The Art of Unlearning

This blog has often featured articles about the joy of lifelong learning. Indeed, scientific research is now showing that embracing learning and our ability to change our minds in the face of new information is connected to wellbeing and longevity. There are times, however, when we must “unlearn” the things that no longer serve us. This is no easy task. Letting go of ideas and belief systems that got us to where we are today is difficult, but ultimately necessary for our growth as professionals and as humans in general. Hortense le Gentil has published a new article in Chief Executive Magazine with some insights on how to heighten your human potential as a leader.

Transitioning from a position in which technical skills were crucial, to a position of leadership, which requires the ability to inspire others is a daunting task. In her new article, le Gentil lays out three steps to reconnecting with the emotionally intelligent side of oneself, to become what she terms a “human leader.”

First, identify the mind traps in the way. These “mind traps” are simply old ways of thinking that become obstacles in a new role. The expertise that allows us to rise in the ranks and succeed in business will usually be ineffectual when it comes to leading others. Letting go of what we see as part of our roles or identities can be scary, so le Gentil recommends taking it slowly, which brings up her second step, changing the mind.

Second, operate a mind shift. Ask three fundamental questions each time an assumption pops up: Is it true?, Is it relevant?, and Is it still helpful today? Sometimes there will be easy and simple answers to these questions, sometimes not. Spend some real time on self reflection; journal, meditate, take a nature walk alone, get a coach or join a leadership peer group like Vistage! Shameless plugs aside, the importance of this step cannot be overstated.

Third, embrace a mind-build. Once the old ideals and expectations are dismantled, we can begin to build new ones that are more in line with the reality of being a leader. How do we want to be remembered, perceived, etc.? Le Gentil recommends the powerful exercise of writing one’s own eulogy to really get at the heart of how we wish to be seen. This is not a one-and-done deal, either. Connecting with the inner self and what makes us human is something that should be done every day, even for as little as 10 minutes.

Le Gentil has helped thousands of leaders grow into their roles through her coaching and through her writing. Do yourself a favor and check out her full article here, or check out her book, The Unlocked Leader here, and share them both with the other leaders in your life.

What Leadership Can Learn From Uncertainty

There are several well-known military acronyms that have entered the civilian vernacular. FUBAR is likely the most famous, with FARP and BOHICA following closely behind (worth a Google if you’re unfamiliar with any of them). One that is less well-known but highly important, is VUCA. Coined in the late 1980s, VUCA stands for: Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity. For those in leadership, these are the well-known disruptors of work life. When the landscape is changing rapidly, data is either overwhelming or insufficient, processes are overly complicated, and trends are difficult to spot, leading a team can feel like a rollercoaster ride. The U.S. Military, specifically the Army War College, has been studying this for many years, and recently, Angus Fletcher, Thomas L. Gaines, Brittany Loney at Harvard Business Review took the research one step further. Working with the U.S. Army Special Operations, these three developed brain-training exercises for leaders to be better equipped during uncertain or volatile times.

The first challenge for leaders in uncertain times is managing data. More data does not mean better decision making. When the road is rocky, an overabundance of data leads to “passivity, mission creep, and hesitation”, according to the authors. They recommend targeting “exceptional information”, or that which is the exception to the rule. Interestingly, in the age of AI we are in, this ability is particular to the human brain. Computers have no ability to weed out the exceptional information during data overwhelm.

The second recommendation is to forego active listening, and embrace active questioning. Of course, active listening still has it’s place in times of smooth sailing, but in rough waters, delay asking the Why. Focus instead on the who, what, when, where and how. Recently the designers of these brain training tools worked with a Fortune 50 company that was losing talent. When asked why they were leaving, these employees always responded the same way: money. Upping the retention offers had no effect, however, so they had to look elsewhere. When they started asking deeper questions about employee’s overall satisfaction in life, they were able to make retention offers that really struck home, and employees stuck around.

Third, don’t plan; instead, be a planner. President Eisenhower once told an audience that “The reason it is so important to plan is to keep yourselves steeped in the character of the problem that you may one day be called upon to solve.” The actual solutions that Eisenhower and others came up during his military tenure ended up being useless. But the process of planning kept them so on target that they were truly ready for anything.

Fourth, use “Emotion Reset” when fear or anger arise. Although these are often considered to be “negative emotions”, from an evolutionary standpoint they kept humans alive by allowing the flight or fight response to activate in our bodies and brains. With the emotion reset technique, leaders are asked to recall a time when either fear or anger arose, and to remember what they did. The idea is to send our brains the message: “You’ve done this before”. This will immediately take us out of the flight or fight response, making it possible for rational thought and calm decision making to prevail.

