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Ron Potter

BlogCulture

Mental Models – Part II

by Ron Potter

Because the first blog on Mental Models was running long, I decided to break it into Part I and Part II.

We’ll finish up the concept in this blog with:

  • Inversion
  • Occam’s Razor
  • Hanlon’s Razor and a final meaningful topic
  • So What?

Inversion

In general, the inversion model is a tool to improve our thinking.  It simply means to turn our thinking upside down.  Approach the problem in reverse order.  Most of us move forward through a problem.  Inversion indicates that we should work the problem backward.  I’m also going to suggest that it can be particularly powerful to start with an end that we wouldn’t normally expect.  Or start with the conclusion that was suggested by someone that you would never have thought of or may even think it is the wrong conclusion.  However, starting with that end in mind and working back through the problem may reveal a perspective or mental model that you have never thought of or used before.

Occam’s Razor

The powerful point of Occam’s Razor is that simple solutions are more likely than complicated ones.  The fewer moving parts the better.

Hanlon’s Razor

Simply put, Hanlon’s Razor says that we should assume ignorance rather than malice.  Another way of putting this one is to assume the right explanation is the one that contains the least amount of intent.  Our human antenna picks up quickly if we think someone is making an argument simply because they have an agenda (or intent).  The least amount of malice and intent will often lead to the best solution.

So What?

I can hear many of you now saying “Ok Potter, what’s with all this drivel about Mental Models anyway?  You’ve wasted two blogs going on about something that is interesting to you but has been boring trivia to me.  So, what’s your point?”

Emotional Quotient

My answer goes back to a blog a wrote a couple of weeks ago titled Success. In that blog it was noted that there is no correlation between success and IQ but there is correlation between Success and EQ.  If you want to be successful, increase your EQ.

High EQ people have a great deal of self-awareness.  I don’t really care if you know what the mental models are or what they mean.  But I really care that you realize there are multiple, legitimate mental models and you can really limit yourself if you are ignorant of which model you use or if you believe the model you use is the only one capable of coming up with the right answer.  This last point can lead to alienation, distrust, and dislike of your teammates.

Be Self-Aware.  It’s the first step of increasing your EQ that will lead to your success.

 

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BlogCulture

Mental Models – Part I

by Ron Potter

Mental Models shape our thinking.  So much so that we can look at the same data or situation as someone else and reach very different conclusions because we each rely on different models.

Mental Models Impact on Emotional Quotient

In the Emotional Quotient blog from last week, one of the pillars is Self-Awareness.  If you’re not self-aware enough to know that you use a particular Mental Model then you end up arguing a point just because the other person is wrong, or stupid, or lacks the ability to see things reasonably.

Mental models are numerous.  I could easily list eighty or more just from the reading I have done. They include

  • General Thinking Concepts
  • Numeracy
  • Systems
  • Physical World
  • Biological World
  • Human Nature and Judgement
  • Microeconomics and Strategy, and
  • Military and War.

Each model will have an average of ten subsets so it can be a little overwhelming.  However, without learning a general outline of the various models, we assume that the model we use is the “correct” one.  Sometimes people assume that the model they use is the “only” one.

Because of the people, environment, and education that we grow up with, the model we use seems very natural to us and we’re often not even aware that our mind filters everything through that model.  Become aware that there are other models!  Understand how they shape thinking and judging.  You will become a more understanding person who develops empathy.  Another one of the Emotional Quotient categories.

General Thinking Concepts

For this blog, we’re going to focus on General Thinking Concepts.  The subset of principles for this mental model include:

  • The Map is Not the Territory
  • Circle of Competence
  • First Principles Thinking
  • Thought Experiment
  • Second-Order Thinking
  • Probabilistic Thinking
    • Inversion
    • Occam’s Razor
    • Hanlon’s Razor

The Map is Not the Territory

Maps are representations.  They are imperfect.  The first ocean explorers had maps that showed the next continent to the east of Europe was India.  Their maps were imperfect!  Perfect maps are so large and bulky, they no longer become useful to carry around, either mentally or physically.  They do point us in the right direction and give us an idea of where we’re headed but they do not help us when reality differs from the map or we need more detail.

Sometimes a map is simply a snapshot of a point in time.  It may no longer represent the current reality.  This is important because much of our mental models were formed in our childhood.  That world may no longer exist.  I remember as a child coming home only to find a group of my parent’s friends had “stopped by” and were now making sandwiches and getting something to drink from the refrigerator.  That world no longer exists.

Circle of Competence

Think of three circles.  The smallest inside the middle one.  The middle one inside the largest circle.  The Circle of Competence is easy to think of in this way.

  • Smallest Circle: What you know.
  • Middle Circle: What you think you know (but actually don’t know)
  • Largest Circle:  What you don’t know and you know you don’t know it.

The problem is that our mind tends to blur the boundary between the smallest circle (what you do know) and the middle circle (what you think you know but you don’t).

Believing there is only one mental model to understand the world is what blurs this boundary.  When your mind uses (or believes there is) only one mental model than when someone disagrees, it’s because they’re ignorant or stupid that causes that disagreement.  The thought may never occur to you that they’re simply working from a different mental model.

First Principle Thinking

The real issue here is separating facts from assumptions.  We often reach assumptions of the facts based on our mental models then treat the assumptions as facts.  First Principles is one of the best ways to unravel complicated problems.  By separating facts from assumptions, new assumptions can be reached based on the facts and can lead to great creativity.

Thought Experiment

Thought experiments are used heavily in philosophy and theoretical physics.  Einstein put forth many of his principles of the universe based on Thought Experiments.  He wasn’t actually there to observe his theory at work, it was a theory entirely within his head.  This opens up new approaches to inquiry and exploration.  What may seem impossible based on our mental model becomes a possibility in thought experimentation.

