Mining the Genius of Inclusion
It might seem obvious that diverse groups are more intelligent than homogeneous groups and numerous studies support this notion. So why do we so regularly turn to our same "go-to" people over and over again? Simple answer, it's more comfortable and because we believe doing so provides more consistent results. The challenge? Consistency isn't always what's needed. A variety of studies indicate that diverse groups actually solve problems better and have better predicative abili
The Virus of Bias: Can it Be Stopped?
We know how dangerous a virus can be. They infect our bodies, our computers, and our communication. Worst of all, viruses are invisible and often nearly impossible to detect before they wreak havoc. That’s the bad news. The good news? You can develop B-ray vision (the super power that enables you to see the virus of bias before it does its damage). First, what is a bias and why is it so dangerous? Actually, before that, let’s expose something. Biases are not all bad. In fact,
A Better Way to Sell
What’s the secret to communicating effectively when you’ve got something to sell? In survival mode, it’s about persuasion, using whatever language and tactics that can best convince your “prospect” to buy. This is a competition model based on scarcity. The ruling assumption is that there’s a finite pie and we’re all fighting for a piece of it; success means getting the biggest piece for ourselves or our company. Harvard researchers and authors W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne
Are You Living Someone Else's Dream?
Why do you do what you do? What drives you? Are you living out your dream or someone else’s? We once had a client we were grooming for his big moment in Nashville. He was an aspiring country singer with a voice that immediately captured the hearts of anyone who heard him. As a result, we’d managed to secure a meeting for a potential record deal for him. This was going to be the start of an amazing path forward—a career that he had previously described as being one of his prim
Do You Over-plan or Act Too Quickly?
How is an effective leader like a skilled movie director? Often, we think of the director as the one who yells, “Action!” . . . that word on a movie set (when everything is ready to go) that launches the actors and crew into creating and capturing the scene. But it takes more than just a command from the director for a scene to play out well. If no preparation has been done, there won't be anything worthwhile to film. And yet, if the director never issues that command, the fi
Who Can You Really Trust?
“I simply can’t trust them,” he said with genuine disappointment in his voice. When delving into the situation more, what this supply chain manager revealed was that the regular supplier of a vital part for his company’s most important product was unreliable. Sometimes they delivered on time. Other times there were significant delays with little communication from them. As we explored the situation further with him, we asked a different question. “You say you can’t trust them
How to Know if They're Truly Committed
Do some people tend to let you down? If you’re like most of us, the answer is, “Yes!” So, how do you know if someone is truly committed? How can you tell if they will actually do what they said they will do? Whether it be in our relationships with friends, family, or those in our work environment, commitment is often a tricky subject because it is tied so directly to responsibility and accountability. And because we too often connect responsibility and accountability to blame
Is Empowerment Merely a Myth?
“You do realize that the popular concept of empowerment is a myth, right?” That’s not what a person usually says to their manager, but the frustrated shift supervisor said it anyway. And her manager was stumped. How should he respond? And what exactly did she mean? So how about you? What’s your understanding of empowerment? Is it a myth or some mystical power effective leaders are able to bestow upon those they lead? Of course not, you may say. So, what is it then? Why do we
How Being Consistent Can Lead Us Astray
“Are you suggesting the consistency and standardization that have made us who we are, is creating problems?” The expression on the Quality Control Manager’s face communicated the depth of their frustration. They had spent weeks artfully articulating throughout the organization the importance of following the Standard Operating Procedures that had dramatically improved the company’s previous error ratio. Now someone was suggesting that the system was "overly standardized." “Th
How to Drain Your Own Swamp
Have you ever found yourself stuck . . . as if your inspiration simply slipped away? You had a vision or a plan and suddenly the clarity was replaced with a murky fog. With all of the myriad distractions and challenges we can be faced with in life, it’s easy for this to happen. We’ve likely all heard or seen a phrase that describes this phenomenon perfectly. Maybe it was spoken like a proverb in a meeting or perhaps scrawled on a bathroom wall somewhere. “When you’re up to yo
