What’s your Superpower?

An acquaintance in Kuwait asked me that question. She’s actually writing a book on the link between superheroes and our own personal experience, so she tried out the question. I thought a moment and described my superpower as “seeing around the corner”. Like many leaders, I exist for the future. Whether in my personal life or my work, I feel the need to see beyond.



Then she followed up with; “What superpower are you developing?” That took a moment to think through, but I soon nailed it – “the power of now”. You see, I have caught myself often looking so far ahead that I miss today. I evaluate today by whether it has any reference or relevance to tomorrow and end up missing the power (and the joy) that exists today.

It’s a ‘curse’ of the nomadic leader – looking down the road for the next oasis, the next opportunity, the next customer, the next phase of development. Yet this is also a necessary superpower. It’s critical for the survival and impact of an organization or business. Stay too long in one place and you and your organizations’ vitality may be at stake.

What are some of the consequences of NOT using the superpower of “seeing around the corner”?

• Loss of ability to look around at the skies, the weather & climate to see where the best pasture is. You may lose the skills of discerning and evaluating the conditions around you in order to find opportunities. Keep exercising this skill, because as I have learned about the languages I have acquired in the past: “If you don’t use it, you lose it”.
• Inertia. Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs describes one of the foundational needs of humans as safety/security. When we find it, it’s hard to give up. Any of you involved in change management know the power of this need! Once settled in, people are difficult to move. Yet the lifeblood and effectiveness of many organizations requires their leaders to know when and why to pull up stakes (& disturb security) so that they can reach their full potential and impact.

But what of the superpower: “the power of now”? There are consequences to spending too much energy and time focused on what’s next:

• People get weary of a leader who never settles down. It feels to employees that just as they get comfortable with a system, a skill or an approach, things change.
• It drains your organization of valuable energy. If leadership & employee energy is too often focused on change, or the ever-present prospect of change, energy for actually delivering your core purpose is diverted.
• You begin to think that the future is the current reality! It isn’t, and it will take a lot of ‘today’ people to pull you out of the clouds to consider the details needed to get to the future.
• You miss the immediate needs of your most valuable resource –the people who will eventually get you to your preferred future. Yes, people want a leader to see ahead, but they also want their leader to turn around and notice them. I recall an incident with an international team I worked with, where the leader was leading us (with all our luggage) through the streets of Hong Kong en route to a new hotel. We were walking. He walked so fast, without looking back to see whether his team was with him, that eventually they became strung out over about 5 city blocks! Every once in a while STOP, turn around, forget the future.
• The joy of just living in today is lost. If everything is evaluated on its relevance to the future, the simple joy of today is diminished. For many of your followers, today IS more important than tomorrow. It’s where and how they live. Therefore as a leader, enter into TODAY and see value in it.

So, to those of you with the overdeveloped superpower of seeing around the corner, remember this:

Today is the only foundation you have for tomorrow.

Earthquakes and Expectations

A brief departure from my regular blog topics on nomadic leadership - but on second though, perhaps not! While wandering the landscape of leadership, you will be sure to encounter crisis...

Any leader has to live with shifting expectations of followers, clients and stakeholders. Right now I wonder how the various leaders of the aid efforts in Haiti feel? In the initial days of the crisis, all eyes are on the crisis itself. Concern runs deep. Focus is on the people who are most affected. But then "someone" has to mobilize and deploy the resources needed to address the situation. Here is where leadership has to take the reins and the responsibility. In these kinds of situations, the decisions over how to help in a crisis are often themselves made in a context of crisis. Not all the information is at hand. Resources are not always fully in place. Yet action is needed. There is no perfect process, but the leader has to step up to the plate.

And here is where it gets interesting. Every time we watch the international response to massive disasters like this, it only takes a few days for criticism to pour in over the leadership of the effort to deploy aid. It's either not fast enough, or it's too slow, or not the right kind of help at the right time.

Funny how we all can lead so effectively from the chair in front of the TV.

Leading in a crisis is fraught with the competing expectations of multiple stakeholders in the process. What can you, in that situation, do to provide strong leadership?