Second-Order Thinking

I might name this one unintended consequence.  In first-order thinking, it’s easy to see the consequences of our actions.  If I throw this rock at that window, I will see and hear it shatter.

Second-order thinking pushes us to think long-term in order to think through the consequences of our actions.  I believe this is why many of our government actions have so many unintended consequences.  The people putting these regulations in place are usually not thinking beyond the next election cycle.

Having public corporations report quarterly results instills much of the same behavior.

Make decisions based on the long-term.  It often takes a person with a different mental model to see potential consequences.

Probabilistic Thinking

In probabilistic thinking, the goal is to determine the likelihood of a specific outcome.  The accuracy of our decisions is improved if we can more accurately predict potential outcomes.

To Be Continued…

This blog has already become longer than most of the blogs I write.  And I believe our best learning will happen with the ways to improve Probabilistic Thinking.  I’ll leave you with this thought and then continue the Probabilistic Thinking solutions next week.

Thought for the Day

Realize that there are numerous mental models in the world and you have not cornered the market on right thinking by using a model and sticking with it.  You have simply proved that you’re a narrow-minded thinker.

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BlogLeadership

Success

by Ron Potter

From the time we were little, we became aware of IQ.  I first remember becoming aware of it in about the sixth grade.  That means I was ten or eleven.

And right from the start, it became a competition.  If I had a higher IQ than you did, I was headed for greater success in my life.

IQ and Success

However, no correlation has ever been found between IQ and success.  Some with high IQ’s experience no success.  Others with moderate or even below average IQ’s experience high levels of success.  No correlation has ever been found!

So why do we place so much emphasis on IQ?

  • Because there’s a test!
  • It’s easy to measure.
  • It’s easy to demonstrate.
  • It’s easy for others to spot.

All of these can point toward high IQ.  None of them will guarantee success.

EQ

On the other hand, EQ (Emotional Quotient) has been demonstrated as being completely correlated with success.

So if there is so much correlation with EQ and none with IQ, why don’t we hear more about EQ?

  • It’s the “soft” skill.
  • It’s difficult or even impossible to measure.
  • It’s easy to demonstrate.
  • It’s easy for others to spot.

Notice that the last two are the same as IQ.  They’re both easy to demonstrate and spot.

EQ is hard to measure but it’s easy to spot.  The question is, how does it look different than IQ?

Let’s take a look at what are considered the elements of EQ.

One of the early books was written by Daniel Goleman titled Emotional Intelligence.  Since that initial book, written in 2009, something approaching thirty books have been written on the subject.

Let’s take a quick look at the elements identified in that initial book.

  • Self Awareness
  • Self-Regulation
  • Motivation
  • Empathy
  • Social Skills

Self Awareness

The ability to know one’s emotions: strengths, weaknesses, drives, values, and goals and recognize their impact on others while using gut feelings to guide decisions.

This element of self-awareness is listed first among the five.  I believe it gets that rank because of it’s dependency on many of the other elements and requires the trait of humility which is listed as the first element of great leadership in my book “Trust Me”.

Strengths and weaknesses are also dependent on feedback from others.  The Johari Window describes this map.  Your strengths and weaknesses usually fall in “The Blind Self” window.  This window contains things you don’t know about yourself but others do know about you.  The only way to “open” that window is to ask for, listen to, and honestly process feedback from others.

Self Regulation

Involves controlling or redirecting one’s disruptive emotions and impulses and adapting to changing circumstances.

What are the disruptive emotions?  Let’s start with the ancient “Seven Deadly Sins”.  Broadly speaking, the seven deadly sins function as ethical guidelines.  The seven deadly sins include:

Pride, Envy, Gluttony, Lust, Anger, Greed, and Sloth

It may be better to think about the counter to each of those words

  • Humility – Pride
  • Kindness – Envy
  • Temperance – Gluttony
  • Chastity – Lust
  • Patience – Anger
  • Charity – Greed
  • Diligence – Sloth

Motivation

Being driven to achieve for the sake of achievement.

Many people make it to the top of the organization because they are hyper-competitive.  Being motivated towards a great goal appeals to people much more than being competitive or beating someone.

I worked with a sales manager that may have been the most competitive person I ever met.  He won everything!  At first, the corporation thought this guy was superman.  But then the clients started to leave and go elsewhere.  When I talked with the clients they said, “This guy has a need to win everything.  We may have just given in to the greatest of demands but that’s not enough for him.  He has to win even the smallest of issues!  We’re going elsewhere.  He has destroyed our relationship.”

Empathy

Considering other people’s feelings especially when making decisions.

There’s a scene in the movie “You’ve got mail” between Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.  Tom Hanks’s character owns a large bookstore and he’s just put Meg Ryan’s character out of business at her small, neighborhood bookstore.  When Meg finds out who he is, she goes ballistic.  In the middle of the rant, Tom moves back a few steps, puts up his hands, and says “It was only business.”  What he’s saying here is that business is by the numbers only.  It’s never about emotions.  Wrong!

Every time I’ve coached a leadership team to consider the emotions involved in a decision, not just the numbers, they’ve made a better decision.  Empathy is good for business.

Social Skills

Managing relationships to move people in the desired direction.

This is not about manipulation.  The human mind can detect manipulation quickly.  This is about getting buy-in.  This is about people wanting to go to the destination that you’re talking about.  People don’t buy ideas or concepts based on logic.  They buy things based on emotion.  They justify the purchase based on logic.

Years ago we were purchasing a small basic car for my wife for local transportation.  While they were bringing a car to the front for her to look at, the salesperson and I were drooling over a corvette in the showroom.  My wife finally said “I see no logical reason to buy a corvette.  After a few seconds of blank stares, we both said “What’s your point.  NO ONE buys a corvette for logical reasons.  They’re all purchased based on emotions!”

