Executive Leadership Strategies When Volatility is the New Normal

Consider this. Economic pundits have declared that volatility is the New Normal. Markets are fluctuating wildly day to day. Executive officers, guiding their companies, are afloat in a sea of uncertainty. Investors generally take fewer risks during volatile times. It takes guts to invest when the downside may be greater than the upside. It also takes courage to make major business decisions.

Negative Emotions Make Things Worse

My research suggests that negative emotions like fear lead to actions that further complicate human dynamics. For instance, a leader paralyzed by fear decides not to make any decisions, for fear of making the wrong one. Others take this cue and also discuss but don’t settle on a direction. Analysis paralysis sets in. Decisions not made at one level are escalated upwards. Soon, the senior team is being asked to decide about minor expenditures. Business grinds to a halt.

My research also suggests that effective leadership in volatile times requires that leaders be adept at sensemaking, that is, making sense of what is important and not, and monitoring risks along the way, are more successful during volatile times. Those with emotional stamina, or the ability to recognize that they are afraid, and act anyway, are also most successful.

Some of us are more adept than others when things are going well, or are routine. It is when we are living in a constant state of non-routine that we are tested.

We can learn a lot from jazz musicians. Jazz musicians are typically classically trained. They can read and play music flawlessly. A good jazz musician learns how to sense changes in the routine score, and by careful listening can adapt, and improvise, to make beautiful music. The skill of being attuned, or making sense of changes, is critical to producing good jazz music.

This skill of being attuned to one’s own emotions, the emotions of others, and changes and fluctuations in business conditions is also critical. Many years ago, I managed the implementation of a risk and empowerment training program at a major high technology corporation. We taught executive leaders that one should never bet more than they were willing to lose. When volatility is the new normal, it is important to hone your risk taking skills.

How prepared are you to thrive in this New Normal?

Are you a good risk taker? How adept are you at making sense of a volatile and uncertain environment? Can you improvise and make course corrections? These are just some of the skills required to thrive.

Explore how prepared you and your team are to succeed in this current business environment. Contact me for complimentary 15 minute telephone consultation. 

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved

Does Your Executive Leadership Team Value Truth or Peace?

I was working with an executive coaching client recently who mentioned that some organizational cultures emphasize peace over truth. I hadn't quite thought about it this way and found the statement profound. In this case, my client was a very forthright individual, and he was being asked to tone down his style. I have also worked with executive coaching clients who needed to be more assertive and strong in speaking up. Both individuals needed to adapt to cultures who emphasized either peace or truth.

Likewise, I have worked with a number of leaders who are upset when some of the most critical business issues are not raised at meetings. Every business has inevitable functional conflicts. For instance, sales needs to make product modifications to win the business. On the other hand, manufacturing is rewarded for process efficiency and output. Or, R &D wants to develop the perfect product and values innovation and constant change. At the same time, the operations group needs consistency and stability. This type of task conflict is normal. It is critical that issues that threaten the ability of a company to sell, produce, and ship products are raised, discussed, and resolved. In reality, though, in many organizations, the default norm is --- keeping the peace, or harmony, is more important than the truth. Important issues are pushed aside. People find ways to work around the truth. Why is this?

There is no easy answer!

The truth is that this is a tangle of cultural norms, leadership styles, power dynamics, and the degree of trust within any one team. Solving this requires correct diagnosis of the underlying reasons, and a solution that correctly matches the problem. It is also important to note here that there is nothing inherently wrong with a culture of peace. These are companies that experience a high degree of camaraderie. Employees enjoy coming to work. The atmosphere is friendly and collegial.

Companies that value truth are also very effective and have a very different culture. Tough issues are raised. Leaders encourage employees to openly disagree and healthy conflict is welcomed. Companies like these, and there are a few here in the San Francisco Bay Area, pride themselves on searching for the best ideas. Employees working in these companies need to be tougher skinned.

Several years ago, I worked for a global human resource development and training company. Some of my colleagues made a sales call on a company that values truth over peace. These male employees left their sales calls a bit shaken. The internal staff minced no words in explaining their needs, what they wanted and expected, and how difficult it would be to get the sale. On the one hand, they left knowing where they stood (truth).

Somehow, I believe that the right answer is a balance between truth and peace.  I spend a lot of time helping those in cultures that value peace learn ways to, as a colleague of mine recently said, “disagree without being disagreeable.” I also spend time coaching clients to be truthful without being hurtful.