Slow down

Panic generates speed. The human fight or flight response is a naturally occuring defense mechanism. It becomes our default response when we are faced with danger. It also is seen in group response to issues. Look at the world reaction to the financial crisis of Sept 2008.(This is also associated with another sociological phenomena: the 'mob mentality'). Good leaders calm their own panic by deliberately slowing down their thinking, resisting the panic-reaction. Your brain is a stage and if there are too many actors on it, internal chaos ensues. Remove some of the actors. Clear your mental space of the clutter that comes with crisis so that you can order your thoughts when others' thoughts are in disarray.

Friends of mine in another business recently shared with me that leaders have been conditioned for forward motion and for advance; to always keep the wind in our sails. The idea of slowing down and coasting is perceived as sure defeat in a competitive, forward motion world. Yet there is a time when 'coasting' is actually a good thing. In fact, all of life is based on a principle of 'oscillation' - periods of growth combined with rest. Take a walk, get away with your team, physically move away from your current environment so you can center your thoughts.

Gain clarity

Gain clarity on 2 fronts:

1. The Facts. This is not just a matter of getting the facts, but then of accepting them. It does you and your employees/followers no good to deny what is going on. The people you lead are not naive. They can see the same landscape as you. You may know more of the details, you may be able to see farther, but you are not the only one 'in the know'.

2. The Future. This may be one of the best times for you to gain clarity on your personal and corporate purpose. Why?

◦ Purpose is both an anchor and a beacon. It holds us down in a storm and it directs us to the future. So, a crisis is a gut-check time. Is your personal purpose and your corporate purpose in sufficient alignment for you to lead with integrity? Are you anchored so as not to panic yet able to see the future with hope and confidence? You will lead with more confidence and competence when this alignment is in place.

◦ Retaining the energy, focus and effort of employees/followers in uncertain times depends more than you think on their connection with the long term vision and purpose of the organization. People decide on how much of themselves they will give to their work depending on the level to which they feel they are connected to something they believe in. A Harris Interactive poll quoted by Steven Covey in his book "The 8th Habit" indicated only 37% of workers have a clear understanding of the purpose of their organization. What do you think that does to productivity and effectiveness? A disconnect like this when crisis hits only further diminishes the very energy you need from your people to make it through a tough time! They are more likely to stay with you if they know you have both an anchor and a beacon. In uncertain times clarity on purpose creates certainty, (which translates to loyalty)and hope (which leads to forward energy).

Communicate

“Communicate deeply but quickly. In times of crisis people's fears matter to an organization even more than they should during “normal” times. If everybody in an organization believes they are on a sinking boat, they will disengage - thus increasing the vulnerability and accelerating the downward spiral of the organization.”(Holger Nauheimer, 2008, The Change Management Newsletter: http://www.change-management-toolbook.com). Nauheimer also declares that truly transformational leaders will walk the talk in front of their people, demonstrating what it means to wrestle with reality, make tough decisions and communicate them wisely. Your actions will inspire them to make wise decisions too. Have regular, short meetings with different groups within your organization. Tell them what you are doing to address issues. Get feedback on how your actions to address uncertainty are working. Encourage honesty and transparency so that you can hear their opinions and ideas. This process though 'labour-intensive', will increase confidence and loyalty within your teams. You might want to consider using an external facilitator to help with communications. During times of crises or uncertainty, people tend be guided by their assumptions. It is difficult internally to challenge those perspectives. An external, strictly impartial facilitator can help to map out different assumptions and guide teams to productive outcomes.

Conclusion:

Concerning the advance of human discovery throughout history, Daniel Boorstin in his book The Discoverers concluded that “the greatest barrier to discovery is not ignorance, but the illusion of knowledge”. A leader's current ignorance of the strategies needed to navigate uncertainty or crisis is not the final factor determining success or failure. Believing you already know what there is to know is the greatest danger because it blocks you from the learning needed to create new solutions for new conditions.

Earthquakes will stir up a pot of competing expectations. People will always criticize your decisions. Lead anyway. The people IN THE CRISIS matter more than the people "calling the play from the couch".

Ready for Risk?