Marketing people learned this a long time ago.   Our purchases are based on emotions, not logic.  Even ideas.  We don’t buy into an idea unless it captures us emotionally.

EQ vs IQ

To improve your IQ, read.  To improve your EQ, build relationships, know who you are, where you’re going, and get people emotionally excited to join you in your journey.

 

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BlogLeadership

Increasing Skills Doesn’t Make a Good Leader

by Ron Potter

The thought behind this blog was from an article on Entrepreneur.com.  Here is the list they developed as they talked about increasing leadership skills.  I agree with the list but the short paragraph after each one is based on my learning and experiences.

Trust is not automatic

Many leaders believe they are leaders because of their position or accomplishments.  Neither one makes you a good leader.  In fact, many people in the position of power on the corporate ladder are there because of their accomplishments.  For the most part, corporations aren’t very good at measuring leadership skills, but they’re very good at measuring accomplishments.  Accomplishments are seen and identified and can be checked off on a spreadsheet.  Leadership is a long-term game.  The rewards of great leadership may be seen in the short term, but will really happen over the long-term.

Kindness is underrated

The article identifies this as conscious kindness.  It shows or demonstrates how members of the team should treat each other.  I would also suggest that it goes beyond team members.  This can make a huge difference with customer-facing people.  Kindness sets a cultural standard that can be seen and experienced throughout the corporation.

I was playing golf with a group of friends and we were visiting a new course for the first time.  Our experience can be summed up as rudeness.  The clerk behind the counter was rude.  The starter was rude.  The rangers were rude.  We found out later that the course had been built by a wealthy person who considered it his private course and outside players were considered as intrusions.  The course is no longer in existence.

A word of caution.  Many people view kindness as never saying a “disparaging” word.  There is an old song titled Home on the Range recorded by many artists including John Denver, the muppets, and others.  Two lines of the lyrics are

Where seldom is heard a discouraging word
And the skies are not cloudy all day

Having uncloudy skies all day can be wonderful but will also create many long term problems.  Rain is often needed.  Seldom hearing a discouraging word can also be wonderful but will also create long-term problems.  Honest criticism is often needed.  The interesting part is that criticism can be done in a very kind way with some practice.

I once worked with a leader who was certainly the “non-discouraging” type.  He was one of the kindest people I had ever met.  But his team would say to me, “I just wish I knew where I stand!”  When I asked for an explanation, they would say, “Our leader is so nice that I never hear one word of criticism.  That can’t be realistic.  “I just wish I knew where I stand.”

Be kind in your honesty.

Words are meaningless

Over the last several years I’ve been asked what I think of one President or another.  After figuring how to answer that question with kind honesty, I settled on the following approach.

I always say:  Watch what he does rather than listen to what he says.  This is another way of stating the old adage, “Action speaks louder than words.”

Again, some personal experience with another leader.  She would always say what she thought the recipient wanted to hear, regardless of what actions she would later take.  She thought it was kindness.  The people who worked for her saw it as a reason not to trust what she said.

Status quo is safe

IBM has lost much of the luster that it once had.  But during the years when I was dealing with IT departments, there was a saying that “Purchasing IBM equipment is always safe.”  Meaning that they could tell their leader that they had purchased IBM and the leaders would assume the best decision had been made.  Or at the very minimum, they would not criticize or fire the IT person for making the IBM decision.  It was safe!  It just wasn’t very innovative.

Power trips happen

As a father, I never wanted to resort to the words “Because I said so!” with my children.  Unfortunately, I can’t tell you how many times I violated that goal.  Power trips do happen, but in my book “Trust Me” the number one trait of trusted leaders is humility.  People know if it was a momentary power trip or a built-in trait.  Avoid power trips if you can.  Honestly apologize if they do happen.

Not everyone stays

One CEO I worked with said, “So you’ll show me who to fire from my current team?”  My answer was NO.  If you turn into a trustworthy leader, change the team and culture to match, people will self-select out.  People who don’t want to make the effort to follow the guidelines identified above, won’t stay.  They will seek an environment that allows them to ignore the guidelines above.

Look at each of the guidelines above.  How are you doing?  Each one takes discipline, growth, and a true belief that these traits will make a wonderful leader.

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BlogCulture

High Tech – High Touch

by Ron Potter

Those words keep haunting me.  They are the four words I remember from the book Future Shock.  The book was written by Alvin Toffler in 1970.  That’s 50 years ago!

Description

Wikipedia says that

Alvin Toffler argued that society is undergoing an enormous structural change, a revolution from an industrial society to a “super-industrial society”. This change overwhelms people. He argues that the accelerated rate of technological and social change leaves people disconnected and suffering from “shattering stress and disorientation”—future shocked.

Stress and Disorientation

I am familiar with these feelings.  I wrote about them recently in my blog titled “Divided” where I talked about being confused, hurting, and even angry.  I love this country and love the people in this country.  But I am feeling stress and I’m definitely disoriented.

Virtual World

Covid-19 is contributing to this stress and disorientation.  By all predictions, more than half of employees indicate that they would like to stay in the virtually connected world, rather than go back to the office.  I believe that many corporate leaders are salivating at the cost savings of shedding their physical office space by allowing everyone to continue in the virtual world of video connection, they just don’t know the real costs.

High Tech, High Touch

Toffler was emphasizing one point with these words.  You can have all the high tech you want, but without high touch, it won’t work well.  In this day of division, with many taking “sides”, what can we do to help this situation?   The answer is also in the four words: High Tech, High Touch.

Without building personal, “high touch” relationships, we don’t have a chance of solving this issue.