Since none of us can predict the future, these tools have the potential to greatly assist leadership through volatile times. Do yourself a favor and read the full article here, then send it to all the other leaders you know.

Brain Waves and Workplace Culture

Those who read this blog routinely will know that Wharton’s Nano-Tools for Leaders are shared here with gusto. Recently, the same group that brings us those fascinating and useful tools (the Wharton Neuroscience Initiative) published the results of a study that stands to have a far-reaching impact on workplace culture. With all the blogs, books, podcasts, etc. on improving workplace culture, no one has yet studied how our brain works on work. To do that, Wharton and global consulting company Slalom paired up with volunteers to study brainwaves of people while at work.

The “Slalom 300” as they came to be called (which actually included over 650 volunteers by the end of the study) was inclusive of those in every part of the company. Volunteers wore a brainwave-sensing headset while working, then uploaded data to secure servers. Through this data collection, neuroscientists were able to analyze and come away with a few key findings. First, taking breaks makes our brains work better. This may seem obvious, but in our modern hybridized work situations, we are in more and more back-to-back meetings than ever before. In fact, the average Microsoft Teams user spends 252% more time in meetings now than in February of 2020. Taking at least a 10 minute break between meetings not only led to more efficiency, but higher levels of creativity when it came to problem solving.

The second finding was quite interesting. The researchers found that potential chemistry among team members can be surmised by similar brain wave patterns. Just like friendships outside of the office, those with similar brain wave patterns seem to be drawn to one another. Interestingly, this brain wave activity was not measured when the compatible employees were near each other. Each participant watched a video on separate occasions. The volunteers then listed other employees that they considered friends, and lo and behold, those who were close with each other had the most similar brain activity while watching the videos. Lastly, researchers found that internal optimistic messaging (in Slalom’s case they used the slogan “love your work and life”) did not resonate much with employees who were not engaged in the larger company. In their case, those volunteers working on more of the global platform were not necessary engaged with employees on the local level, which led to a feeling of disconnection. In response, Slalom took steps to build stronger connections between these employees and the company. Give the full article a read here for a deeper dive and to see how this research led to real-world results for Slalom, and how they can be used at your company!

Mandy Hickson on Being a Better Leader

Mandy Hickson knows a thing or two about leadership. As one of the first female pilots in the UK’s RAF, she has had to prove herself time and again. Hickson did so exceptionally, flying in the Tornado GR4, and patrolling no-fly zones over Iraq. In her three tours of duty, she was one of the only female pilots the entire time she served. During her time in the RAF she learned about leading with integrity, about overcoming challenges, and about how all of us have to first fail in order to succeed. She will be featured later this month at Chief Executive Magazine’s ongoing Masterclass series about Women in Leadership, so she recently sat down with them for an interview.

Hickson first discovered her love of flying at age 14, when the RAF still didn’t allow women to join. Despite this, Hickson had made up her mind. She finished school and enrolled at a university, all the while dreaming of a career that she wasn’t allowed into. Then, in the early 1990s, that finally changed. When she was 17 years old, she received a flight scholarship. After a successful career in the RAF she went on to volunteering with the cadets, a program to introduce flight programs to teens. It was there that she realized her ultimate calling; to become a business coach specializing in human performance factors. Hickson uses her history in high-pressure, high-performance situations and coaches leadership to minimize human error, minimize burnout, and minimize stress, all while maximizing communication, maximizing decision-making skills, and maximizing fulfillment. Which, coincidentally, also makes for a very safe flying environment.

Side note: If you want to learn more about Hickson and other women in leadership, check out Chief Executive Magazine’s Women in Leadership series. Their next event is coming up on September 27th (streaming live). Or check out her book, An Officer Not a Gentleman, the inspiring story of how her determination led to achieving a dream that almost never happened.

An "Awe"-ful Mindset

Much has been made in recent years (and with good reason) of the practice of mindfulness. It’s the simple concept of maintaining conscious awareness of the present moment, that isn’t so simple to actually accomplish. Taking in all the thoughts and feelings of each moment can be difficult at first, but also has the ability to drastically shift the mindset, i.e. priorities and outlook, for those who practice. Well, the geniuses over at Wharton have developed a new Nano-Tool that takes mindfulness to the next level. They call it, having an “awe mindset”.

Defined as the feeling of being in the presence of something vast that transcends your current understanding of the world; awe is a concept that may of us lose touch with in adulthood. So how do we get back to that sense of wonder? Dacher Keltner, professor of psychology at UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center; and author of the new book Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life, has given some advice on how to keep the magic of awe in everyday life. Research conducted at Cal and other psychological centers shows that achieving a sense of awe leads to existential feelings of interconnectedness and collaboration. People report feeling less like individuals and more like collaborators in a global family. This is a major change in the day to day life of average people.