Is yours a culture of truth or peace?

Explore how a balanced culture can accelerate your business results.  Contact me for a complimentary 15 minute consultation.

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved

When Leaders Struggle with the Soft Stuff—Hire a Qualified Expert

The toughest leadership challenges include navigating tough organizational changes, leading tricky merger integrations, or smoothing out ugly personal dynamics on an all-star leadership team. It is tough enough to work your way through these situations even with the best of help. Merger integrations and strategic change efforts often fail because leaders don’t hire the right help. I recently came across a situation in which a large company asked someone with light educational credentials and a marketing and branding background to lead a mission critical and yet nasty change integration.  This person hired on others with similar backgrounds to guide the change process.

It wasn’t until I read Adam Bryant’s interview with Guy Kawasaki in yesterday’s New York Times that a light bulb went off. Guy learned that what he thought was the hard stuff, finance, sales, marketing, etc. was the easy stuff. What was hard was dealing with people issues. Guy explained: “I should have taken organizational behavior and social psychology — and maybe abnormal psychology, come to think of it.”

I have spoken with a number of executive leaders who wish they had paid closer attention to their MBA organizational behavior courses. In the Corner Office interview, Guy observes that in Silicon Valley, some engineers believe that everything is easy compared to engineering, and that they can successfully master and oversee other functional areas. Not. Time and time again in my own field I have observed many with education in the hard sciences claim to be organization development consultants and coaches. I have seen others with backgrounds, education, and experience in marketing, public relations or communications claim to be experts in human behavior. Unfortunately, the barriers to entry are very low in my field. Those with no relevant education, credentials, and experience can claim to be experts. In my opinion, understanding, mastering, and being able to assist others with the soft stuff takes years to master.

Yes, by successfully managing others, individuals do learn about human dynamics. Being a spouse, one learns about relationships. Being a parent, one learns something about early childhood development. Those experiences alone are not enough to be an expert in the fields of leadership development, marital counseling, and child development.

Last year, I enjoyed watching the HBO show, In Treatment. Dr. Paul Weston is a psychotherapist, played by Gabriel Byrne. We watch Paul work with patients over a series of weeks. Paul is an excellent therapist who is also in therapy himself, with Gina, played by Dianne Wiest, his former supervising therapist. In one of Paul’s sessions with Gina, Paul exclaims that he believes he has failed as a husband and father and wonders how he can effectively help others. Gina reminds Paul that being a parent or husband is very different than being a trained observer of human behavior. They require different skills. Gina reminds Paul, that as a therapist, he has spent years learning his craft. He is trained to make observations, to ask insightful questions, make interpretations, and encourage others to look at their patterns of behavior.

So too with true experts in human and organizational behavior.  We are trained to understand human development, organizational systems, and the difference between what is bunk and what is not. We understand the underbelly of organizational change and know that crafting messages and selling change is destined to fail. We also learn that what works in one situation may not work in another. There is both an art and science to helping leaders unravel complex human dynamics challenges. We also have to hone our own interpersonal skills and do the necessary inner work to function well in highly charged, political corporate environments. We have to be approachable and personable, grounded and no-nonsense. We have to be able to come in like a Trojan Horse and sometimes give tough feedback in a way that can be heard. This takes specialized skill, insight, experience, and training.

When you hire a management consultant to help navigate tough organizational changes, tricky merger integrations, or to smooth out rough dynamics in your leadership team, be sure you check the consultant’s credentials and experience. Someone with a background in branding and marketing communications is not an expert in human dynamics. Those with training and business experience in finance or sales are not experts in the nuances of leadership and human behavior.  The field of human and organizational behavior is a specialized discipline.  

Guy Kawasaki encourages leaders to hire people who are specialized and proven experts in their field. He also stresses the importance of being aware of your own biases when hiring someone, and I would add, bringing in consulting help. It may cost less to hire a quasi expert. It will cost more to clean up the mess.

For help with really tough leadership and organizational challenges contact me at info@rubenconsulting.com for a complimentary consultation.

