The Q

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The Q, to the F3 Pax, describes a leader who takes responsibility for outcomes. The Q is relied upon to:

  • Commit
  • Plan
  • Organize (if a successful outcome requires more than one person)
  • Articulate the purpose, the plan, and the desired outcome
  • Motivate men to get moving (Or even better, properly executed Exhortation)
  • Participate fully
  • Finish

To be successful in the above points, the Q himself must be motivated. A Q that steps into any sort of leadership role cannot be half-assed or unmotivated. Why would anyone follow someone who doesn’t appear to be motivated or committed? A successful Q, and pardon the language here, must be balls to the wall, hair on fire, motivated to push or pull all of the pieces into place. We have a lot of this in F3Charleston, but we are always looking for new leadership to move through.

Because we all know the extensive impact F3, and the HIM’s associated with it, have had on our lives, our thrust is to continue to motivate new men to experience that very same thing. But this can only come by FNG’s feeling an immediate impact when they first enter into a workout and finish up in their first COT. This impact is dependant on who is Q-ing and their ability to maximize the list I highlighted above. It doesn’t matter whether you are leading a boot camp, a run, a social gathering, a third-F meeting, or simply having coffee with a friend, the above list still applies.

What I am referring to is maximizing the impact you have on another man so that you can create acceleration in him as well. An object in motion that hits another object straight on, will translate more acceleration in the second object than when it partially hits it. So when you are Q-ing, strive for maximum impact.

Our impact on FNG’s starts with our workouts. I see a lot of the following in many of our Q’s, but the following may help raise your

For Bootcamps:

  • If you have signed up to Q, you have partially committed to leading a workout. Full commitment means that you have planned a seamless workout and have some goals in mind. Full commitment means you know how the cadence works and how to start an exercise. Full commitment means doing exercises in the best form that you can do. All of these things raise the quality of the workout, and men will come back for future beatdowns when things run smoothly and the workout is challenging.
  • Get on your AO’s Slack channel and start the Mumblechatter. This serves as a reminder to men who might be on the fence or the cusp of a Fartsack. Shake the tree. Ring the bell. Get your men mentally prepared to show up. Remove the gray area for them.
  • One of the things that we have the most problems with is translating what happening in F3Charleston. Know what F3Charleston events are coming up and let your group know. There may be something there that they are interested in doing. If they don’t know, we are not fulfilling our mission. 
  • The COT is a great time to bring something out that has had some impact on the Q and when efficiently delivered to the PAX, will do the same to them. It does not necessarily have to associate with religion or the bible, but it should be something in which most of the men in that circle can relate. 
  • Keep pushing men to read Freed to Lead. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve spoken with men who have been in F3 for years and are just getting to reading the book. After they read it, they truly understand the basis for F3 and are able to connect with why many of us feel the way we do, and why F3 has been successful at turning men around to become leaders in their community. I can’t stress this enough.

For Running AO’s:

  • We have some unreal runners in F3Charleston and there are a lot of meaningful conversations that happen when the group is out, but, except for Westbound and Down, there is generally not a predetermined Q to lead the group for that run on that day. I have noticed that when one PAX hasn’t stepped up to Q, the likelihood of a COT is diminished. The COT is the last of the five principals of every F3 workout, but is probably the most important. So while we may be having meaningful conversations on the runs, we are not fulfilling what is probably the most important facet of F3, and that is ending the workout together in prayer.
  • Because we never fully know what is going on with the guy next to us, this could be the most impactful thing that he needs and that is keeping him going. I’m not here to tell you when to have a COT (before, during, or after a run), but I’m here to tell you that someone stepping into the Q role for that workout, and being committed to seeing this portion of F3 through will have an impact on men who need it. We all show up to make an impact on others around us, but most of the time we are impacted by them. Think about this at your next run. Be the one who leads.

I am so proud of what I am seeing out there from each of you. Keep focusing on maximizing the impacting those around you.

Humbly submitted,

— Mike Morabito, 51, Diopter —

P.S. If you are interested in what is going on in F3Charleston and want to join the conversation, our next conference call is Wednesday, February 12, at 8:15 pm. The call details will be in Slack.