Keltner says all it takes is a few moments at the beginning of the day to connect with one of the “8 Wonders”. First, look out for moral beauty, or examples of inspiring virtue or character. Second, collective effervescence, when a group merges into a collective unit. Third and fourth: nature and music. These two are self-explanatory; just go somewhere in nature or listen to some music that reaches your soul. Fifth, take inspiration from visual design - either man-made or natural. Sixth, transcendence: this could be any spiritual experience that fosters a sense of meaning. Seventh, stories of life and death: contemplating the circle of life in any form takes us out of our own drudgery and able to think about the bigger picture. And lastly, big ideas: any philosophical thoughts, scientific discoveries, etc. that inspire deeper thought.

Give the full article a read here to see how leaders put this nano-tool into practice, and how it can help you get back the awe in your life.

Avoiding Burnout While Growing as a Leader

It’s safe to say that one of the only traits common to all leaders is a lifelong love of learning and growth. No matter what myriad of differences separates them, everyone in leadership wants to learn more and be a better leader. One of the reasons why groups such as Vistage exist is that our members are so committed to this growth, both as individuals and as leaders. Unfortunately, another trait that some leaders have is enthusiasm that can lead to being spread too thin (and that’s why it’s so important to have a great coach!). Kellogg’s own Senior Fellow and coach Sanjay Khosla has published a fantastic and coach-approved article on how to strive for this growth without coming to the end of one’s proverbial rope.

According to Khosla, it’s as simple as strategic thinking and a quick, five-step process. First and foremost; know yourself. Make a list of your strengths and weaknesses, ask for feedback from colleagues (and be willing to accept constructive criticism), and be ready to work on areas where growth is needed. Second, manage your energy. Sit down and examine the calendar from the past few months. If more time is being spent in meetings or managing tasks than is warranted, think strategically about how that time could be better spent. Could things be delegated? Could scheduled meetings actually be resolved over a few simple emails? Khosla calls this an “energy audit”, and it is vital in reclaiming time.

Third on this list; pick focus areas. Khosla recommends listing priorities, and interestingly he insists that the first priority of his coaching clients be non-work related. Family or a hobby should come first in order to maintain a work-life balance. Fourth, build a circle of influence. Think about areas that need strengthening and who might best help along the way. Stay in touch with these individuals and be willing to be that person as well. And lastly, choose how you show up. Khosla advises his coaching clients to examine how they present themselves and their information to others. Whether during a meeting or at a big event, he says to think about the information from the audience’s point of view, and how they may want to digest the topic. Keeping the audience engaged is vital to remaining passionate about the subject one wants to learn. If an audience is bored to tears, the presenter may not be inspired to return to that subject, even though it may be an important one. Read the full article here for Khosla’s tips on continued growth while not burning out.

How to Captivate an Audience

Public speaking and presentations can be nerve-wracking even for the most experienced speakers. It just doesn’t come naturally to everyone, even those in leadership. Given that it’s already a common source of anxiety, the best we can hope for is that the audience will pay rapt attention. But in a world of ever-shortening attention spans, how do speakers go about maintaining the focus of the crowd? Matt Abrahams at HBR.org has a new article that will teach us to do just that.

Abrahams explains that capturing attention is not enough. One must maintain that engagement in order to get through to the audience. According to him, speakers must connect on physical, mental, and linguistic levels. First up, physical engagement. Having your audience do something with their bodies during a presentation will capture and maintain attention. Anything from standing up and stretching together for in-person meetings, to virtual introductions or reactions if the meeting is remote.

Second, engage mentally. Abrahams says there are three ways to do this: ask questions, incorporate provocative information, or introduce smart analogies. While asking questions may be an obvious choice, provocative information and analogies can be just as effective at keeping your audience mentally engaged. Third, and perhaps the most compelling, is linguistic engagement. What this looks like in practice is using inclusive words, time-traveling language, and references to shared experiences. For example, using statements like “think back to a time when”, or “picture this” are great ways to keep an audience from losing interest. Give the full article a read here for an in-depth review of how leaders put this into action, and see if it can improve the experience of both speaker and audience.

C-Suite Personal Data Security

Not all that long ago, C-suite data security was a matter of physical file storage, literal locks and keys, and a few strongly-worded NDAs. Over the past few decades, however, that has changed dramatically. Although data security is a matter of concern at all levels of a company, top executives tend to be the most vulnerable targets of data breaches and fraud, simply due to the sensitivity of information that they are privy to. Obtaining an executive’s personal information is generally the first step in this process. Dimitri Shelest, of Chief Executive Magazine, has published a new article on how vulnerable C-suite personal data might be, and also how to go about protecting this information to avoid a larger company-wide data breach down the road.

