The Giant Hairball

Last year I read several great books on leadership development and organizational dynamics, one of the most fascinating and creative being Gordon MacKenzie's Orbiting the Giant Hairball. A quick glance through this book reminds the reader that one "isn't in Kansas anymore." This is fresh ground he's covering, at least in presentation, and Orbiting the Giant Hairball is certainly one of the most eye-popping leadership books one could read.

But don't make too much of the hairball imagery . . . it's the orbiting that MacKenzie is striving for.

Of course, we are all familiar with hairballs, especially if one has a cat. I continue to find these little bundles of joy around the house, courtesy of our fourteen-year-old cat that, God-willing, will die soon. I'm trying to train my son to produce hairballs. But he's obstinate and will not groom himself . . . he's especially averse to licking his forearms. So . . . I've been saving a few of the cat hairballs, pressing them between sheets of wax paper and storing them inside the covers of the family Bible. Others need to know that we once lived and cherished these treasures.

I'm not sure MacKenzie had this in mind when he wrote his marvelous leadership book on hairballs, but it's a start. One can really use an object when offering a lesson to staff. By this time next year, my hairball should, indeed, be giant. I can't wait to orbit it.