There’s nothing you’d rather be doing
May 24, 2009
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed, or sign up for my newsletter ==>
to receive the free Change Starts Here Workbook. Thanks for visiting!
Many years ago, I took a negotiations class as part of my MBA program. One nice Saturday morning at 9:00 am, the professor started class with the question, “How many of you would rather be somewhere else?”
Many people, including myself, raised their hands sheepishly, but were willing to play along. The professor asked a few of us to say where we would rather be. (I said home in bed. I did not have kids yet, and sleeping in was still an option.) He went around the room and collected responses on the whiteboard.
Then he told us we were all wrong! That if we would rather be somewhere else, then that is where we would be. Our priorities, preferences and motivations were reflected in our choice to get up and go to class that morning. If I would really rather be sleeping in, then I would still be in bed. But instead, my priority of learning how to negotiate, or my motivation to get a good grade in the class made me choose to set the alarm in the morning and drive an hour to get to the class in downtown Chicago. The fact that I was there proved that I would rather be in class than in bed sleeping. Whoa!
Ultimately, what we choose to do is a reflection of our real priorities, our actual preferences, and our true motivations. It’s not what we would rather do, or what is on our to-do list, or what we say we want.
Obviously, this lesson struck a chord, since I remember it 7 years later. Every now and then I remember that morning and ask myself: What does my current activity say about my priorities? Why is it that I choose to do this and not something else that might better reflect my values and goals? As you can imagine, this thought usually arises when I’m procrastinating or avoiding taking action or making a decision. Taking a look at how you spend your time through this lens can be eye-opening and push you toward taking a step in the right direction.
Taking this lesson to its logical conclusion then, there is nothing that you would rather be doing than reading this blog post. If there were something that better fit with your true priorities, preferences and motivations in this moment, you would be doing that instead.
So, now that you’re done reading, let me ask this:
What will you do next?
A common picture of the ideal organization
May 18, 2009
Even though organizations have different purposes and strategies, I think we tend to have a common picture of the ideal characteristics of an effective organization. I wonder if these are the things you are trying to bring about in your organization:
- Multi-directional trust (leadership, employees, peers)
- Transparency and feedback
- Ample, clear, compelling, consistent communication
- High-performing teams
- Data-based decisions
- Accountability to results
- Clarity of vision
- Congruence of personal work with organizational goals
- Alignment between business units and departments
- Breakdown of silos, turf wars, and self-protection
- Atmosphere of mutual respect
- Employee engagement
- The idea of a “well-oiled machine”, efficient standardized processes
- Effective, value-added meetings
I would love to hear what else you might add to this list, and if any of these would actually decrease your success. Please share using the comments.
The Why of change
May 14, 2009
In conversations, I often relate the task of implementing change to rolling a boulder uphill, or banging your head against the wall. Having been in that role, I know it often can feel that way.
Looking through past posts and articles, I realize I generally focus on the How of change, whether it’s methodologies, or what to think about, or how you can build up your own capacity to bring about change. These are all important things, considering what a formidable task change can be, but they are the means, not the ends.
I don’t want to lose sight of the fact that there is a reason for change, which generally is to bring about a better future. It’s the Why of change, the hope of eventual improvement, that drives you to continue and gives you the energy to take on the challenges and resistance. It’s the Why of change that tells you which obstacles must be overcome. It’s the Why of change that compels others to help you get it done.
So, when you feel like you’re banging your head against the wall, stop and reground yourself in the reason you’ve taken on the challenge in the first place. Clarify the purpose, reaffirm your hope, and adjust the path to get there if necessary.
What is your Why?
The single greatest truth about organizational change
May 8, 2009
Last week, I posted the following question on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter:
What is the single greatest truth about organizational change?
My own response that I developed when I originally thought of the question, was:
Organizational change starts with one person who sees something that should be different, and takes action.
I received 46 responses from all three sources. Most of them can be accessed on LinkedIn here. The largest group of responses expressed that people don’t like change, or that people hate it. Several people said that change is constant. There were also a few cynics. I appreciate all the responses and value each of them as the summation of each person’s own experience with organizational change.
Here are some of my favorites that especially rang true for me:
Richard Rowan: “The key is to start the change from where you are, with what you have. Not what you wish you had.”
Michelle Hurteau: “Organizational change happens one person at a time.”
Mark Herbert: “Culture eats strategy!”
Robert Gold: “That it happens in spite of leadership, not because of it.”
Justin Carter: “Calculating its NPV is a bitch.”
When I received the last one, I laughed out loud. Having been in the position to try to justify projects with “intangible” benefits, I totally agree!
What do you think is the single greatest truth about organizational change?
Fair vs Equal: Two views of incentives
May 3, 2009
During my Beyond Buy-in webinar a couple of weeks ago, one of the attendees mentioned that different leaders are motivated by different things, and that there is no one-size-fits-all incentive. How true! Now that the comment has had time to percolate, here are some thoughts.
I would like to talk about the difference between fair and equal.
Fair: Getting something of equal value to the effort expended, relative to everyone else.
Equal: Getting the same reward as everyone else regardless of input.
Equal incentives are frequently used for team rewards – a group of people working toward a common goal, and everyone will receive the same reward if the team succeeds. Equal rewards often seem unfair, since every person contributes individually to the effort – especially if the target is missed. On the other hand, equal rewards do engender mutual accountability and collaboration, if the culture allows.
Fair incentives can be tricky, because not everyone associates the same value with the same reward. Besides money, rewards for individual performance might be promotions, time off, more responsibility, parking spaces and other perks. Not only is perceived value different, but the criteria for determining who gets what is often subjective, or at least apples and oranges. At the same time, people like being recognized for their own contributions.
When possible, it’s best to use intrinsic motivation and exclude incentive programs altogether. The recent McKinsey article, “The Irrational Side of Change Management,” lists five different forms of motivation, in terms of impact of the change initiative:
- Impact on Society
- Impact on the Customer
- Impact on the Company
- Impact on the Team
- Impact on Me
If the company and your change initiative can tap into each of these sources of motivation, then each person will select which one is most fulfilling to them. Now that would be fair and equal!
Don’t miss a thing!
Subscribe
in a ReaderSubscribe
via E-mail
-
