Halftime

I remember playing a basketball game against Hutchison (KS) my sophomore year in high school. I played for Maize and we had already beaten them earlier in the season. They were kinda soft and under-sized (it helped that my buddy, David, was 6’11” and playing center for us). We fully expected to walk all over them, again. From the moment we tipped off, Hutch basically came out and just punched us in the teeth. Their approach on both sides of the ball was completely different than what we expected. By the time we got to the locker room at halftime, we were down big - both on the scoreboard and in confidence.

I remember Coach looking at our team in the locker room and saying, “Boys...I had that going differently in my head.”

I think about that memory as we enter into “Halftime” for 2020. Many of you, like me, set personal and professional goals back in January. You mapped out a strategy for the year and began to execute towards those plans. I don’t know about you, but I was really pumped and excited about what was ahead for this year.

Then came a global pandemic.

What many of us expected, planned and hoped for at the start of the year got flipped on its head. There have been some really, really challenging weeks. We’ve experienced losses, our lives have been altered at work and at home, and the ambiguity and uncertainty about what the future holds occupies a lot of our thoughts. When I think about 2020 so far, to quote my old ball coach:

“I had that going differently in my head.”

I absolutely love coaching. When I go to games, I tend to watch the coaches as much as I do the players. I got to attend the Elite 8 NCAA March Madness tournament game in Omaha a few years back with my friend, Tyler, and our oldest boys. It was a heavyweight battle: Kansas vs. Duke. Coach Self vs. Coach K. We were on the 5th row right in between the two benches. It was fascinating to watch these coaches direct, inspire, and lead their teams. Our boys learned some “new words” being that close, but what an incredible experience!

I enjoy a good halftime speech too. Especially when your team is behind. One of my favorites is from the classic sports movie, Remember the Titans. Check it out:

What I love about a great coach is that they always make the necessary adjustments at the half. Whether they are behind or ahead, there are things that need tweaked to get a team in a position to be successful. Some adjustments are small, others are big, like, “gameplan is in the trash can, new plan is on the white board” - BIG.

Pause.

I think it is really important for us to take a step back for a moment during Halftime. We need to take stock of the first half of the year. Take a minute to assess the last few months with these questions:

What have been some of the hardest challenges I’ve had to face so far this year?

What losses have I experienced? What about life and work has changed?
What have I been able to overcome? What successes have I experienced?

What I have appreciated about the leadership of the Simmons family is that they gauge success not solely based on quarters, but in generations. This company has endured many challenging seasons in 71 years. We stand on the shoulders of those who came before us who were willing to grit their teeth and lean in when others were tempted to give up. Many other companies, with good people, have come and gone during these years. Simmons has stood the test. We have another challenge in front of us today.

Here’s what I want you to hear:

How we live and lead in the next six months really matters.

I believe a few things are critical in the 2nd half: (1) our continued response to the real obstacles in front of us today, (2) our ability to rise above them with courage and confidence that we will get through this, and (3) our drive to discover the opportunities that are in this changing marketplace. These key areas will have a ripple effect beyond our time at Simmons. I believe that the decisions we make right now will impact multiple generations of Simmons team members. I know this to be true, because Bill Simmons and Mark Simmons made decisions decades before many of us joined the Simmons family and before we ever knew about Simmons Foods. Those decisions back then have a direct impact on you and me today. They had a vision of what could be and what should be, not just for tomorrow, but for the generations that would come next.

As you reflect on the first half of 2020, as challenging as it has been, you should be incredibly proud of our team’s ability to not only survive this storm, but thrive. I know each aspect of our company has had unique challenges. Trust me, I am leading a Chaplain team that isn’t allowed in hospitals and unable to visit some of our plants right now. I get it! But we have all responded to the challenge with courage and curiosity - and we are learning a lot about what we are made of and discovering new and creative ways to get the job done!

Scott Salmon mentioned in a conversation this week that what our teams across Simmons have been able to accomplish is the equivalent of changing the oil in a race car WHILE you are circling the track during an Indy 500...during a global pandemic. He was spot on. It is absolutely incredible.

