Month: October 2018

The ‘New Nice’ Through Truth and Transparency

Abundance Accountability Personal leadership Respect

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Blog Learning: How truthful and transparent are you at work? Is this REALLY valued in your culture? Can you be “nice” at the same time?

Story: The CEO of Costco, W. Craig Jelinek, stood in front of the company’s leadership team on a dreary Seattle day, and took on every hard nosed question they had with clear, apolitical and specific responses. He gave them unvarnished answers including some things that weren’t exactly popular with the crowd. At the end, the team gave him a standing ovation. The explanation: “We value the truth here!” Dave Mowat, the former CEO of ATB (with the highest rating of any CEO on Glassdoor in 2017), was great for many reasons, and most of all for being truthful. During my almost seven year tenure, he told 5,000 plus people on two different occasions they were not going to get pay increases, and both times engagement scores went up! People knew Dave would tell them the way it was.

Key Point: Financier Ray Dalio is well known as the Godfather of radical truth and transparency. He is the founder of Bridgewater Associates, arguably the globe’s biggest and most successful hedge fund. The firm practices Dalio’s principles of extreme truth and transparency throughout the fabric of the company. Radical truth is about making sure that important issues don’t remain hidden, which means creating an environment where employees feel free to speak their mind. Dalio is a believer of this kind of transparency as a safeguard against poor decisions, ideally because people at all levels are constantly exchanging criticisms, making improvements and catching mistakes before they happen. This is very connected to the argument we often make in this blog, for respectfully “talking back.” Radical transparency is the sister to radical truth in that both managers and employees treat one another as they would a partner in a long-term relationship. This means showing mutual respect, looking out for what’s in the other’s best interest, and being crystal clear about who’s responsible for what. This is easier declared than done because too many cultures are conflicted between being “nice” versus being clear.

The ugly side of radical truth and transparency is that when practiced poorly it becomes the cover for meanness and disrespectful behavior. Truth and transparency needs to be reframed as the new “nice,” not warmed over sloppy “meanness.”

Lead Yourself Move:

  1. Become known as a person who is truthful and transparent by mastering the skill of attacking situations, processes or problems and never people. When you understand that literally everything is a process, you can more take on tough issues in a more truthful and transparent way.

Lead Others Move:

  1. What are the ways you lead your group or organization to really value the “niceness” of truth and transparency by being hard nosed, yet respectful? Do you believe people want the raw truth and transparency? Or do you believe you should protect them? Watch Dalio’s TED Talk on how he does it.

Truth and Transparency in Personal Leadership, 

– Lorne 

One Millennial View: There seems to be a reason why “behind the scenes” footage and a chance to glance at “how the sausage is made” is so popular. Allowing for full transparency and radical truth may not always be easy, but there’s an incredible amount of appreciation for it. I have a huge amount of respect for leaders who know how to take off the kiddie gloves, because truth can be hard, but avoiding tough but necessary feedback will sting more for all in the end.

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis

 

The Wrong Things May Be Motivating You at Work

Abundance Accountability Personal leadership Respect

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Story: If a dear friend told you the primary reason they stay with their partner is because the inertia related to the belief of it being easier to stay than go, or for primarily economic and/or emotional reasons, you would likely have reason to be compassionately concerned about the health of their relationship. How does this relate to work and culture?

Inertia pressure (an oxymoron) motivates us to do something today, essentially because we did it yesterday. In cases of inertia, people get into such a rut that they almost lose track of why they even do what they do at work. Emotional pressure happens when emotions related to self-perception or judgment cause us to take certain actions. Guilt, disappointment and shame are some of the “big emotional bullies.” Staying at a job you detest because of what others may think is an example. Economic pressure motivates by encouraging us to seek rewards or avoid punishment. Many employees, especially executives, often work life-crushing hours to earn a bonus, get a promotion, or simply keep a job.

Key Point: Many traditional organization cultures and neanderthal leadership systems are built on the false foundation of leveraging these indirect motivators. For example, “if you don’t pick up your performance, you’re going to get fired and good luck getting another job at your age, putz.” “You are only half as good as Jane. She kicks your butt. I don’t know how you look in the mirror.” “Just shut up and punch your time clock. If we wanted you to think, we’d make you a manager.” Ok, these hypotheticals are a little harsh, but do remain the MO in many workplaces.

In their very important book, Primed to Perform, my friends Neel Doshi and Lindsay McGregor point out that leveraging these indirect motives can be problematic. The more important they are for why people are working in an organization, the more damage they can cause an individual, team and overall culture. The summary note from Doshi/McGregor is that when motives aren’t directly connected to work, they actually reduce performance. More specifically, inertia, emotional pressure, and economic pressure are indirect motivators that can have this effect.