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved

Cough it UpTM How to Rid Yourself of Corporate Hairballs

When I began my research into seemingly unsolvable corporate messes, I used the metaphor of a cat hairball to conduct my inquiry. Some people loved the metaphor. Others had negative visceral reactions.  Hairballs subsequently became tangles, although much of my work is inspired by my research results on corporate hairballs. I had a lot of fun comparing a cat hairball to a corporate hairball. What follows is just a taste.

I am not a cat owner, so I relied on a number of friends to help me understand how cats get hairballs and how to prevent them.  I learned that having hairballs is part and parcel of being a cat. Likewise, corporate hairballs are part and parcel of organizational life. I defined a corporate hairball as a significant business challenge that is a source of pain, crosses organizational boundaries, and involves diverse stakeholders. It has no obvious solutions and has challenging interpersonal or political dynamics. One of its defining features is the complexity of the numerous overlapping relationships.

Cats manage their hairballs by self-grooming. Hairballs become an issue for cats when dense balls of hair get caught in their system (this is the really yucky part!). Corporate hairballs become an issue for an organization when leaders don’t address tough, “hairy” complex issues and they lay dormant in the belly of the organization.  Cats don’t function well when they have a hairball lodged in their belly. Likewise, organizations with a hairball lodged inside their system experience a sluggish workforce, low morale, and a slowdown in productivity.

How do cats get rid of hairballs? Squeamish alert—this is really yucky. Cats cough up or vomit hairballs. I found that a slang word for the word “cough” is to “cough up” or disclose! Organizations can begin to rid themselves of corporate hairballs when individuals bring them up forcefully and/or often, or through the act of disclosure within organizational conversations. It is often an internal or external organization development person who is in a position to recognize corporate hairballs and help get them on the table. Before an organization resolves a corporate hairball, it is preceded by a lot of noise in the system. It may take several attempts before the hairball issue is resolved. Getting rid of a hairball affects the entire organizational system and may also “shock” the organization’s system.

How do you encourage your organization to cough it up^TM? My guess was, and research proved, that organizations naturally get rid of hairballs by having a culture and leadership that surfaces, legitimizes and resolves tough issues. An organization’s values guide its behaviors. If the there is a participatory leadership process, where input of all kinds is eagerly solicited, it is more likely that the organization will manage its hairballs.

For help with really tough leadership and organizational tangles, even corporate hairballs, contact me at info@rubenconsulting.com

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved

When Leaders have Each Other’s Backs, Teams Have Less Tangles

Jake Pavelka, the Bachelor (yes, I secretly watch the show—I am a romantic at heart) said that he wanted to find a mate who “had his back.” I have facilitated dozens of team effectiveness offsites and invariably participants will claim that they either want to know their teammates have their backs, or recall that their highest performing teams were those with members who “had their backs.”  I am not sure when or how the term entered the lexicon. I know that it is permeating the language now and particularly in team settings.

So what does it mean when someone has your back? I imagine that if I were going into a dangerous situation and brought along a buddy, I would want to know that if I got into trouble, my friend would rescue me. He would have my back. Likewise, if I were in a situation where I was criticized, I would know someone had my back if they verbally defended me. I know that my husband has my back when we are with my in-laws and he doesn’t let them put me down.

Knowing that someone has your back in a work setting turns out to be more complex. I worked with a leadership team at Uptown Robotics *that on the surface had some trust issues. They wanted to be a more cohesive team, yet had challenges communicating directly to each other. The team had to implement some unpopular initiatives company-wide and needed to communicate a uniform message. When each went into their respective internal client group, they had to tow the company line. Not everyone did and in fact, some bad mouthed their peers, and then flatly denied it. This led to suspicion and lack of trust.  Untangling these kinds of misunderstandings takes time, maturity, and usually outside facilitation.

Many leadership tangles start when one peer verbally compromises another, intentionally or unintentionally. When leadership teams are not working in lockstep to implement new processes, policies, or procedures that are new, different, and unpopular, the tangle is not just with the leadership team. Communication between functions is compromised. When leaders have each other’s backs, they work more effectively and avoid human dynamics messes.

If you have a leadership team that does not fully have each other’s backs, contact info@rubenconsulting.com for a complimentary consultation.

*The name of the company is fictionalized to protect identity and confidentiality. Aspects of the story have also been changed.  

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved

Leaders . . . Untangle Your Own Fears and Minimize Your Corporate Tangles

As the leader of my own firm, the hardest thing that I have had to do during these challenging times is manage myself . . . and my own fear. The newspaper headlines do not help. This morning, one of the top headlines in the Wall Street Journal screamed "New Fears as Credit Markets Tighten Up." This was like a red light, siren alert: Marcia, arm yourself, and hold on, it is getting worse. As an expert in human and organizational dynamics, I intellectually know that I am "catastrophizing." That is, I am taking one data point and in my mind, extending it out to its worst possible consequence. I know that this is not healthy emotionally, psychologically, or strategically. It is difficult to shore up my confidence and come up with creative business solutions when my mind and body are frozen with fear.

In these moments, the way I am making sense of the world is not serving me. And, if you as a leader are sense of the world in a similar way, it is not serving you. The decisions and actions I take when I am in the grip of fear do not move me forward. In fact, they move me backwards. If your reactions are like mine, your actions as a leader could create what I call a Frozen Tangle-an organization paralyzed with fear with little or no creative actions.

As an expert in human and organizational dynamics, I know that we have a choice about how we make sense of the world. We can choose the object of our focus, and pay attention to the feelings and emotions they evoke.

I am a proponent of positive psychology. Recent studies have shown that focusing on strengths and the positives does indeed to results that are more positive. I am also a proponent of finding practices and tools that are pragmatic and work. Esther and Jerry Hicks have some simple exercises that I find grounding and practical.

For the past two weeks, I have been paying attention to what evokes positive feelings (happiness, joy, contentment, elation) and even brings on a smile. For instance, earlier this week, driving home from a meeting, I saw a mother and her small child crossing the street, holding hands. Both were laughing and smiling. That brought a spontaneous smile to my face. I am focusing on extending that positive feeling as long as possible.

Even if it is a micro-moment, I am taking note. At the end of each day, I mentally review all of my micro-moments of feeling good, paying attention to increasing those moments. As I review those moments, I made an effort to recreate the positive feelings. When possible, I extend that feeling to more than a minute, and then also focus on my business goals, taking time to experience the positive feelings of achieving them.

I am noticing a subtle shift in my energy from frenetic and worried to calmer and more content. When I am feeling more content, I am able to think more clearly and come up with better ideas. I am also better able to communicate to others.  And ironically, more positive things are coming my way. The phone is ringing.

I recently worked with a coaching client who needed to prepare for an important meeting. He was worried and feeling less than confident. I had him recall a time when he felt most successful and confident in his abilities. I had him describe those to me in detail. I noticed a shift in his tone and voice. I asked him to describe the feelings that he was experiencing. He was able to take that state into his meeting, and it was a success.

If you need assistance untangling your own fears so that you can then produce stronger business results, contact me at info@rubenconsulting.com for a free 10-minute consultation.

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved

Shaun White, Olympic Gold Medalist, and VUCA Leadership

One of my guilty pleasures is watching Oprah. I don't watch it live so when I do have a few free moments, I turn on the digital video recorder and catch up. Last week, on February 19, Oprah had Shaun White, the Olympic Gold medalist on as one of her guests. He flew overnight from Vancouver to Chicago to be on her show. I have to admit that I hadn't been following Shaun White, his career, or his sport--snowboarding. I did catch his medal winning half pipe performance and his exuberant reaction to winning gold. When he spoke to Oprah about what it takes to pull of such a daring performance, my ears perked up. There is a relationship to VUCA and tangles I thought!

Shaun's specialty is jumping off a  cavernous, icy rim and twisting up in the air, landing on a banked edge of now. He calls his trick the special double McTwist. According to White, he has to be committed before he takes off. "It's all about commitment," he declared.  Shaun jumps off what looks like a sheer cliff, twists around, and somehow lands without seriously injuring himself.

Likewise, business executives, leading through VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, ambiguity, and complexity) sometimes feel like they are jumping off of a cliff, and have no idea if they and their company will land safely. Shaun White has to know that he is going to land his jump before he takes off. His sheer commitment propels him to ensure that his body cooperates with his mind.

Likewise, corporate executives have to feel a high level of commitment to consequential decisions. Only that commitment will ensure a safe corporate landing. An internal shift takes place when I make a true commitment to a direction. When I am committed, everything seems to fall into place. I believe that this is the inner state that Shaun arrives at when he takes off for his daredevil jumps. Shaun explained that he can't see where he is going when he takes off. He has to spot his landing place upside down!

How often do you as a business leader really know exactly what obstacles and challenges you will encounter when you make a significant decision? Like Shaun White, you sometimes can't see where you are going until nearly the end. The inner state of total, unshakable commitment is often what provides the fuel, creativity, resourcefulness, and dedication to pull off the corporate equivalent of a double McTwist.

Congratulations to Shaun White for having the courage to go for it, and thanks to him for sharing some important wisdom.

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved

You Can’t Hurry Trust . . . You Just Have to Wait

There is an old song first sung by the Supremes, and later by Phil Collins and others, called “You Can’t Hurry Love.” The lyrics often run through my mind when I am working with leadership teams. Only the problem isn’t love. It is trust. You really can't hurry trust. As an organizational consultant and executive coach, I have often been hired to help teams who are struggling to perform optimally. More often than not, I find that there is a fundamental trust issue within the team.

This is a common and difficult issue to remedy. In this time of reduced budgets, clients want quick fixes. I have learned the hard way that it takes time, commitment, and multiple approaches to build or restore trust between otherwise well-intentioned leadership peers.

I have worked with a number of leadership teams over the course of many months. The most successful results occur when there is the luxury of time to design and implement a series of well-designed, structured offsites, with time in between for leaders to try new behaviors and build stronger working relationships. I hesitate when I am asked to fix a trust issue with a 4 hour offsite. I tell clients that these tangled situations are like a ball of yarn that has gotten knotted and snarled. If you pull too hard and too fast it just makes the tangle tighter. However, by gently pulling from the outside, it is possible to untangle the knots.

The Supremes hit song goes on to say, “love won’t come easy, it’s a game of give and take.”  Likewise, developing trusting workplace relationships doesn’t come easy. Some have to give up judgments of others that they have been holding on to for a long time. Others need to forgive. And everyone usually needs to step up and be accountable for their part in the process. It truly is a game of give and take. And sometimes, teams have to wait and work through the process. Often, it takes a skilled and objective outside facilitator to help the untangling process.  With commitment from all, trust can come sort of easy and you don't have to wait too long!

Enjoy the version of You Can’t Hurry Love I found on You Tube. See if it has application to your leadership team!

 

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved

Why Exceptional Leaders Provide Air Cover . . . And Prevent Tangles

As an executive development expert, I’ve facilitated dozens of 360 degree leadership assessments, team development, and new leader assimilation processes. Along the way, I have learned that leaders get dinged if they don’t provide air cover to their direct reports. When I first heard the term “air cover,”  I was surprised. On the other hand, military language, like sports talk, permeates the business lexicon. I decided to delve deeper and see what it really means.

Macmillan Dictionary defines air cover as “a military operation in which planes fly regularly over an area in order to stop the enemy attacking.” Collins English Dictionary defines it as “the use of aircraft to provide aerial protection for ground forces against enemy air attack.” I interpret this to mean that when ground troops are engaged in a difficult operation, aircraft fly above to make sure that their troops are safe. If the enemy starts to attack, the aircraft fire on the enemy and protect their soldiers.

How does this play out in corporate life? Individuals at all levels are asked to undertake initiatives and activities that are not necessarily popular with other functions or divisions. People like the status quo. Sometimes managers are asked to work cross-organizationally and perform tasks that feel like they are going behind enemy lines.  For instance, a company wants to increase efficiencies across the enterprise and begins to implement a technology system and major new processes that will do just that, and change the nature of work in the process. A fairly senior IT leader, Amber, meets with one of the most influential line executives and gets shot down. He doesn’t understand the initiative and doesn’t think it will add value to his function. Amber’s boss has a follow up meeting. Amber’s boss can provide air cover by backing Amber. Or, Amber’s boss can bad mouth her and cave in to the executive. If her boss chooses the latter path, Amber ends up feeling that she is not supported. The program is sabotaged and delayed. The blame game ensues and we have the beginnings of a new organizational tangle.

I have facilitated meetings where management level employees have shared examples of their bosses leaving them hanging out to dry when they ran into resistance from other functional groups. I have also facilitated meetings when employees have praised their bosses for providing air cover.  There is a qualitative difference in the level of employee morale and performance when bosses provide air cover.