Virtual World Better

So, if we’re going to be in this virtual world for some time to come, how do we solve the “High Touch” issue.  Unfortunately, I don’t think we do completely.   But with some additional High Tech we can at least get focused on the issue and help people connect and build relationships if they’re willing.

I’ve been working with a group of consultants (High Touch) and technical people (High Tech) over the last couple of years in anticipation of this virtual world happening.  Even without Covid-19 impacting the world, I was seeing more and more geographically separated people working together on teams.  Through this effort, we have created a platform we call GPS4Leaders.  It’s made up of four modules:  Interact, GPS4Teams, GPS4Leaders and GPS4Culture.  We might refer to it as iTLC.

Here is a short video about the iT of iTLC.

We have designed the GPS4 modules to help virtual teams.  It can help in the following ways:

  • Identify the makeup of the team from a personality type.  Built into the system are three assessments based on Social Styles, Competing Values, and a partial Myers-Briggs.  If there is discord on the team or the teams lack the ability to make decisions, the Interact Module can help.
  • GPS4Teams will also help the team to determine where they are now and how they get to the needed future state of a highly functioning team.  This happens through team assessment and pulse surveys.
  • GPS4Teams also identifies disagreements.  While protecting individual member scores, it will show if there is Diffusion, Polarization, or an Outlier.

The best that can happen in this virtual world is to help teams focus and spend time developing understanding and relationships between members.

Reach for the Best

It’s going to be difficult to create the relationships that are required for high functioning teams.  Using the tools available can help focus the need for building these relationships.  But, it’s going to be up to the team leaders and team members to use technology to help build high functioning teams.  It looks like the only thing we’re going to have as the world changes.

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BlogTeam

Overused Teamwork

by Ron Potter

Team Leadership Culture: Teams first.  I’m a big fan of teamwork.  However, when it creates an overcommitted organization and conflicting priorities it is counterproductive.

The foundation of this post was inspired by a Harvard Business Review article, The OverCommitted Organization, written by Heidi K. Gardner and Mark Mortensen.

The Overcommitted Organization

In the article, they talk about the dysfunction that can happen when people are assigned to too many teams at the same time.  They break it down to the following pros and cons:

PROS: By assigning people to multiple teams at once, organizations make efficient use of time and brainpower. They also do a better job of solving complex problems and sharing knowledge across groups.

CONS: Competing priorities and other conflicts can make it hard for teams with overlapping membership to stay on track. Group cohesion often suffers. And people who belong to many teams at once may experience burnout, which hurts engagement and performance.

Increased Pros or decreased Cons

So now we face the question: Is it worth increasing the PROS at the expense of decreasing the CONS?

My answer is a clear NO!  Look in more detail at the expense of the CONS.

  • Difficult to stay on track.
    We have looked at the cost of distraction many times in this blog.  Our social media and instant communication can and will negatively affect productivity.
    In fact, we can become so distracted on a regular basis that it reduces the brain’s ability to concentrate and think deeply.  These are two features that we need more today than ever!
  • Group cohesion often suffers.
    Without group cohesion, there is no team!  Teams that tell each other the truth with respect and fully commit to team goals (regardless of personal or department goals) is at the core of great organizations.  Group cohesion is essential!
  • Burnout.
    People who experience burnout experience reduced energy, brainpower, commitment, drive, and many other aspects that make them top performers and good team members.  Avoid burnout!

PROS

In my mind and experience, the list of pros is actually cons.

  • Efficient use of time
    It’s been proven that the only people capable of multi-tasking are highly trained fighter pilots.  And even these highly trained individuals are not capable of transferring the multi-tasking beyond the cockpit when their life depends upon it.
  • Brainpower
    It’s also been proven that teams function better when multiple brains are open about a problem or situation.  However, using “one” brain across multiple teams does not increase multiple team’s “brainpower.”
  • Solving Complex Problems
    Complex problems are solved with deep thinking and moving in and out of team subgroups.  Complex problems are not solved by having one brain on many teams.  In fact that leads to burnout and reduces the ability to solve complex problems.

The Overcommitted Organization

Don’t misunderstand, I’m not opposing what Gardner and Mortensen are stating in their article.  In fact, they use experience and solid research to prove their points.  And, they reach the same conclusion that I did.

One paragraph right near the middle of their article says

Launch the team well to establish trust and familiarity. When fully dedicated to one team, people learn about their teammates’ outside lives—family, hobbies, life events, and the like.  More important, it forges strong bonds and interpersonal trust, which team members need in order to seek and offer constructive feedback, introduces one another to valuable network connections, and rely on one another’s technical expertise. (Italics are mine)

This is a powerful conclusion that reinforces everything I have learned and experienced.  Teams that establish trust and have an environment of constructive feedback are the most beneficial.

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BlogTeam

Divided

by Ron Potter

I hesitated to use the word Racism in the title of this blog.  Many would say there is no way I could understand because I’m a gray-haired white male.  I’m sure there is some truth to that statement.  But, I was a young adult, going to college and living in southern Michigan when the Detroit riots occurred in the late sixties.  Those riots left me confused, hurting, and even angry.  I wasn’t sure what I should do.

Pastor of local Black Church

When the riots hit the city where I now live, many of those same feelings of confusion, hurting, and not knowing what to do surfaced again.  Turning into a gray-haired, old white male didn’t seem to help much.

Then I had an opportunity to listen to a teaching pastor at a local black church.  I really wanted to learn from what he had to say.  I found it interesting that he was “struggling, frustrated, angry, and hurting.”  He was not gray-haired or white but he expressed the same feelings I had been experiencing.

Five things that will help

It turns out that the scripture passage we were studying was about being peaceable.  When the local pastor was asked what it took to be Peaceable he gave a well thought out and knowledgable answer.