From from the frontline to our SLT, our Simmons team has continued to Live our Values as we have sought to ensure the health and safety of our team members while continuing to provide food for families and pets we love. There have been some SEISMIC pivots and changes in all three business units.

In the midst of that, we have continued to Put People First by:

Providing world class CARE Clinics to our team members and their families.
Serving over 130,000 meals to our team members.
Giving nearly 300,000lbs of chicken to team members to help feed their families.
Sent home 80,000 masks and 8,000 bottles of hand sanitizer with refilling stations at each facility to promote safety at home, as well as at work.
Donated over a hundred thousand pounds of chicken to local non-profits, school lunch programs, churches, and organizations doing incredible work in our communities during Covid-19.
Donated over 100,000 lbs of pet food to over 30 different animal shelters in NWA.

I am so proud of our teams across the business and I love seeing the One Simmons approach in action. Our purpose has become so clear through this:

We Feed Families and Pets We Love.

When this pandemic started to impact our communities, our CEO, Todd Simmons, asked me to find ways to be outrageously generous to help solve hunger for the people and pets that may struggle to afford food. I’ve never worked for a leader with a heart for people like I have since being at Simmons.

You should be extremely proud of what you and the team have accomplished in the first half. You have made a difference in our communities, and you are making a huge difference on the future of our company.

Pause

As you look forward to the remaining 183 days of 2020 (as of writing this), and you begin to dream again about the remainder of this year, I want to challenge you to think about a few things in regards to your work:

On a scale of 0-10, where is the trust level on my team today? What can I do to build trust with the team members and leaders that God has intentionally placed on my team?

Are there unhealthy or unproductive habits, behaviors or attitudes that need my attention or adjustment? Is there anything out of alignment with Simmons’ Values?
Do the decisions that I am making help build a company where the generations after us can continue to thrive and build on in the future?

Check Your Mirror

The work you do at Simmons is incredibly meaningful. Your work really matters. But for a moment, I want you to set aside your title and position at work, and deal with the person in your mirror for a moment. This has been a challenging year so far. Do yourself a favor - take an opportunity to deal with the realities of what you have just endured, and begin to look forward to what is still possible this year.

In my almost 10 years as Chaplain, the most dynamic and remarkable growth that I have seen take place in people's lives, their marriages, their leadership, and in their faith - has happened following some of the most difficult and challenging valleys that you can imagine (and some you can’t). For some of you, that would describe the last few months. If that’s you, hear me right now, there is hope.

What would it look like to have an eternal perspective when it comes to your life in response to what we are going through? Here are some thoughts to consider:

If God had His way with my life, what might He want the remainder of this year to look like?
If I were to view the next six months as a chapter of a much longer story, how do I want that chapter to read?
What am I learning about myself and about God during this season?

One of my favorite movies, Gladiator, also has one of my all-time favorite quotes:

I don’t know about you, but my faith tells me that there is more to come, even after I take my last breath here on Earth. That truth gives me great courage to endure, really, any challenge that I face. It gives me strength to face another day. It inspires me to want to dream again of a future that is still possible, even despite current circumstances and setbacks. We will make it through this year, and then there will be 2021. I’ve decided to just expect that there will be challenges then too. I’m learning from this one and it’s preparing me for the next. I want to encourage you to do the same.

What will the second half look like for you? For your team? For your family? For your walk with God? What has to be true in order for that to happen?

I want to encourage you to have an eternal mindset as you allow yourself to process and reflect. It’s not just about getting through 2020. How you choose to live the remainder of this year will have a long ripple effect.

My prayer for you is that 2020 will be a marker for your life. That you will look back on this year in 10 or 20 years, and thank God for what He brought you through, what He taught you about yourself, and that it would be a constant reminder that God can be trusted - even when life doesn’t make sense.

I’m dreaming today about the story I will tell my grandkids about the year 2020. I hope it is a story that will encourage and inspire them to lean into the challenges they will face by trusting God and having an unrelenting belief that He desires to write a good story in each of our lives. I hope it is true for me, as it will be for you.

I believe God still wants to write a good story for you in 2020.