Lead Yourself Move:

  1. Ask yourself honestly, how much you are working because of one or more of these motives? If they are the primary drivers versus your ability to flourish and contribute to a purpose you care about, and advancing your personal potential, your situation is NOT sustainable. Something will negatively go down the drain, and it’s likely to be your wellness.

Lead Others Move:

  1. Assess how much these indirect motives exist in your team and/or organization. Read or listen to Primed to Perform for research driven guidance on how to minimize them and better apply powerful positive motivators. P.S., I’ve put this book on the “must read” list for the MBA class I’m teaching this winter.

The Right Reasons in Personal Leadership

Lorne

One Millennial View: So many success stories seem to sprout from passion oriented projects, and I’m not talking about celebrity chefs, rockstars or Hollywood actors. From my old college buddy who built an award winning brewing company, or the guys that started MVMT Watches, to Ty Haney’s explosive growth of Outdoor Voices; the common ground seems to exist in the personal drive and dedication involved in their professional missions. While there was no doubt hardship, stress, and lots of emotion, it created positive motivation instead of inertia, that in turn has led to financial rewards instead of economic pressure. We millennials need to be reminded to deeply analyze what we love to do, and seriously contemplate why we may not be taking steps towards doing it.  

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis

 

Why Inclusion Equals Courage in Leadership

Abundance Accountability Personal leadership Respect

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Story: Many of you may not remember the tragic and heinous events that make up the Matthew Shepard saga. It’s been 20 years years, and the ashes of Shepard are just being laid to rest. Note the following from Michelle Boorstein of the Chicago Tribune:

“When Matthew Shepard died on a cold night 20 years ago, after being beaten with a pistol butt and tied to a split-rail wood fence, his parents cremated rather than buried the 21-year-old, for fear of drawing attention to the resting place of a person who had become a global icon for combating anti-gay hate.

With the anniversary Friday of their son’s murder, the Shepards have decided to do just that, interring his remains inside the crypt of the prominent Washington National Cathedral, where gay-equality activists say they can be a prominent symbol and even a pilgrimage destination for the movement. Although the cause of LGBT equality has made historic advancements since Shepherd was killed, it remains divisive anew in many parts of a country re-embracing tribalism of all kinds.”

Key Point: It’s been 20 years since the horrific murder of Matthew Shepard, and yes, we have seen much progress regarding diversity and inclusion overall. However, as stated in the Tribune article, there also seems to be a re-embracing of tribalism. And that is troublesome.

Last blog we highlighted the call for leadership COURAGE. This is the time for acceptance and full inclusion of ALL of our human differences. We should be intolerant of hate or intentional harm towards others, while we accept AND embrace our human differences. These principles can exist in parallel. It is our individual uniqueness that adds to the optimum richness of any community. Diversity, as they say, is being invited to the party while inclusion is being asked to dance. And you know how important I believe it is to dance with each other. The last company I worked for introduced this value: “Courageously be yourself and a true ally for others. Together we can create a place where we can ALL belong.” 

Lead Yourself Move:

  1. Each of us has to show up and be our true selves. Being brave starts at a personal level. The concept of “closets” for hiding a part or most of us is not helpful. Courage is very personal. Inclusion is an antidote to loneliness. 

Lead Others Move:

  1. How do you create conditions for inclusion in your group? How do you teach others to be an ally? Be courageous and set the example. Declare your inclusion value! Never use words that hurt, including calling people names or mocking their behavior. For example, when the President of the United States calls a woman on Twitter “horseface,” or rudely mimics a reporter with a physical disability; he does not deserve to be in a leadership role. Attacking others at a personal level divides us all.

All others in Personal Leadership,

Lorne

One Millennial View: This one made me think. If I’m being honest, I’m thankful to sincerely note I’ve only worked at places that embrace diversity and inclusivity. While it’s important to remember and acknowledge terrible events like Matthew Shepard’s murder, I wonder where the value is in suggesting a lot of people in 2018 are becoming so tribal. Where? My neighborhood is full of diverse residents that all wave to each other despite different socioeconomic standings and ethnicities. When away from the social media trolls and negative news, the birds are still chirping. If we’re being realistic, we know individuals will always fight, and mean words will be exchanged. It may be uncomfortable, but it’s understandable. When humans are trying to verbally hurt each other, abrasive language is used. However, I don’t believe we can let words between a couple individuals impact, divide, or influence entire groups. To me, that’s more dangerous than any word. There has been a ton of both legal and social progress since Shepard’s death in 1998. While it’s necessary to understand more work needs to be done, I think encouraging and celebrating the positive nature of most is a better way to bring people together.

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis

 

How Brave Leaders Make Courageous Cultures!

