It’s a lot easier to get approval/acceptance for change when you frame it as a “pilot”. When people think that something is just being tried-out or is temporary, they are more willing to agree to test it.
Most of us have piloted something, even if we didn’t formally label it that way. We’ve said things like”Let’s give this a go.” or “We’ll see how it works out.” Piloting it is how we experiment or test something.
The problem is that mostly we pilot things that we are going to add or start. Try piloting stopping instead. Get off of a committee and see if it matters — can you get what you need just from reading the minutes? (If not, you can always go back on the committee!) Stop running X report and see if someone misses it. Pilot a plan to eliminate a form or a process. (Does everyone really use all the data you collect and enter?) Test out a bi-weekly meeting/reporting structure instead of weekly and see if productivity suffers. Keep only electronic copies and pilot a “green approach” to no copying/filing of routine work.
Challenge yourself and each staff member to pilot at least one ending strategy. Find something that can be eliminated for “awhile” — and give stopping a try!
— beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
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Month: July 2012
#39 all stars
I’ll bet that the managers of tonight’s MLB All-Star teams wish that they had a roster full of such talent for their regular teams. Wouldn’t we all like that?
But it is probably not a luxury that we will be afforded (or can afford!). A wise colleague of mine counseled that as a leader, we need to evaluate our positions and determine where we had to have “A” talent, where we needed “B” and where we could get by with “C” performance. “You can’t have a team of all-stars,” she said. “But you need to be sure you get A talent in the A jobs.”
It is a pragmatic and insightful way to look at your role of acquiring staff. What positions are critical functions for you and how do you attract the best employees there?
— beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
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#38 play ball
The MLB All-Star Game is tomorrow and it got me thinking about baseball.
Tony LaRussa will be the manager for the National League Team.
Basketball has coaches. Football has coaches. Hockey has coaches. Why is baseball the only team with managers?
Tony will wear the same style clothes as his players.
Basketball coaches wear suits. Football coaches wear polos shirts. Hockey coaches aren’t in hockey jerseys. Why do baseball managers wear team uniforms?
There are lots of differences in the actual sports: all have clocks except baseball; no other sport has double-headers; nobody else is trying to hit the ball out of the playing field, etc. These are inherent distinctions in the game itself so I am more accepting of the variance.
But why the difference with the manager? Tony would look silly walking out in a suit to hand a reliever the ball. But does he really need a big number on his back for the umpires to know who he is? Wouldn’t a polo and some nice shorts work well on those humid summer afternoons?
What about you and your team? Are you a manager where you determine the lineup, call the plays and manage the organization or are you a coach? Does your attire help you to fit in or set you apart?
I wonder what kind of difference any of this makes to the team. But language, appearance, and tradition — they are all powerful symbols that impart meaning. Be intentional about the messages that you are sending when you Play Ball!
— beth triplett
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#37 no contest
In my 6/27/12 blog entry (#26 true grit), I wrote about the Olympic trials. I still am astonished at how late in the process athletes are chosen and dreams are made/crushed depending on just the performance in the qualifying events.
For me, heartache was taken to a new level in this year’s track team trials. Two women vying for the final spot on the team achieved a virtual tie. Jeneba Tarmoh’s time was originally recorded as one second faster. She took the victory lap with the other members of the team. But then the USA Track and Field reviewed the race and could not distinguish a winner.
The organization has no tiebreaking procedures and left it to the women themselves to figure out how to select the qualifier. Officials suggested choosing the team member based upon the flip of a coin. Thus one of the women, who ran a 100m dash in 11.068 seconds, would not be going to the Olympics because of heads or tails! Instead the parties initially agreed to a runoff race (in spite of exhaustion and risk of injury) before Tarmoh decided that she would not contest the tie.
To me, the mental endurance required to move beyond such a finish is even more admirable than the physical stamina required to run with lightning speed. Every day people are required to bear emotional burdens that are caused by unalterable forces. Make every effort that people in your care don’t suffer like this because you weren’t clear about the rules or process for resolving them.
— beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
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(Source: Boston Herald.com, Monte Poole column, 7/3/12)
#36 one mile at a time
My car odometer just logged 100,000 miles. When my first car hit this milestone, I made my sister accompany me to the mall parking lot where we inched our way along so we could see it at 99,999.9 and take pictures (with film, of course) of that and 100,000.0. One-tenth of a mile seems like a very long way when you are trying to achieve it in a parking lot and the whole experience left an impression on both of us.
So when I saw her earlier this week, I let her know that I did it again. “A hundred thousand miles?! Where have you gone?” she exclaimed.
Everywhere and nowhere. It is seven years of driving to work; running to Target; going out to lunch and doing what I term as “stuff-of-life”. There have been trips to visit family or to go on the occasional getaway; house hunting and moving to a new city (cities), but I am sure no trip has ever been near a thousand miles.
The 100,000 milestone is another example of how the little things add up. With enough time and enough persistence you will make an impact — even if you do it one-tenth of a mile at a time.
— beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
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#35 blueberry pancakes
I just spent a few days camping with siblings at our childhood vacation spot (Warren Dunes State Park along the Lake in SW Michigan). We came from Iowa, Minneapolis and Boston to relive the fond memories of decades gone by.
Except for experiencing global warming firsthand, the place was pretty much as we remembered it. We talked about how the trip was like “vacation bingo” — we felt like we were checking off memories that we were reliving and seeing things that still existed from our original time there. Pancakes with fresh Michigan blueberries — check. Seeing sunset over the lake — check. Making pie irons around the campfire — check. Men walking with metal detectors along the beach — check. The cacophony of sandpipers — check. A raccoon digging in the trash during the night — check. It was like that for the entire trip.
Yet while the siblings were re-living this experience, we had new members of the family who were going through the rituals for the first time. In addition to filling them in on what we had to do, we told them stories about climbing the dunes, burying Dad in the sand, going to specific places for day trips, etc. They were being enculturated into the family lore. I hope that as a result, my 4-year old niece will someday bring her kids to this same campground and make blueberry pancakes for them.
How do you help new members of your organizational family learn the stories and legends that bind them to the others? How can you help them live some of those experiences in addition to just hearing about others? Everyone wants to know what will help them call out “bingo” on their own card.
–— beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
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#34 your viewing spot
I went to the fireworks with someone who is crazy about them — the Fourth of July is bigger than Christmas in his world. So it was important to get a PRIME spot near the launch area. We were so close that you could not only feel the sonic booms, but we could actually feel the heat from the explosions. The views were spectacular.
But to obtain this spot, we were there four hours early, in 100 degree heat; of course away from any trees or obstructions (aka “shade”) that could block the view once the show began.
Another friend watched the same fireworks far away on a bluff. He missed the detail and the full sensory experience, but also missed the traffic and extended sweating! Both of us made the right choice of where to watch them based upon what we valued.
The same holds true for many decisions within organizations. Sometimes we need the detail and should be close enough to really feel what is going on. Other times taking a step back and losing the finer points provides a necessary big picture view of the whole show and the overall environment. Both have costs and benefits — be intentional about where you want to watch your show.
— beth triplett (with Mike Cyze!)
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#33 it’s never too late
Joaquin Arciago Guzman, age 102, just took the oath to become an American citizen. He is the oldest person to do so. I wonder what his story is — what prompted him to study hard, pay the dues and pursue this goal at such a ripe old age. I am very glad that he did!
Maybe Mr. Guzman will inspire someone whom he has never met to do that thing that has been nagging at them for decades. Finish that degree. Write that book. Buy that farm. See those sights. Start that business. Pursue that happiness.
We are surrounded by people who can serve as examples of how to say YES. His kind of spirit and gumption is part of the fabric of what makes us Americans. I salute Mr. Guzman and hope that others emulate his optimism. God Bless America.
— beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
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(USA Today, 6-28-12)
#32 playing with fire
Have you noticed the proliferation of “fire pits” in neighborhoods? I don’t remember anyone having them a few years ago, but now they seem to be the hot item (pun intended) in driveways and back yards.
I think that these fire pits are the modern day water cooler or the equivalent of chatting across the fence while hanging laundry in times gone by. People are drawn to community, and when the pace and trappings of affluent America rob them of the informal encounter, they gravitate to what brings it back. Privacy fences keep people out and air conditioning keeps people in — so much so that many go without ever seeing their neighbors, let alone knowing them.
Thus many young couples gather around a fire ring to kindle relationships and nurture the primitive longing that people have to tell stories and connect with others. One neighborhood even has a “man-fire” where the males utilize the fire pit as an excuse to gather and build bonds.
What is the equivalent of a fire pit for your organization? Think of how people are encouraged to create community and to gather in less formal ways. Fire is powerful — even if it is in metaphorical ways, use it to draw people toward each other.
— beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
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#31 don’t make me do it
Last summer I spent many happy hours reading an 1,166 page book (Master of the Senate by Robert Caro). I continuously have a book or two that I am reading — all by choice.
As part of the preparation for a workshop I am attending next week, I am required to read three books. You would think that I would dive right into them, but I have been staring at them for several weeks. I don’t want to read them because I am required to read them. Somehow the thrill is gone.
I think the word “mandatory” causes similar bristles in others. If we have required sexual harassment or diversity training, some people don’t want to be there just because they have to be there. If we make orientation “mandatory”, it gives the impression that it is punitive instead of something people wouldn’t want to miss. Required reading has the same aura — if it is such a great book, shouldn’t people want to read it instead of being forced to do so.
I required my staff to read a book for our annual retreat, and now I wish I had not done so. I am sure at least some of them felt the same way and wanted to rebel at what was being imposed upon them. I should have shared some concepts and raved about how great it was in order to encourage them to want to read it.
How much better it would be if we touted merits instead of requirements. I am reminded of a quote by Antoine de St. Exupery: “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.”
–— beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
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