Fear Factor Flu

It's spreading. (See our Healing Leaders Newsletter dated 10/9/2008.) A recent workshop, containing material on how to manage anxiety, experienced a dramatic drop in registered attendance. Those pulling out gave as one reason; "I've got to put the time into selling a couple more deals. They might be the last deals I'll do."

Warren E. Buffett writes, "A simple rule dictates my buying: Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful". I suggest a modification. Don't be fearful. Others are.

A Call for Guts

"Our future depends more on cultivating courage than goodness. Preaching generosity and cooperation won't get us there"(a wider cultured future). "Evidence-driven thinking about the real challenge of our species--cultivating gutsiness--is a first step toward the world almost everyone wants". (Frances Moore Lappe).
Well, maybe not everyone "wants" such a world. But, it's in front of us whether we want it or not. Gutsiness finds its origins in mature, non-anxious and rational approaches organized in the neo-cortex.

Tichy and Bennis

"After a five-year study of leadership covering virtually all sectors of American life, we came to the inescapable conclusion that judgment regularly trumps experience.
Our central finding is that judgment is the core, the nucleus of exemplary leadership. With good judgment, little else matters. Without it, nothing else matters."

- Warren Benis and Noel Tichy, "Judgment: How Winning Leaders Make Great Calls"

Limbic Hijacking

In my daily living circles are those with whom disagree on the "Big American Issues". I know this by seeing political stickers on cars parked outside buildings where I am interacting with the owners of those cars. I overhear conversations between acquaintances who disagree on choices for president. I engage in conversations with others about our government's decisions and actions in response to current economic problems. But, none of these interactions is volatile, nor filled with anger, threats and abuse. I might feel discouraged, disappointed or even a littled pissed off. But, I never feel unsafe in these conversations. Contrast this to the rage we hear expressed from members of audiences during political speeches. The vitriol borders on insanity. Maybe it's already across the border. I worry less about these expressions of rage and more about the limbic brain hijacking these behaviors reflect.

Circular "Thinking"

The blog of unnecessary quotation marks http://quotation-marks.blogspot.com/ is on a mission to spot and report quotes abuse. Posters and commenters on the blog often wonder what the quote user really meant. [P&H popcorn is "proudly" served here. Evidently it is sold with or without pride.]
Thinking becomes "thinking" when it goes in circles. Founders of a start up meet regularly to do the heavy mental lifting needed to get their enterprise off the ground - to get to the starting line. Their meetings are circular. Participants chew up valuable time reviewing what is already known or diving into tactical minutiae. Inevitably, talk returns to the subject's beginning and reviewed all over again. It's circular. Thinking is replaced by "thinking". Progress stalls and the starting line disappears into the future. Unbending the circle into a straight line moves things forward.

Those who apply themselves too closely to little things often become incapable of great things. --Francois de la Rochefoucauld

Where's Imagination?

I sat through a presentation given by the city administrator in the town where I live. My city has undertaken a downtown renewal project. The first architect's drawings are available for public viewing. The presenter showed the drawings as he talked of green spaces, renewed retail space and improvements for the culture and civic center venues. I am often more interested in reading the reactions of those around me in such circustamces. Those in the room paid respectful attention to the presentation but the reactive energy was low. A few polite questions about plan details ("Where's building so-and-so"?) were the sum of interaction. Then, it dawned on me. Words like "imagination", "creativity" and "vision" were missing. The speaker spoke with neither passion nor joy. The presentation had no power. It was uninspired and uninspiring. Certainly there is tremendous worry, anxiety and stress associated with such a project.
As anxiety goes up, creativity and imagination decline. If project stress trumps imagination, this project might not get very far.

Brutal Honesty - "Do I Look Fat in this?"

There is a trend in the workplace where the leadership is encouraging and even inviting "brutal honesty" as a means of communication. These "C-level" executives announce to their management and staff that they want brutal honesty in their communication in the workplace. This invitation is on the same level as a wife who turns to her husband and says, "Do I look fat in this dress?"

As open as this invitation sounds, I find this incredibly naive. It fails to recognize the power differential that exists between the parties communicating. How is someone who's life and livelihood is dependent upong somone in power over them being pleased with them ever going to be able to rise to that level of honesty? What is even more naive is when these executives assume that since they "gave permission" for people to speak honestly (no, this does not mean you won't lose your job) that the feedback they are getting is open and honest. They stay in the dark and operate blindly without know what is going on in the trenches. Truth is not so easily teased out of a situation; especially when power and control are present.

My 78 year old mother put it succinctly. "We invite brutal honesty of all employees...and we get to be the brutes."

Culture of Interruption

Among the signs of high anxiety in groups is the freqency with which members interrupt each other. I belong to a service club board where meetings are driven by interruptive behavior. By my unscientific count, fewer than half of questions or statements begun by any one member in the group are finished. I once began a question by asking the group to allow me to complete it. I was interrupted. A few minutes later, another member of the group asked if I thought my question had been answered. As I began to reply, someone else interrupted.
This group is not well led. Its leader is the chief interrupter. Members have learned meeting-by-interruption is the norm. Group members arrive at the meetings appearing harried, frazzled and sometimes late. I estimate the group's overall performance is about half of its potential.
I am considering leaving the group and using the time in less anxoius ways.