Abundance Accountability Personal leadership Respect

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Story: Our readers and wonderful followers know that Garrett and I have been pleading for the themes of courage and compassion to emerge on center stage, regarding matters of culture and leadership. And many of you know, I’m a big Brené Brown fan. She lives what she writes, and puts in the research to back up her work. Dare to Lead is her new book, which I highly recommend. Here is a tiny taste of a few big ideas that sprung from her research:

“YOU CAN’T GET TO COURAGE WITHOUT RUMBLING WITH VULNERABILITY.

The foundational skill set of courage-building is ‘rumbling with vulnerability.’ Our ability to be daring leaders will never be greater than our capacity for vulnerability.

SELF-AWARENESS AND SELF-LOVE MATTER. WHO WE ARE IS HOW WE LEAD.
The greatest barrier to courageous leadership is not fear—it’s how we respond to our fear.

COURAGE IS CONTAGIOUS.
We have to be vigilant about creating a culture in which people feel safe, seen, heard, and respected.”

Key Point: I believe that leadership effectiveness and impact is ultimately defined by acts of everyday bravery and courage. I am also with Brown on the premise that the behavior to drive courageous leadership is observable and teachable. She goes on to say via her website: “I’ve spent twenty years studying courage, vulnerability, shame, and empathy, and I recently completed a seven-year study on brave leadership. Leadership is not about titles or the corner office. It’s about the willingness to step up, put yourself out there, and lean into courage. The world is desperate for braver leaders. It’s time for all of us to step up.”

Lead Yourself Move:

  1. Read and/or listen to Dare to Lead. Challenge yourself to learn from the research, and pick an area you can work on. You may want to start by taking this assessment. Think big, start small, act now. Be more self aware!

Lead Others Move:

  1. If we have the privilege to lead others, we have a responsibility to step up, put ourselves out there and lean into courage. Do you know what that means? Do you know what to do? What will you do next? Will your team feel it? 

Courageous leaders in Personal Leadership,

Lorne

One Millennial View: This awesome message is one of those things – like “step out of your comfort zone” – that falls on a ton of deaf ears. We understand the concept, we see the possible benefits, but we fear the potential failure. Perhaps we Millennials should think back to the “truth or dare” days, and apply that same type of pressure to “double-dog dare” ourselves to be brave in our current and future roles. 

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis

 

My Boss is an Algorithm!

Abundance Accountability Resources Respect

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Story: How do you feel about your boss being an algorithm? The algorithm can promote or “deactivate” you based on continuous data assessment. Hopefully this excerpt from a recent article in the NYT by Alex Rosenblat will get you thinking. This is happening now!

“There are nearly a million active Uber drivers in the United States and Canada, and none of them have human supervisors. It’s better than having a real boss, one driver in the Boston area told me, ‘except when something goes wrong.’

When something does go wrong, Uber drivers can’t tell the boss or a co-worker. They can call or write to ‘community support,’ but the results can be enraging. Cecily McCall, an African-American driver from Pompano Beach, Fla., told me that a passenger once called her ‘dumb’ and ‘stupid,’ using a racial epithet, so she ended the trip early. She wrote to a support rep to explain why and got what seemed like a robotic response: ‘We’re sorry to hear about this. We appreciate you taking the time to contact us and share details.’

The rep offered not to match her with that same passenger again. Disgusted, Ms. McCall wrote back, ‘So that means the next person that picks him up he will do the same while the driver gets deactivated — fired by the algorithm — because of a low rating or complaint from an angry passenger. ‘Welcome to America.’”

Key Point: The biggest complaint employees have is usually about their bosses, the real live human ones, let alone digital ones. Yet, however imperfect, at least most of us have someone to appeal or talk to as a boss. I’m a big fan of AI/machine learning and big data helping employees to increase productivity or effectiveness. And an algorithm may be more objective and programmed to be more helpful than human managers. What I have serious concern about is if employers begin to remove any human connection from an employment relationship for scale and cost reasons. Uber drivers are people first. It is too convenient and I think irresponsible for organizations to consider people as simply “gig-economy transactions.” Like the NYT article notes, “It’s better than having a real boss… Except when something goes wrong.”

Leading Yourself Moves:

  1. Become more aware where algorithms are replacing bosses and what that means to the world of work.

Leading Others Moves: 

  1. Invest in people leadership. And argue for leadership to be augmented by AI, rather than before being fully replaced by algorithms. Unless a person is working exclusively for themselves, I hope we always have a “boss” we can talk to; even if they are predictably imperfect.

Real People in Personal Leadership,

Lorne

One Millennial View: It’s crazy to think that due to the enormous amount of content uploaded to YouTube, the company has no choice but to filter it with algorithms. Fortunately, YouTube videos just live online and aren’t cruising down real life roads. I understand why companies like Uber choose to employ algorithms instead of salaried bosses, but when things do go wrong with actual humans, when will the road get too bumpy for a machine to properly drive the situation? 

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis