Anyone who has ever taught someone else . . . well. . . anything, has probably quickly learned that using metaphors speeds up cognition and enlivens the discussion.
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The scientific method is a proven, step-by-step technique for discovery and validation. It uses questions and experiments to help us solve problems. It turns guesses and trends into data, and it’s effective across diverse environments.
And it’s a wonder that more of us don’t use it as a tool for business strategy.
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Lin-Manuel Miranda, the famed Hamilton writer, is also responsible for the incredible music in Disney’s Moana. A memorable, character-building song is when the demigod Maui boasts his track record to young Moana. He wrongly assumes that she should be grateful and sings “you’re welcome” over and over again. It’s both hilarious and embarrassing, because she’s not thanking him at all...
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Imagine you're hosting friends at a dinner party and you leave the kitchen to answer the door. Meanwhile, the oven timer goes off while the bread is baking. Do your guests take the bread out of the oven, or do they sit there and watch it burn? This question is a metaphor for leading people, especially in a remote context.
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The brutal truth is, when leaders are "too busy" to really diagnose and address organizational and team health issues, their organization isn't going to get any better, and will probably get worse. Leaders must prioritize the health of their people and organization. When they do, companies move from surviving to thriving.
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Are you halfway to a high performing team?
As a leader of a team, which of these common techniques have you tried so your team becomes high-performing?
Sharing a personal story to increase camaraderie
Making a working agreement that people should feel free to speak up in meetings so that everyone feels heard
Declaring that a meeting is safe so people can voice dissenting opinions
This post by Bob Gower brings to light the impact that an organization’s structure has on collaboration. Whether you work in a school system, hospital, government or, as Bob writes about, a software company (or some other type of org, of course), think about the structures of the organizations that you work in and with. How does the structure enable, confine or generally impact collaboration.
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A few weeks ago, I traveled with my husband to his annual planning retreat in the mountains of Virginia. Despite the fact that I wasn’t actually facilitating the meeting, I read through Verne Harnish’s Scaling Up and started to think through what I would do if I were leading their collaborative planning. As I walked along the trails and wondered how their meeting was going, I reflected on his organization’s culture and the companies I’ve worked with and realized that unless this type of collaboration is intentional, it’s not going to happen.
Read MoreCollaboration is a huge topic. To help focus content for you as readers and all of our contributors, we are going to solicit and post within themes. Each theme will last for a series of posts (maybe 8-16) and then we will switch to a new theme.
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Sometimes, you get to work with a great leader. They’ve got a great vision and the ability to get people to rally around it. They’re also empathic enough to listen, learn, and adjust. Team members all feel like they’re contributing to something great. Ideas get considered, debated on their merits, and everyone is able to do their best work. What is that great leaders do to create this kind of smart team?
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We believe that in order to solve the world’s biggest problems, we need more than the inspiring leader or impressive individual: we need great teams. Great teams are fueled by great collaboration.
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