideology are what matters now and what will matter for the future.
WHAT MATTERS NOW 7

References
Hamel, G. (2012). What matters now: How to win in a world of relentless
change, ferocious competition, and unstoppable innovation. San Francisco,
CA: Wiley.

Weinstein, B. (2011). Ethical intelligence: Five simple rules for leading a better
life. New York, NY: MJF.