Welcome to 2010. Last year was a year of risk for me. It's a regular part of any nomadic leader's journey. You cannot keep seeking and changing without coming face to face with challenges to your (or your organizations') status quo. At that point you face RISK.

Speaking of RISK: My question for anyone for whom risk is part of the equation on their current journey, is not so much are you willing to take the risk, but are you ready? Many are willing...you hear them boldly talk about their plans & dreams. That's great. But are they READY? Readiness means you have gone beyond the talk and are now giving energy to seriously count the cost. Here's something that can help you move to the READINESS stage:

TO RISK OR NOT TO RISK?
4 Simple Questions to Help Assess Any Risk
From the book: TAKE THE RISK by Ben Carson, MD

These questions help you consider the various possibilities in a reasonable, logical manner before making an uncertain or risky decision.

1. What is the worst thing that could happen if I went ahead with this decision?



2. What is the best thing that could happen if I went ahead?



3. What’s the worst thing that could happen if I don’t go ahead with this decision?



4. What’s the best thing that could happen if I don’t go ahead?


In answering the questions, think of these additional key-words for acquiring the knowledge and wisdom necessary to make your decision:

Who? – Who would be most affected by any decision made? Revisit the 4 questions not only from your point of view, but from theirs too.

What? – What do you need to know in order to more clearly make this decision? Get informational support and people support/advice. Ultimately, however, this decision is yours to make and not dependent on others' viewpoints.

Where? – Where are you going (does this fit your goals and values)? Where are you now (your skills, abilities, knowledge, thinking, attitudes)? Where will you start (your preparation)?

When? - Often the timing of these questions affects the conclusion. Times change. So do circumstances. Does this fit into life now? What about in two years?

How? - What’s the plan for each of the scenarios? Is the ‘how’ a workable, realistic strategy?

Why? - Why is one of the most important questions to ask – what are your motives, your personal values around this risk?

If you are contemplating something new this year, I leave you with a quote that I heard many years ago (author unknown) that has served me well whenever I have a dream of changing something running through my head...

If not you, then who? If not now, then when?

How Long is that Bridge?

On our nomadic journey around this world, my wife Becky & I have crossed the lines of ethnic and organizational cultures numerous times in our lives. We have noticed an interesting phenomenon:

• When the cultural bridge spans a great deal of space, our expectations for adjusting are calibrated accordingly. If the new place is significantly different from where we came from, we expect most things to be different and therefore allot more emotional space and energy to our adjustment because it’s so obvious that things are different. Transition is still a challenge, but we are aware that there is a lot of ground to cover.

• When the cultural bridge is perceived to be shorter; when appearances lead us to believe that the gaps won’t be too difficult to cross, we don’t allot as much transitional time & space, believing we can hit the ground running in relatively good time! HOWEVER, this is often to our detriment as we then believe we won’t have as difficult a time adjusting, communicating or understanding. When cultural clashes do arise, we are surprised because we set ourselves up for a minimal amount of adjustment. Our expectations leap-frog reality.

When we moved to Indonesia in 1988, I went expecting everything to be different. I was a Canadian boy whose only ‘overseas’ experience was a 1 hour ferry to Vancouver Island! My wife on the other hand was born & raised in Malaysia until she was 12, then spent another 4 years in Hong Kong. She felt going to Indonesia would be easier for her because of that. Problem was, it wasn’t. Her expectations exceeded reality. The tools she previously used and expectations of life she had once experienced as a child/teen living in Asia now did not match. Her adjustment therefore was double mine – not only adjusting TO a new culture, but adjusting expectations AWAY from what she had experienced.

I have moved across cultures within the same organization. While I found that some of the processes & policies were familiar, often the stories and perspectives differed significantly. Walking in with the same assumptions because you are from the same organizational family usually won’t serve you well. Organizations essentially are people. They are not their assets or products. People in work units, departments or divisions form a type of family cohesiveness through shared stories, history and function. Knowing that ‘culture’ is essential to your success when crossing that shorter bridge.