  1. Slow to Judge
  2. Quick to Listen
  3. Eager to learn
  4. Willing to identify
  5. Ready to speak up and act.

Slow to Judge

In today’s social media, internet-based, global world, it’s very easy to judge and too many people judge too quickly.  Maybe it’s a liberal or conservative making the statement and instead of listening what is said, people instantly write it off because it was said by the “other side”.

Maybe it’s a statement made by a European or Asian and people in the US judge it quickly as meaningless because they “don’t understand” how things work in the US.

The list would be too long to identify all of the times we’re quick to judge.  When you’re quick to judge, you leave no room for learning.

Quick to Listen

Do you listen with the intent to respond?  Or do you listen with the intent to understand?  Most of us, most of the time are listening with the intent to respond.  While the other person is talking (or shouting) we’re keeping track of each point made and creating our “checklist” of either reinforcing or countering the point being made.

How does that make the other person feel?

  • You’re not listening.
  • You’re stupid (or at least ignorant).
  • You want to win the argument which makes me want to say it louder and more forcefully.
  • The louder voice “wins.”

But, how does the other person feel if you demonstrate your desire to understand?

  • You’re truly interested in what they have to say.
  • You’re trying to expand your knowledge base to understand where they’re coming from
  • You’re not trying to win a shouting match.
  • Maybe we can reach a mutual understanding because they now may want to know what you have to say.

Eager to Learn

Socrates believed that knowledge was the ultimate virtue, best used to help people improve their lives. “The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance,”

Notice that Socrates said knowledge helped improve lives.  Ignorance is (not stupidity) is the lack of knowledge.  Why do some people remain Ignorant?  They refuse to learn.

Each person is coming from a perspective that is real and “true” to them.  For instance, I grew up in a small town.  But in my adult years, my business took me all over the world.  That changed my perspective.  I now saw the world differently than my friends and family who remained in that small town.

That doesn’t make it wrong, it just gives them a different perspective.  The best way to develop relationships and understanding is to understand someone’s perspective.  This requires the first two elements, Slow to Judge, and Quick to Listen.

Psychology tells us that cognitive dissonance is the mental stress or discomfort experienced by an individual who holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values at the same time, or is confronted by new information that conflicts with existing beliefs, ideas, or values.

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous quote says “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.”

The world is full of opposing ideas and perspectives.  Don’t hold on to yours to the point of stress and discomfort.  Learn!

Willing to Identify

In my mind, this may be the most difficult.  Not because we don’t want to identify with the other person but because our perspectives become so strong in our lives.  I don’t have the same experiences as someone else.  They also don’t have the same experiences that I have.  We can identify by hearing their story, listening to their experiences, and finally relating it to some experience we’ve had.  Then we begin to identify.

Don’t take the position that “You just don’t understand!  You haven’t had the experiences I have!”  That’s true.  I haven’t had the experiences you’ve had.  But I’ve had good and bad experiences.  And I can empathize with what you’re experiencing.  It’s how we grow together.

Ready to Speak up and Act

There are a lot of forces in our lives that tell us to just be quiet.  It actually starts in elementary school.  The teacher often told us to sit down and be quiet.

We’ve also been told by people (with different perspectives) that our ideas and words are stupid.  So we sit quietly because we don’t want to look stupid.

In today’s world of social media, we can quickly be criticized for our thoughts and ideas.  In this anonymous and divided world, it can quickly be labeled as hate language.  There is a fear of being labeled for our thoughts.

I experienced it writing this blog.  What if I push a wrong button and it is all of a sudden seen as hateful rather than helpful.  I just want to speak up in an effort to help.  But I have this fear of pushing the wrong button.  One I’m not even aware of.

And what about unconscious bias?  We hear that phrase a lot today.  And people are being accused of having unconscious bias as if it’s a flaw.  But what do the words mean?  Unconscious: the part of the mind which is inaccessible to the conscious mind.  It’s inaccessible!  It’s ignorance, not stupidity.

I’ve chosen through the years to keep this blog focused on building team, leadership, and corporate cultures.  I didn’t want to venture into politics, religion, or racism because of this fear of being misunderstood.  But the pastor’s five steps ends with “Be ready to speak up and act.”

I don’t’ know if he intended to put them in order but I do suggest that we don’t speak up until we’ve progressed openly through the first four steps.

Teams

And just to get back to more familiar ground, these five steps also help grow great teams.

  1. Slow to Judge
  2. Quick to Listen
  3. Eager to learn
  4. Willing to identify
  5. Ready to speak up and act.

Learn and practice the five steps to address division.  They help us become better people and build better teams.

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Realistic Optimism

by Ron Potter

A bit ago, we talked about being a winner or loser vs being lucky or unlucky.  This post continues with that as a backdrop.

Heidi Grant Halvorson has written many worthwhile books.  She says “To be successful, you need to understand that vital difference between believing you will succeed and believing you will succeed easily.”

Succeeding Easily doesn’t happen

It’s a little bit like the unlucky vs losing that we discussed earlier.  Someone was questioning me once about my shifting career choices through the years.  I starting in Engineering, did a software start-up after seeing my first PC, then moved on to my real love which was consulting teams, and leaders.

The person was questioning me for advice about how they could make a similar shift in their life/career.  While I only had my own experience to share I was willing to talk with them about making a shift.   Partway through the conversation, they said, “Yea, but it’s easy for you.”  I was speechless.  I didn’t even know how to respond to that way of thinking.  Inwardly I was thinking, “What about that sounded easy to you?  Every one of these changes has been hard, costly, and took a great deal of sacrifice.”  If you think this is easy, you’re from another planet!

Grit

Heidi Grant Halvorson, in her book Nine Things Successful People Do Differently covers a few things that the lucky/unlucky thinkers don’t get.

