Leaders: It’s OK to not know everything
Recently, a CEO confided that the
accelerated disruptions occurring in her industry, with the advent of new
technologies, new entrants and new business models, were shaking her usual
confidence. While an expert in her field, she was doubting her adaptability to
the increasingly complex nature of the challenges leaders face today, from work
to home life.
She is far from alone. More and more,
leaders tell us they feel out of their usual comfort zone and on unstable
grounds. They complain they’re “efforting” too much, working harder for weaker
results in a 24/7 environment of crammed agendas and information overload.
What’s the solution? We think it’s about
building your inner agility.
Disruptive times call for transformational
leaders to let go and become more complex themselves to navigate effectively.
Little attention has been paid to the cognitive and emotional load that dynamic
change creates for leaders. It’s an especially onerous burden, because the very
nature of disruption means that leaders must steer their organizations into –
and through – a fog of uncertainty.
It’s increasingly clear that to “do”
agile, you must “be” agile. How do you do that? By growing more complex
ourselves. To do that requires building a bigger inner self so complexity feels
simpler and allows us to move with greater purpose, clarity, inner calm and
impact. Instead of getting frustrated with all the challenges or with ourselves
and our habits, it pays to make the habit your friend.
In our experience, these five personal
practices can contribute meaningfully to the mindset required to lead
effectively in transformative times. They serve as building blocks of personal
inner agility:
1. Pause
to move faster.
Pausing
while remaining engaged in action is a counterintuitive step that leaders can
use to create space for clear judgment; original thinking; and speedy,
purposeful action.
2. Embrace
your ignorance.
Good,
fresh ideas can come from anywhere; competitors can emerge from neighboring
industries; and a single technology product can reshape your business. In such
a world, listening—and thinking—from a place of not knowing is a critical means
of encouraging the discovery of original, unexpected, breakthrough ideas.
3. Radically
reframe the questions.
One way
to discern the complex patterns that give rise to both problems and windows of
emergent possibilities is to change the nature of the questions we ask
ourselves. Asking yourself challenging questions may help unblock your existing
mental model.
4. Set
direction, not destination.
In our
complex systems and in this complex era, solutions are rarely straightforward.
Instead of telling your team to move from point A to point B, join them in a
journey toward an image of the future that sparks inspiration. Lead yourself
and your team with purposeful vision, not just achievements. Instead of asking
“What will we achieve?” ask “How will we know that we are being successful…
beyond targets and metrics?”
5. Test
your solutions – and yourself.
Quick,
cheap failures can avert major, costly disasters. This fundamental Silicon
Valley tenet is as true for you as it is for your company. Thinking of yourself
as a living laboratory helps make the task of leading an agile, ever-shifting
company exciting instead of terrifying.
These practices offer a set of
interrelated touchstones, not panaceas. And they aren’t trivial to tackle. But
conscious, disciplined practice boosts the chances of rising above the harried
din of day-to-day specifics, leading your team effectively, and surveying your
company and its competitive landscape with creative foresight.
As for the CEO who doubted her abilities
to confront increasingly complex challenges with her usual aplomb, we helped her
shift her approach and learn to be OK with not knowing all the answers.
by Johanne Lavoie and Jens
Riese
https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/the-organization-blog/leaders-its-ok-to-not-know-everything?cid=other-eml-alt-mip-mck-oth-1807&hlkid=d23aad80a21043cab58256df955090f4&hctky=1627601&hdpid=063cce5d-85e3-48d9-bf68-935a2be7674b
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