The greater the gap, the more we expect it will take time to cross that bridge. However when you cross a seemingly shorter bridge, walk slowly. Near-cultures, be they ethnic or organizational, still have patterns and habits lying under the surface that only emerge if you have a curious spirit and deliberately take time to observe, assess and adjust. (Just ask Canadians working in America or Kiwis in Australia)

Read and "Wander"

I don't know what your area of leadership competence and interest is. Likely you immerse yourself in that world through reading and training in that stream. However let me challenge you to break out and learn about life & leadership by reading in areas you would not normally go. The Nomadic Leader wanders into new areas of the landscape and sometimes finds resources and sustenance that surprises (and nourishes) them. Don't stay stuck in the same path. Wander.

2 book recommendations - one outside the leadership stream, and one inside:



1. "The Discoverers", authored by Daniel Boorstin.

Subtitled 'A History of Man's Search to Know His World and Himself', it is a history of human discovery. Discovery in all its many forms are presented - exploration, scientific, medical, mathematical and the more theoretical ones such as time, evolution, plate tectonics and relativity. He praises the inventive, human mind and its eternal quest to discover the universe and our place in it. Boorstin writes, "My hero is Man, the Discoverer. The world we now view from the literate West...had to be opened by countless Columbuses. In the deep recesses of the past, they remain anonymous." It's a book filled with what occurs when man allows himself to be nomadic, to wander and discover.

My favourite leadership lesson from this book: "The greatest barrier to discovery is not ignorance, but the illusion of knowledge"



2. "Shackletons Way; Leadership Lessons from the Great Antarctic Explorer".

Numerous books have been written about the great Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton. If you are not a history buff, but want a “Coles Notes” version, Shackleton’s Way is specifically written with leadership lessons in mind - extracted from the various stages of the famous, though ill-fated voyage of the Endurance (1914-1916). This is a book about the character of leadership in seemingly hopeless situations. Unpredictable conditions in the Antarctic resulted in Shackleton’s ship, with its crew of 27, ultimately crushed in the ice before they ever reached their goal. Imagine the leadership strength required and the responsibility forced on you when you are stranded on an ice flow, 1900 km from the nearest outpost of civilization! It’s a harrowing tale of a 2 year fight for their lives in the inhospitable and bleak conditions of the Antarctic. Ernest Shackleton’s leadership enabled the survival of all 27 men. Napoleon once said that ‘leaders are dealers in hope’, a quality supremely exemplified in Shackleton, but a quality sadly lacking in many across the leadership spectrum. People are hungry for hope – just recall the power of Obama’s election strategy. How you as a leader deliver on that hope is one of the great reasons to read this book.

The book is divided into 7 sections, each telling a portion of the story and simultaneously extracting leadership lessons based on the actions of Shackleton (and many of his men). You will encounter new perspectives on how leaders are formed, hiring practices, creating and nurturing teams, crisis management and overcoming obstacles.

Antarctica looms large in our psyche as a place of isolation, harsh conditions, and a test of endurance. Most of us would not place it on our bucket list of places to visit. But I encourage you to step into this story of leadership in a difficult environment.

You wait. Everyone has an Antarctic...even here in Kuwait!

Times of Transition

TIMES of TRANSITION

Nomadic leaders are in a context that inherently involves times of transition. People come in and out of our organizations, the surrounding culture or economic climate changes, our roles shift in order to accommodate to these realities, AND there comes a time when we leave the organization to take on another role. It’s this last transition I want to address since this is the season I am currently in.

It’s real and raw at this moment.

William Bridges is a well-respected author and consultant on transitions. In his book Managing Transition – Making the Most of Change; he clarifies a distinction between change and transition:

“It isn’t the changes that do you in; it’s the transitions. Change is situational – the new site, the new boss, new team, new policies. Transition is the psychological process people go through to come to terms with the new situation. Transition is internal. Unless transition happens, change won’t work. People must reorient themselves psychologically if the situational difference is going to work. The starting point for transition is not the outcome, but the ending point that you will have to make to leave the old situation behind. Letting go of the old reality and the old identity is key to transition.”

Transition is not just a nice way to say change. It is the inner process through which people come to terms with change, as they let go of the way things used to be and reorient themselves to the way things are now. Change often feels like a barrier-wall in front of us. We make a decision that disrupts our status quo, or an external influence erects a barrier to our well-laid intentions. Naturally, we look for a way to "get over it." The change is the decision; it is the stark reality of a new reality. What’s next, however, is the most critical piece – it’s your transition.