Be a realistic optimist is one of her points.  While she applauds optimism, she also says “don’t underestimate how difficult it will be to reach your goal”  It’s not luck.  It’s not easy.  It’s difficult!

Another of her nine things is grit.  “Grit is a willingness to commit to long-term goals, and to persist in the face of difficulty.”  Notice that word difficult again.  None of this is easy.  Be an optimist but don’t think success comes easily.

Optimism

The following comment was made about Warren Buffet, “Your success didn’t create your optimism.  Your optimism led to your success.”  A lot of people will say that it’s easy to be an optimist when you’ve succeeded, reached your goal, made lots of money.  They have it backward.  Success doesn’t lead to optimism.  Optimism leads to success.

Optimism in the face of overwhelming odds

Ray Dalio is a self-made billionaire who heads up his own hedge fund.  While Ray is quick to acknowledge and even morn the devastating human toll of the COVID-19 virus, he also says it represents an exciting turning point in history.  Please understand that Ray is taken back and shaken by the effects of the virus.  But along with that, he expresses optimism about this being a possible turning point in history.

Life is difficult.

Nowhere is it proclaimed that life is easy.  If you believe that life should be easy or is easy for everyone but you, that’s when it gets really difficult.

Do yourself a favor.  Take some time, figure out what will bring you the greatest enjoyment in your work and life, and start making realistic decisions to move in that direction.  If you’re like me, it may take ten years to accomplish the shift.  It’s not easy.  It doesn’t happen without effort and setbacks.  But if you stick with it you’ll be rewarded.

I was often asked the question, “When will you retire?”  Inwardly I really didn’t understand the question.  Outwardly I would say “I retired years ago.”  The person would then point out that I still spent time with clients, reading, preparing, and a list of other things that helped me be of value to my clients.  They assumed that was work.  But it wasn’t work!  It was rewarding.  It was energizing.  It was fun.  I wasn’t working, I was having a great time providing value to my clients.

Figure out what will really make you happy in life (it’s not money).  Make a decision.  Head in that direction.  Keep your optimism in the face of difficulties.  Only then will you be rewarded in a way that is meaningful to you.

I’m pulling for you!

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Manage people like Money?

by Ron Potter

An Harvard Business Review article was titled “What If Companies Managed People as Carefully as They Manage Money?”

I like the idea because most companies focus a lot of their effort on how they manage money, projects, profitability, and skillsets.

I don’t like the idea because I don’t think we should manage people (It puts them in the same category as the money, projects, profitability, etc.)  We should be leading people, not managing them.

IPO Preparation

One of my consulting clients was a high-tech firm that had decided to do an Initial Public Offering (IPO).  This means they were moving from a privately held firm to a publicly held firm with shareholders.

They needed to convince investors to put some of their hard-earned money into the new firm, assuming it would generate a reasonable return.

Investment Bankers

There is a sub-set of the banking industry (Investment Bankers) that is solely focused on IPO’s.  Once the Investment Bankers were chosen, the company put themselves in the banker’s hands in an effort to generate early and adequate investment.

So what did these bankers focus on?

The finances? No!
The quality of the leadership?  No!
The competition?  No!

These Investment Bankers focused on the “story.”  What was the story of the company?  What did the story tell the potential investor about the future?  Was the story compelling enough that people would actually depart with their money and invest with the company?

IPO Preparation

The Investment Bankers sent in a team of presenting coaches to help the CEO and CFO prepare to meet potential investors.

For weeks they concentrated on the story.  Was it complete?  Was it compelling?  Did it explain all the required changes and growth for the company?  Would people be willing to invest in this company?

Roadshow

All of this was to prepare these two top officers for the “roadshow.”  Over the next several weeks they would move from city to city, meet with a small group of investors and hopefully, capture their hearts and minds enough that the Investment Bankers were able to obtain commitments to invest.

Then the Investment Bankers made a statement that made me sit up and take notice.

You have 30 minutes

They told the CEO and CFO that if they didn’t capture the hearts and minds of the potential investors in 30 minutes, they were lost for forever.

30 minutes!  They had 30 minutes to get people to invest their money.  If it wasn’t compelling enough in the first 30 minutes, they didn’t have a second chance.  They would be lost forever.

Invest more than Dollars

Then I began to think about the employees.  What are we asking them to invest?

Money?  In a sense yes.
Time?  Yes.  Be here on a regular basis.  Be willing to cover any shift.  Be willing to work overtime when necessary.
Effort?  Be the best.  Go the extra mile.  Work hard and harder.
Brain?  Be quick.  Be innovative.  Be smarter than the competition.

Invest More

In short, invest more than just dollars.  Much more!

If we were willing to build a complete and compelling story about the future of the company for someone who will invest just their dollars, why are we not willing to generate even a better message for those willing to invest a lot more than just their dollars?

Investor not Asset

We often hear CEO’s and other top executives speak of employees as their most valuable asset.

I have assets.  My computer is an asset.  I’m willing to upgrade it, add more memory or space, install a new operating system.  But at some point I say enough-is-enough and I purchase a new computer.

Do we really want to think of employees as an asset?

But, if you think about them as an investor, then you need to be willing to give them your best.  You must have a compelling explanation of the future and how you’re going the get there.  If you can’t express that clear, well thought out future, why would employees be willing to invest their time, effort, and intellect?

Think of your employees as investors, not assets!

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Are you happy with your career?

by Ron Potter

During this time of lock-down when we have the opportunity for some deep thoughts, now may be the best time to ask yourself if you’re happy with your career choices or happy in the career you find yourself in.

People can get stuck in jobs that reflect what they’re good at rather than what they’re happy with.

One of the Best

I was working with a client that was very good at what they were doing.  They worked in the finance department and were constantly noticed by bosses and peers as one of the best.  Because of this deserved reputation, they had been promoted on a regular basis and were making a salary that was beyond what they dreamed they would be making at this point in their career.

We were having a one-on-one session when they said something almost shocking.  “I hate what I’m doing!”  They knew they had been treated fairly, were compensated well for what they did, and even experienced satisfaction when they accomplished the tasks that were expected of them.  But this is not what they wanted to be doing!  Given their preference they would be much happier working with people instead of numbers.  They wished that had made different career choices earlier.  Now they felt trapped by the position and salary.

One Career may not last

I worked in three very different industries—engineering/construction, computers, consulting—over my career.  I enjoyed working in each of the three but found myself searching for something new and different in each assignment.  When I got to the point where I needed to change, I often found that I had been working toward the new industry for about ten years.  At that point, it was a matter of pulling the trigger to move on.  I don’t want to give the idea that any of those changes were easy.  I’ve gone broke a couple of times.  I’ve spent several years on the bottom rung of a new position before feeling proficient at what I was doing.  It always impacted my family every time I changed!

But I did it!  It wasn’t easy but I did it.

Adam Kurtz in his book Things are What you Make of Them lists 7 steps you can take to be happier with your career.

  • Don’t look back in anger
  • Check your pulse
  • Do your research
  • Update your skillset
  • Hold yourself accountable
  • Step away and take a moment for yourself
  • Just go for it

Don’t Look Back in Anger

The client I mentioned earlier seemed angry at the career they found themselves “trapped” in.  We all make decisions with the best information we have at the time.  That information may even include personal and family needs; college tuition, aging parents, single provider, debts, etc.  Don’t second guess.  Make the best decision at the time.  Now may or may not be the best time to make a new decision.

Check your Pulse

A high pulse is NOT a good thing.  If your work is providing you with a high pulse on a regular base, make a new decision.

Do Your Research

After I wrote my book Trust Me a family member told me they had read the book.  After thanking them, I asked if it provided any insight.  Their response was “Yes, I quit my job!”  That wasn’t quite what I expected so I asked them what triggered that response.

Reading your book helped me realize that the company I had joined had changed over the years and I hadn’t noticed.  All the aspects of good leadership written about in the book were why I had gone to work for the company in the first place.  But, over the years that had all disappeared and I hadn’t noticed.  I didn’t want to work there anymore.  I wanted to work someplace where I would be happy.

Update Your Skillset

Every position requires a slightly different skillset.  Find out what the new ones are.  Learn about them.  Read.  Educate.  Practice.  Get better.

Hold Yourself Accountable

If you’re not happy with your career, there is only one person responsible.  You!

This goes along with the first piece of advice about not looking back in anger.  You’re responsible.  Make the decision that’s right for you.  Don’t look back.  Especially don’t look back with anger.  It was your decision.  Do you need to make a new one?  As the last point recognizes, make it.

Step Away and Take a Moment for Yourself

This is being forced on us by this lock-down portion of the pandemic we’re dealing with.  Use the time wisely

Just Go for It

I’m not a big Nike fan but just do it.  It means your happiness and likely your health.  If it’s right for you, just go for it.

Go for Happiness

The world tells us to go for the big bucks.  Be in a position of power.  Be seen as possessing the best skill set.  However, if you talk with people (and you should) who are at the end of their career or even approaching the end of their life, they’ll tell you to go for happiness.

When people are approaching the end of their life, their best memories are of the relationships they developed over the years.

When I was recovering from open-heart surgery and subsequent infection a few years ago, different friends would visit me almost every day.  Finally, the day nurse asked if I was part of a large family.  When I said no, she was surprised because she thought that my “brothers” had been visiting me every day.  I explained to her that “yes, they were my brothers” but they were not family.  She was envious.  They all seemed so close and concerned about me, she thought they were family.

Each of my “brothers” had been a part of the different careers.  I had chosen happiness.  It made me happy.

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Open vs Closed Minded

by Ron Potter

Why is it that some people seem to make constant progress in their professional and personal lives, while others appear to be doomed to repeat the same mistakes over and over?

While the answer isn’t cut and dry, I’ve noticed an interesting mindset difference between these two groups: they approach obstacles and challenges very differently. It comes down to mindset.

Successful people tend to approach life with an open mindset — an eagerness to learn and a willingness to be wrong. The other group digs their heels in at the first sign of disagreement and would rather die than be wrong.

—Shane Parrish, Farnam Street Blog

Business journalist and television personality, Suzy Welch talks about two qualities necessary to get ahead:

1. Grit
Inevitably you’re going to receive some tedious assignments. Completing them with a positive attitude, Welch says, is something your boss will notice.

“Grit is getting the job done without complaint,” Welch says, “especially in challenging situations.”

To show grit, don’t give up when the simplest solution isn’t an option. Be creative and show resolve in completing the assignments you’re given. Welch says a boss can identify grit in an employee who demonstrates “perseverance, resolve, creativity, and the ability to just figure it out.”

“Grit is a willingness to commit to long-term goals, and to persist in the face of difficulty.” was the definition given to us in last week’s blog by author, Heidi Grant Halvorson.

2. Gravitas
The second trait, gravitas, is all about presence and the way you carry yourself.

Welch describes this elusive characteristic as a mixture of “seriousness, maturity, thoughtfulness, wisdom” — traits that are tough to fake, and that will lead your boss and colleagues to respect you and give your perspective greater consideration.

You can also cultivate gravitas, Welch says, through the behaviors you avoid, like gossiping, being unprepared for meetings, interrupting others, or improvising important presentations.

Grit

Of the two, grit seems to be the one that can be developed over time.

  • Getting the job done without complaint.
  • Don’t go with the simplest solution.
  • Commit to long-term goals
  • Creativity

The attribute that is more difficult to learn over time is creativity.

Some personality types are more prone to “doing it by the book”.  Others feel that creativity requires coming up with complex and completed solutions that no one has thought of.  Both are wrong!

Creative Types

One exercise I’ve run with teams has been about creativity.  Unbeknownst to the team, I divided them into the personality types that naturally tend to be more by the book and those who tend to be more creative.  I give them the same exercise that requires creativity and measure the results.  The “creative team”

  • Shows the most creativity in the first round.
  • On the second round there may be some creativity but at a much lower scale.
  • By the third round, the “creative’ types are generally out of ideas.

By the book types

This type performs at a much different cadence.

  • In the first round, these types often complain that the creative types somehow “broke” the rules.  Although most of the rules are in their head.
  • In round two, once they realize that the rules are more flexible than they imagined, the come up with a substantial about of creativity.  However, it is usually less creativity than the other team achieved in the first round.
  • By round three, the creativity continues at a pace similar to the last round.
  • And for several subsequent rounds, the pace of creativity continues.

The other issue I see with the “By the Book” types is feeling that a creative solution should be complex and complete.  The best and most creative solutions are simple.

“Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious and adding the meaningful” – John Maeda

Both types are Creative

It’s simply a matter of pace.  Creativity types seem to exhibit the most gain early.  But burn out quickly.

“By the Book” types may demonstrate more creativity over time.  It just takes more time.

Gravitas

Too me this seems to be the trait that’s harder to develop over time.

It’s dependent on the mindset of Creative vs Victim.  I’ve written a few blogs on this concept and it seems to strike a chord with many of my readers.

If you’ve adopted the Victim mindset, there is no way to project Gravitas.  Remember that Welch describes these as “seriousness, maturity, thoughtfulness, wisdom.”  Being a victim projects none of these traits.

If you’re serious about developing this trait of Gravitas, then it requires a trusted, truthful mentor.  This type of mentor tells you the truth, both good and bad.  This type of mentor also helps you get to the root of the victim issue rather than simply adjusting the traits that look like gravitas.

Open vs Closed mindset will make all the difference in your career and life.  Grit and Gavitas: develop them for your own well being.  Others will also notice.

 

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Unlucky Loser

by Ron Potter

Are you a winner or loser or do you consider your lucky or unlucky?

I remember a car commercial from a couple of years ago where a dad was walking his son back to the car after a soccer match.  The father was proudly examining the trophy his son had just earned when he saw the title on the trophy.  The label on the trophy said “Participant.”  The son had just been given a trophy for participating.  Winning or losing made no difference.  Participating was what counted.

Even Video Games

I have a game on my phone and tablet I have used to kill time.  About a year ago I noticed a change in the game.  The game had always declared me as a winner or a loser depending on whether I beat the computer during the game.  But all of a sudden I noticed that it no longer declared me as a “loser” if the computer won.  It declared me as being “unlucky”.  Now I was either a winner or unlucky, not a winner or loser.

How do you view the world?  Do you think of winning and losing or does your mind go to unlucky vs lucky?  I believe this can be critical in how you face the world.

Controlling Luck

The winner/loser thinker doesn’t like to lose.  If they find themselves on the losing end, they will begin to think about how they can work differently, think differently or use a different frame of reference to cope with losing.

Those lucky/unlucky thinkers don’t like to be unlucky either.  But if they are, there doesn’t seem to be much they can do about it.  At least that’s their mindset.  They can’t control luck, they can only be the recipients or victims of luck.

If the lucky/unlucky mindset rules your life than you can only be a victim.  Someone or something beyond yourself is to be blamed or thanked for your plight in life.

One of the more powerful and well-researched instruments in the market place is Life Style Inventory by Human Synergistics.

Passive/Defensive

One of the sections they measure (for individuals, teams, and cultures) is titled Passive/Defensive.  This section includes four styles.  One, in particular, Dependent, speaks to this issue.   Here are the words that Human Synergistics uses to describe the section:

Passive/Defensive styles lead people to subordinate themselves to the organization, stifle creativity and initiative, and allow the organization to stagnate.

Why would a person subordinate themselves to the organization?  It’s easy to understand if you live in the lucky/unlucky framework.  In this world, it’s not your fault, it’s fate, it’s beyond your control.  There’s nothing you can do about it.  You’re just unlucky.

If the winner/loser framework is what rules your life, then you don’t subordinate yourself to the organization.  You’re a creative human being.  You have control.  You can make choices.

Don’t misunderstand, there is absolutely nothing wrong with being a subordinate in a large organization.  People often talk to me about a particular leader or boss that was wonderful.  They have high regard for that person and often the teams they were allowed to work with and be a part of.  The difference is that they felt they were in those positions because of choices they made and the free will they exercised.  They were not victims of being unlucky.

Don’t be a Victim

Being a victim is a terrible way to go through life.  Figure out who you are and where you want to go and be responsible for getting there.  It may not happen overnight.  A person said to me once that they had always viewed me as knowing what I wanted and simply deciding to go that way.  I explained that on average it took me about ten years to be prepared and shaft gears with each major life change.  And, along the way, I won some and lost some.  It was difficult and took a lot of sacrifices.  The person who made that observation was a little taken back.  They assumed that I simply made a decision, made the change, and got on with my new life.

My observation is that neither framework is without difficulties and challenges.  The interesting part to me is while you may face even more difficult situations in the winner/loser framework approach to life, it always leads to a happier life than living in the lucky/unlucky framework.

Be responsible for your own situation.  Don’t blame others or the “roll of the dice” assuming it’s random luckiness that separated people in the end.  It’s actually your framework and outlook on life that makes the difference.

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