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Wow. I haven’t gotten a sunburn in years. I played in a tennis tournament today, and of course, forgot to put on sunscreen. And I chucked my hat because it was cutting off my peripheral vision as I was serving. So much for the hat keeping the sun from scorching me.

We had a blast in the tournament though. It’s an adult league, but several of the high school kids in the area still jump in to play. We played a team with two guys from local schools who just wrapped up their tennis seasons. One of them played pretty well, though they both hit far harder than I can. Of course they are both incredibly inconsistent, so we won the match relatively easily.

We’ll be matched up against a different team next weekend. Hopefully I’ll remember sunscreen. And hopefully we’ll win again .

Today marks the first studio album in three years for my favorite band, creatively named “The Dave Matthews Band.” The album is titled “Stand Up,” and I’ll be picking it up today if possible, tomorrow if not.

I’m not a fanatical fan, but I enjoy DMB’s music and their excellence as a live band. I’m always impressed when a band’s performance gets better on stage than in the studio. So many artists today (ahem) can’t even sing on stage without the vocal track playing in the background. It’s crazy.

Uncertainty creates the necessary condition for leadership.
— Jim Kouzes

As I reflected on this quote, I think what Mr. Kouzes is saying is that if everyone knows exactly what to do and where we’re going, why do they need a leader? A leader is needed precisely when there is a lack of clarity.

I like to think of the analogy of my college flag football team. In the huddle, players may suggest routes and ideas to the quarterback. If the quarterback doesn’t provide some direction in the huddle and call a specific play or specific routes problems will show up as soon as he yells “hike.” Without a clear play called, everyone will improvise - which is another word for “running around like a chicken with its head cut off.” On the other hand, if the quarterback calls a clear play - even though he’s uncertain how the defense will react - the team stands a much better chance of succeeding following his lead.

Our team certainly lived this principle out. We had a good run of four or five wins in a row where we played as a team following the calls of our quarterback for the most part. In the end we lost our final game to a team with more talent, and perhaps it could be argued better leadership. The quarterback of the other team was far more confident and clear in his play calling - perhaps because he played football for the local city college. I guess the lesson there is that experience, talent, and clarity in the face of uncertainty defeats clarity all by itself. It’s one of those package deals.