These days, the data stored by companies isn’t as simple as names and addresses. Companies store browsing histories, purchase histories, political affiliations, contacts, and even biometrics. While all of this data is gathered and stored legally, the amount and details that each of us offers up to private companies is staggering. Most of this data can be sold to anyone willing to pay for it, with no need for a background check or authentication of any kind. Whether the threat comes in the form of personal information being published on social media (as happened after the 2020 election, in which CEOs of voting machine manufacturers saw their personal information published online, leading to death threats aimed at them and their families), or through “phishing” or “whaling” attacks on companies (as happened to a Mattel financial exec who wired $3 million to a fraudster posing as the company’s CEO), targeted attacks can come from all sides.

So what steps do execs need to take to protect themselves and their companies? Well, as is the case with many things, says Shelest, the first step is education. Knowing that they are high-value targets and the threats to look for is the easiest and best way to stop fraud before it starts. After that, Shelest recommends laying low on social media (at least personal accounts), using separate email addresses for highly sensitive information, maintaining strong passwords, and removing oneself from websites that publish people searches. Luckily, in this age of on-demand help, there are companies that can be hired to remove personal information from the internet. For an unbiased list of companies and reviews, click here. All in all, protecting personal data is a must, and especially for C-suite execs. Check out the Shelest article for a full read and make sure you’re doing all you can to protect yourself and your business.

Innovation Broken Down

Workplace innovation is a necessity. Businesses have to keep coming up with new ideas in order to stay ahead of competition, keep up with trends, and keep turnover rates at a minimum. Unfortunately, the idea can also be highly intimidating for some. Most businesses fall back on brainstorming, a process that is in no way guaranteed to work, or sometimes even outsource their creative thinking, costing money that could be better spent elsewhere. So how then, does a leader make the idea of innovation and creative thinking accessible to everyone? Well, the geniuses over at Wharton have published another one of their brilliant Nano Tools for Leaders that outlines the best way to do just that.

Wharton’s Ethan Mollick presents a concise set of seven steps that will spark creative thinking and help overcome hurdles. Based on The Breakthrough Game, which Mollick co-created with game developer Justin Gary, this nano tool is a fun approach to something that not everyone is inherently good at.

First, says Mollick, frame the question. When relying on team-think to come up with creative ideas, open-ended questions lead to more inventive solutions and new ideas. Second, build the team. Get as many diverse opinions and backgrounds as possible for the best outcome. Third, generate raw ideas individually. While this may seem counterintuitive, research shows that many ideas discussed as a group get shot down before their time to conform with the hive-mind mentality. If everyone takes time to come up with a list of ideas before coming together as a group, the more creative ideas get a chance to shine. Fourth, add constraints. Whether time constraints or boundaries about the types of ideas, studies show that these can lead to better ideas. Fifth (which gets back to the third tip), recombine as a group and watch ideas flourish. Sixth, vote! Mollick suggests voting along more than just yes and no lines. Give awards for which ideas stand out as most efficient, most cost effective, etc. And lastly, commit. Without protocols to follow up, and dedicated team member accountability to each step in the process, ideas will eventually fall flat.

Innovation can be intimidating, and having steps can greatly help teams and businesses achieve goals and solve problems. Sometimes it just helps to have it broken down in a seven-step path before we can really get into the meat of the ideas. Check out the full article here for a deeper dive and see what your team can come up with!

Three Traits of a Leader People Will Follow

Sri Amit Ray once said “If you do not lead by example, you cannot expect your team to follow.” All leaders want to set great standards for their teams. This is especially true in this post-pandemic business environment and the associated war for talent. Some people even make a living coaching leaders to be the best version of themselves (wink, wink!). So what does one of the experts say about how best to inspire others? Marcel Schwantes, contributing editor at Inc.com, has published a new article listing his insights on the three characteristics that set certain leaders above others.

First of all, inspiring leaders are selfless. Any exceptional leader knows that their role is not about ego. Whether the head of a country, business, or household, true leadership is about taking care of the needs of the people. Next, inspiring leaders are very good at listening. This blog has featured many articles over the years that discussed the advantages of “active listening”. Despite the name, active listening is actually quite passive. It simply involves listening without any agenda or prepared response. We are not all inherently good at this particular skill, but if it can encouraged, teams and individuals will flourish. And lastly, exceptional leaders serve their employees. This is the aspect of leadership that is perhaps most easily forgotten. Again, however, if those in leadership are able to put ego aside, it’s easy to see that improving the lives of employees is ultimately serving the greater good. Give the full article a read here, and see how you can better inspire your team and those around you.