by Jim Haudan and Rich Berens | Leadership
The following is an excerpt from What Are Your Blind Spots? by Jim Haudan and Rich Berens
One of the foremost thinkers on purpose in recent history is Simon Sinek, who has published several books and gives an excellent TED Talk titled “How Great Leaders Inspire Action.” According to Sinek, purpose is not about what you do, but it is about why you do what you do.
It’s the big-picture answer to the question, “What is your reason for being as an organization?” Most companies have spent time working on “the what” and “the how” but have not really gained deep clarity on “the why.”
And absent that, you are more strategically vulnerable to not adjust to today’s environment of rapid change. You are also vulnerable to the chance that your people will not have an authentic and meaningful connection to your company, leaving them feeling more like a cog in a wheel.
If you are not sure how to authentically make purpose the driver of your company, try this. Look at any successful person or company in history that you admire and really listen to the conversations about that success. Watch people tell their company story or observe how people passionately discuss what they do. In almost every case, the idea that they are a part of something bigger than themselves will surface.
When Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, was asked to only commit to those activities that were profitable, he responded by saying, “When we work on making our devices accessible by the blind, I don’t consider the bloody ROI.” That goes for many areas Apple pursues. According to him, the company does “a lot of things for reasons besides profit motive. We want to leave the world better than we found it.”
Apple is one of the most profitable companies on the planet and has been for some time. Cook’s point is not that Apple doesn’t care about profits. But profits are merely the outcome of being a company that is focused on creating unique value for its customers and doing things the right way. Cook knows that is important to him, to the people working at Apple, and to most people buying Apple products. It’s not only the right thing to do; it is actually the smart thing to do.
While a meaningful purpose is important, it’s also crucial to understand that this can raise difficult questions that teams need to be ready to wrestle with. CVS is the perfect example of such a situation. In September 2014, CVS stopped selling tobacco products because such products went against its purpose of helping people on their path to better health. The company understood it would take a significant short-term revenue hit, but the purpose of the company was the main driver.
After a few months of not selling cigarettes, CVS conducted a study of the impact this change had in states where its pharmacy share was prominent. The results were astounding. The company found that tobacco sales in those states across all retailers decreased by 1 percent in an eight-month period. That is a reduction of five packs per smoker and an overall reduction of 95 million packs of cigarettes in those states! That is living your purpose.
While CVS lost significant tobacco sales, the company also gained a lot of respect from many customers and employees because it showed it was serious about what CVS stands for. The jury is out, but we would venture to guess that over a 10-year time frame, this will prove to be a very profitable strategic decision embraced both by CVS employees who feel that there is an authentic commitment to purpose and by customers who show a greater degree of loyalty and trust toward the company.
Purpose ultimately requires great conviction and courage from leaders. Their focus must be on something larger than themselves and creating or fostering that in their organizations.
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About today’s guest contributors
Jim Haudan is Co-Founder and Chairman of Root Inc. Root Inc., the organizational change expert on helping companies create leadership alignment, execute strategies and change successful, build employee engagement, and transform businesses.
Rich Berens is CEO and Chief Client Fanatic of Root Inc. and has helped align leaders at Global 2000 organizations to drive strategic and cultural change at scale.
by Jane Perdue | Leadership
In looking back at what happened, I had wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt for having noble intentions, but her actions over time told me something different.
I want to collaborate with you on a project and want to talk to you, she wrote in an email. My assistant will schedule a call.
Our call lasted 10 minutes. After exchanging the usual pleasantries and background overviews, she said we should co-author an article because we shared several common interests. I agreed.
“My assistant will get more details to you,” she promised. “Watch your email.”
That was the first, last, and only time the two of us engaged. All subsequent communications, be they written or verbal, were between her assistant and me.
Throughout the back and forth of the project, I didn’t feel like a collaborator. I felt like an employee. The disconnect between my expectations and the reality made me uncomfortable.
I’d gone into the work looking forward to working with someone new and getting to know her. That didn’t happen. In wondering why, an icky thought occurred to me—had I ever done the same thing to others?
I had.
Oh, dear.
I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will remember how you made them feel. ~Maya Angelou
In my quest to succeed, I’d failed to lead myself. I hadn’t always given others the gift of presence and authentic connection.
Just like the project-requesting woman had done, I’d sent the message to some people that my time was more important, my power greater, and my spot on the totem pole more lofty. I didn’t mean to, but I did.
Ah, to be able to turn back the hands of time and have a go at do-overs.
Realistically, it’s not possible or practical for every interaction to be face-to-face or spoken-word-to-spoken-word. However, there has to be that “Goldilocks just right,” which reinforces to others that their contributions are valued, their time is important, and their voices are valued enough to be heard directly, not through a third party.
This message of connection and value must be conveyed personally because building a personal connection is work that can never be delegated.
9 ways to build personal connection
Think how good it feels when someone makes us feel special.
Effective leaders make those around them feel special, valued, like they matter…because they do. Here’s nine ways you can bring that magic to those around you:
- Communicate one-on-one periodically when involved with a colleague on a work project. Walk by someone’s cube or office and deliver a message in-person.
- When physically present, nod, smile, and acknowledge their presence. Listen fully someone is speaking.
- Respect someone’s time and work by reading their entire email, report, or message.
- Be more than a figurehead at employee functions and get-togethers. Put the phone down and engage.
- Share the spotlight and give credit where credit is due.
- Use the feedback that you ask for. People know when the ask is for appearances only.
- Practice reciprocity and generosity of perspective. Think of those involved as both giving and receiving something of value.
- Focus on being both likeable and competent, both efficient and effective, fair and firm.
- Set the ground rules and expectations upfront. Specify if the work project will be directive or collaborative and follow through appropriately.
Those who must listen to the pleas and cries of their people should do so patiently, because the people want attention to what they say, ever more than the accomplishing for which they came. ~Ptahhotep, Egyptian philosopher
In leading yourself, be both strong and courageous enough to be vulnerable.
Reflect on your busyness. Is your time and attention focused on things, process, and results? Are people, connection, and relationship missing from the equation? If so, find the ideal combination of both results and relationships that work for you so respect, trust, and authentic connection can be yours.
Image source before quote added: Pixabay
by Jane Perdue | Leadership
Every work group needs a contrarian.
People with different points of view, experiences, or attitudes move conversation and decision-making to a higher level. They aid in getting unconventional ideas and options noticed, comfort zones expanded, and results improved.
That’s the upside.
Some contrarians, though, bring work, ideas, and interaction to a complete halt.
The Urban Dictionary defines a contrarian as “someone who automatically tends to take the opposite point of view from the person to whom they’re speaking, or to disagree with society at large out of a sort of knee-jerk reflex.”
The trick to being a valuable contrarian versus being a pain-in-the-you-know-where-one is your orientation and attitude.
Why are you a contrarian?
Are you being the contrarian because you have a “me” focus rather than a “we” one? Because you believe your opinion is always the right one? Because you love to argue just for the sake of arguing? Or, are you pushing for something important the rest of the group has failed to see?
When the Catholic Church determines whether an individual should become a saint, a person is assigned the role of devil’s advocate. It’s their job to poke holes in the evidence. Additionally, there’s also a “Promoter of Justice” whose role is to argue in favor of the facts.
What makes a contrarian valuable
Purposefully poking meaningful holes in a position or idea is priceless, invaluable, and always needed. Being antagonistic just for the sport of it isn’t.
By design, there was a contrarian on nearly every team I lead. I wanted someone who was willing to shake up the status quo.
Their orientation and attitude had everything to do with whether their team mates were initially receptive when they shared a point of view.
Concepts introduced combatively or with an air of superiority were ignored or quickly dismissed. The disagreeable messenger killed his own idea.
Often they [contrarians] haven’t acquired the tactical skills of developing their ideas. They tend to blurt them out, making them hard to accept, or else they disagree with others in a clumsy way. ~Karl Albrecht, author
3 things good contrarians do
Pay attention to social graces. People instinctively pull back from comments laced with anger, bitterness, and frustration because they feel like they’re being attacked. Your idea may well be the right answer, but if your present it with contempt, expect a cool reception. Learn to introduce and frame your ideas with tact and diplomacy.
If I see you as different and I view you with suspicion, or at the best with cold neutrality, it is unlikely that I will feel kindly disposed toward you. If instead I look at you knowing we both belong to the human race, both have a similar nature, different experiences but the same roots and a common destiny, then it is probable I will feel openness, solidarity, empathy toward you. In another word, kindness. ~Piero Ferrucci, The Power of Kindness
Think more about we and less about me. Present your thoughts less in terms of how they benefit you and more in terms of how they benefit the team, organization, community, etc. Promoting the greater good is good; hogging the spotlight isn’t.
Scientists have discovered that the small, brave act of cooperating with another person, of choosing trust over cynicism, generosity over selfishness, makes the brain light up with quiet joy. ~Natalie Angier, writer
Keep sharing. Poking holes in existing thinking or advancing something totally new is what moves business, careers, and personal growth forward. Make your voice heard.
We have it in our power to change the world over. ~Thomas Paine, political activist
What tips do you have for being a good contrarian?
by Jane Perdue | Leadership
Being a leader is a forever kind of thing.
Leadership isn’t a role to be slipped in and out of when it’s convenient to do.
If we want to be an effective leader, our vision and guidance must always shine, in lights both bright and muted.
11 ways to be a leader who shines
A leader who always shines:
…knows that leadership is more than dominance, authority, status, and being in the limelight. Thoughtful and effective leaders dance the complicated leadership dance of results and relationships.
Of all the things that sustain a leader over time, love is the most lasting. The best-kept secret of successful leaders is love staying in love with leading, with the people who do the work, with what their organizations produce, and with those who honor the organization by using its work. ~James Kouzes and Barry Posner
Organizations exist to serve. Period. Leaders live to serve. Period. ~Tom Peters
…urges people to heed their better angels in finding meaning and purpose in their work that extends beyond status and money.
Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good. ~Minor Myers
…leads from values and beliefs, not behaviors, in serving the greater good as well as immediate business and personnel needs.
My values, our values, aren’t about pointing fingers. They are about offering a helping hand. ~Kathleen Blanco
Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.
~Gandhi
…is consistent, responsible, and responsive in times of calm or times of chaos.
When we aren’t curious in conversations we judge, tell, blame and even shame, often without even knowing it, which leads to conflict. ~Kirsten Siggins
…values service, not status, and stays in touch with employees at all levels of the organization.
The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things. ~Ronald Reagan
There is no investment you can make which will pay you so well as the effort to scatter sunshine and good cheer through your establishment. ~Orison Swett Marden
…balances independence and interdependence. Alternates between “we” and “me” standpoints. Also tells the truth no matter how uncomfortable it is and does so with grace.
The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born-that there is a genetic factor to leadership. This myth asserts that people simply either have certain charismatic qualities or not. That’s nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true. Leaders are made rather than born. ~Warren Bennis
Good leaders build products. Great leaders build cultures. Good leaders deliver results. Great leaders develop people. Good leaders have vision. Great leaders have values. Good leaders are role models at work. Great leaders are role models in life. ~Adam Grant
…is comfortable leading from the front as well as from behind, understanding that the ability to flex to the situation is strength, not weakness.
A leader…is like a shepherd. He stays behind the flock, letting the most nimble go out ahead, whereupon the others follow, and realizing that all along they are being directed from behind. ~Nelson Mandela
…encourages diversity of thought, opinion, perspective, and experience. (My grandfather used to say that if someone thought exactly like he did, he didn’t need them on this team. He wanted people who brought new ideas and different outlooks. The older I get, the more I appreciate how fortunate I was to have this influence early in my life.)
Strength lies in differences, not in similarities. ~Stephen Covey.
One thing is clear to me: We, as human beings, must be willing to accept people who are different from ourselves. ~Barbara Jordan
…stops stereotypes in their tracks and manages bias to mitigate its harmful impacts.
Nowadays silence is looked on as odd and most of my race has forgotten the beauty of meaning much by saying little. Now tongues work all day by themselves with no help from the mind. ~Toni Morrison
…acknowledges the need to occasionally deal with the superficial and its optics while never losing sight of the depth of issues.
The true mark of a leader is the willingness to stick with a bold course of action — an unconventional business strategy, a unique product-development roadmap, a controversial marketing campaign — even as the rest of the world wonders why you’re not marching in step with the status quo. In other words, real leaders are happy to zig while others zag. They understand that in an era of hyper-competition and non-stop disruption, the only way to stand out from the crowd is to stand for something special. ~Bill Taylor
…knows when to think first and talk later. Knows as well the value of sometimes not talking at all, choosing to listen instead.
You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view. ~Harper Lee
Ready to be a leader who shines?
Image credit before quote added: Pixabay
by Jane Perdue | Leadership
What a great discussion question for the book club group: with what skill would you imbue all leaders for success and why?
My answer? The ability to not destroy curiosity.
While many CEO’s say curiosity is a necessary leadership skill, my experience has been that most organizations work overtime, covertly and inadvertently, to stamp out curiosity.
Common ways that leaders kill curiosity
They want efficiency.
Responding to the person who wants to know “why” and “have we thought about…” takes time. Time is a resource in chronically short supply, and leaders are rewarded for meeting deadlines, not for sponsoring curiosity. Which means the curious person who wants knowledge beyond what they know generally gets a reputation as being a time-waster, “Don’t let Tom be on your team. He wastes time by asking too many questions.”
They want fast decision-making.
Time is money, and money means success. Which means that bosses have preferred methods for making decisions…fast. Given time and performance pressures, they aren’t interested in the curious person who want to review the situation and determine if an ad hoc or process-based approach is best, if action or caution is most prudent, if information should be gathered narrowly or widely, if corporate interests or personal interests should prevail, or if the matter is one of continuity or change.
They don’t want a troublemaker on their team.
Too often, those who are curious are labeled as rebels. Output-oriented and bottom line focused bosses want employees who go by the book, not ones who want to rewrite the book. Google “how should leaders handle a troublemaker.” When I did, 1,150,000 results popped up. Curious people sometimes violate social norms with their questions and non-conforming behavior, so they make co-workers and bosses who like going by the book uncomfortable.
They like conformity.
I call this the vending machine approach to leadership. Someone asks a boss a question (that’s inserting the coins), out pops the correct answer (that’s getting the candy bar or bag of chips), and the employee takes the offering without question or pushback. No fuss, no muss, and so efficient which may be why a Harris Poll found that 60% of respondents said their workplace throws up barriers to integrating curiosity into their work.
They want to minimize uncertainty.
Curious people are intrigued by novelty. Novelty means the unknown. Dealing with the unknown sits outside the comfort zone of most people and organizations. “Stay in your lane” or “color within the lines” are common pieces of performance advice offered to the curious ones wanting to try something new.
They want people to get on board asap and be team players.
“Because of their preference for new information, curious people are less likely to prematurely commit to initial ideas and perspectives.” That’s not likely to endear them to many bosses. Bosses want employees to fit the mold, and curious ones often don’t.
Is your company on an innovation kick and disappointed in the lack of ideas and creativity employees are generating?
If so, look at the behaviors for which employees have been rewarded—fast, shallow, short-term decision-making; going by the book; fitting in; and the like. Therein may lie your answer as to where all the curiosity, wonder, and creativity went.
Image source before quote added: Pixabay
by Otto Scharmer | Leadership
The following is an excerpt from The Essentials of Theory U
I grew up on an 800-year-old farm near Hamburg.
Sixty years ago, my parents decided to abandon conventional industrial farming techniques (using pesticides, herbicides, and chemical fertilizers) and replace them with organic methods (focusing instead on cultivating the living eco-system of the farm). Every Sunday my parents took me, my sister, and my two brothers on a Feldgang—a field walk—across the fields on our farm.
Once in a while my father would stop, bend over, and pick up a clump of soil from a furrow so that we could learn to recognize its different types and structures. The quality of the soil, he explained, depended on a whole host of living entities—millions of organisms living in every cubic centimeter of the soil—whose work is necessary for the earth to breathe and to evolve as a living organism.
Just as we did on those field walks of my youth, this book will take you on a similar journey where every now and then we stop and examine a case story or a piece of data that helps us understand the deeper structures of the “social field.”
And just as the organic farmer depends completely on the living quality of the soil, social pioneers depend on the living quality of the social field. I define social field as the quality of relationships that give rise to patterns of thinking, conversing, and organizing, which in turn produce practical results.
And just as the farmer cannot “drive” a plant to grow faster, a leader or change maker in an organization or a community cannot force practical results. Instead, attention must be focused on improving the quality of the soil.
What is the quality of the social soil?
It is the quality of relationships among individuals, teams, and institutions that give rise to collective behavior and practical results.
Looking back, I realize that my journey over the past four decades has been one of cultivating social fields. My parents cultivated the fields on the farm. My colleagues and I cultivate social fields.
And if you happen to be a manager, educator, entrepreneur, social entrepreneur, performing artist, health professional, parent, or movement builder, that is probably your work, too.
The deeper experiences and levels of the social field, described here, are familiar to everyone who is engaged in creating movements, startups or profound change. In my own case, I first got involved with the environmental, green, antinuclear, and peace movements of the late 1970s and 1980s, and later in launching the Presencing Institute as a new type of global social enterprise. At this point I just want to draw your attention to the fact that none of these experiences are unique or extraordinary.
On the contrary, they are actually quite ordinary. Many people have them. And yes, they do take you “out of the box,” like the fire experience took me out of my physical body for a moment or two.
And yet many of us have these experiences a lot more often than we realize at first sight.
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About today’s contributor: Otto Scharmer is a Senior Lecturer at MIT and co-founder of the Presencing Institute. He chairs the MIT IDEAS program for cross-sector innovation that helps leaders from business, government, and civil society to innovate at the level of the whole system. He is the author of Theory U (translated into 20 languages) and co-author of Leading from the Emerging Future, which outlines eight acupuncture points of transforming capitalism. His latest book, The Essentials of Theory U: Core Principles and Applications, illuminates the blind spot in leadership today and offers hands-on methods to help change makers overcome it through the process, principles, and practices of Theory U.