In an informal research study that I conducted within one major corporation, the results suggest that exceptional leaders support their employees, or as they say, provide air cover. In turn, employees feel that when they are doing something that is the equivalent of going behind enemy lines, they are confident that if the going gets rocky, their boss will support them. Of course this assumes that they are acting professionally and in everyone’s best interest. Employees who feel that they have support and protection have the opportunity to grow and develop. After all, being able to successfully overcome resistance and navigate organizational change is an essential leadership skill.

Are you providing air cover to your employees? Is your leadership team? If your organization could benefit from stronger leadership, contact me at info@rubenconsulting.com for a complimentary consultation.

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved

Leaders: Avatar, Differences, and Organizational TanglesTM

There’s a buzz in the air about the movie Avatar. My husband and I trekked over to our local IMAX theater (www.imax.com) this past weekend and were not disappointed. The movie truly sets a new standard for moviemakers and moviegoers alike. I was transported to Pandora, a totally different world, light years away. My senses were delighted with lush landscapes, new animal species, and an indigenous population of 9 to 12 foot tall blue inhabitants, called the Na’Vi.  With the 3-D glasses, I truly felt like I could touch and feel the distant future, 2154.

Reviewers have criticized the storyline as a series of clichés. I agree. It’s all there:  good versus evil, science versus capitalism, collaboration versus competition, aggressors versus peacekeepers, exploitation versus conservation, etc. I also believe that there are lessons leaders can learn from the film about organizational tangles^TM.  Sometimes it is easier to see patterns of behavior when they are set in a different context. 

I coined the term organizational tangle to describe situations in which a complex, strategic business challenge is further complicated by human dynamics. Tangles occur when different factions within an organization vie for power, resources, or control. For example, the head of one organizational function (Sales, Marketing . . . fill in the blank) refuses to be accountable and blames all other functions when things go wrong. Or, product quality keeps slipping and manufacturing blames engineering who in turn blames marketing. In essence, divisions or departments that are supposed to work together become enemies. There’s a clear “us versus them” attitude.

This is the case in Avatar. In the movie, a military team has been sent to Pandora to seize precious assets. Resources on earth are scarce and the economy is bad. Sound familiar? The  Na’Vi are ferociously guarding these assets and are physically stronger than the earthlings. Meanwhile, scientists from earth are also studying the Na’Vi and believe that by understanding their culture, it will be easier to collaborate with them. The stage is set for a tug of war between the earthling military and scientists. Each has different agendas.  There is also a clear tug of war between the earthlings and the Na’Vi . Avatar provides us a great example of multiple tangles.

As the story unfolds, we see the main character Jake, transform from a paraplegic earthling into a warrior Na’Vi. Brought in to find a way to get the goods from the Na’Vi, he goes native. By seeing and experiencing the world from their eyes, at the same time that we viewers are experiencing it in glorious 3-D, we get a wonderful lesson in the opportunities and challenges of learning to respect differences. We also learn that brute force begets more of the same. There is no win-win solution when you go in with guns blazing.

In my executive development and organizational strategy consulting practice, I often meet leaders who haven’t developed the capacity to see the world through the eyes of their colleagues. By not respecting differences, they miss out on opportunities to share resources, whether it is information, everyone’s best thinking, or out of the box solutions. A tangle is born and the company loses opportunities to thrive. On the other hand, I also encounter leaders who respect differences too much.  They often acquiesce and give away their power.  I coach them to develop a stronger backbone.

Avatar beautifully demonstrates just how hard it is to learn to respect differences. In one early scene, Sigorney Weaver’s character, Dr. Grace Augustine, interrupts Jake as he records a video log of his experience as an Avatar. She reminds him that he has to try harder to get into the heads of the Na’Vi. That is easier said than done. Leaders are coached to crawl into the heads of peers, or to get behind their eyeballs, or step into their shoes in order to understand different perspectives. The theory goes that this will help leaders reposition their requests in a way that it gets heard. In Avatar, Jake gets so into the Na’Vi’s head, that (spoiler alert), he loses himself. Some leaders try to get their way by coercion or force. Others, like Jake, acquiesce. Neither are good strategies.

Learning to respect differences is a critical leadership skill. It requires emotional intelligence and a willingness to collaborate. If your organization could benefit from greater collaboration and respecting differences,  contact me at info@rubenconsulting.com for a complimentary consultation.

©Copyright Marcia Ruben, Ph.D. Ruben Consulting Group All rights reserved