Bridges suggests we think of transition not as a wall to climb over, but as a gate in the wall that leads to a new path. Getting on that path requires coming to grips with what is going on inside your heart and mind.

To change your attention away from the change-as-barrier and toward the transition-path, you need to start where the transition itself starts: with letting go of the inner connections you had to the way things were. The question that always helps you to shift your focus from the change to the transition is:

"What is it time for me to let go of?"

I am letting go of a number of things and people. My family for one. I left 3 adult children and one of their spouses behind. No more spontaneous meetings at Starbucks, watching hockey games together at the local sports bar, Sunday family dinners. I have also left a tight-knit group of guys who helped me stay the course on a personal and professional level. I have lost regular routines in familiar places. My expectations for a ‘home’ have to be left behind. I left behind a business dream only 1 year into its birth in the belief that this new role would fulfill the essence of my vision for the business. Networks and partnerships have been left behind.

So what is it time for you to let go of? In some area of your life, whether you are leaving an organization or a personal dream, or the organization you lead is changing around you; you are probably in transition right now so this isn't a hypothetical question. Answering this question isn’t always easy but one thing it will do is open up a path that leads to personal and even spiritual growth.

For example, in what sense could it be time for you to let go of that particular way to use your abilities? In what way is your new context giving you an opportunity to express your talents in a different way or context? In what way are you outgrowing the identity that you've been living with for these past years? And if you aren’t appreciated any longer in your old situation, is that loss in any sense a timely one?

Such questions give you a place to start, a path to follow. Every one of them suggests some learning, some discovery that may lie ahead. Each of them represents a gate in that change-wall that blocked your path. While the path you take may not be of your own choosing or desire, it is a path with meaning for you. Following it will bring you out somewhere. Since change is a wall and transitions the gate in that wall, it's there for you to go through it. Transition represents a path to the next phase of your life.

I am a person that follows the Jesus-way in my spiritual journey. William Bridges talks about the ‘psychological’ aspect of transition as the key to successfully moving from one change to the other. I happen to believe it’s more than psychological. It’s spiritual. There is a deeper level of the soul that is affected and must be addressed when life shifts around us. When your secure way of thinking and doing is upset by transition, what or who, anchors you? If it’s just the latest flavor-of-the-month self help guru’s “5 steps to Successful Transition”, you are placing your future on a foundation of shifting sand. What will the next book or seminar feed you? Establishing a grip on your purpose in life is the ultimate stabilizer in times of change. A purpose pulls you forward and helps you see beyond your current condition.

Besides, if it’s all about this life only, what’s the point?

Nomadic Leader - Inaugural Blog Sept 2009

Nomadic people : (Greek: νομάδες, nomádes, "those who let pasture herds") are communities of people who move from one place to another, rather than settling permanently in one location. (WIKI)

A nomad is a member of a people that moves from place to place. That pretty much characterizes my own life. I have pitched my tent in the Canadian cities of Calgary, Regina, Stony Plain & Toronto, the Indonesian cities of Bandung & Semarang, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia and currently Kuwait City.

You still hear the word ‘Bedouin” around here in the Middle East- a term many of us associate with the nomadic life. Here it’s more than a term. They exist as a people and some even with influence in government. In the 1950s as well as the 1960s, large numbers of Bedouin throughout the Middle East started to leave the traditional, nomadic life to settle in the cities of the Middle East, especially as home ranges have shrunk and population levels have grown. Government policies and oil production in the Middle Eastern region, as well as a desire for improved standards of living, effectively led most Bedouin to become settled citizens of various nations, rather than stateless nomadic herders. A century ago nomadic Bedouin still made up some 10% of the total Arab population. Today they account for some 1% of the total. (source: Wikipedia)

Not many traditional nomads left in this world. Yet a nomadic spirit is a contemporary need.

This blog is entitled the “Nomadic Leader”. I have chosen the title carefully. It is firstly a personal reflection of who I am: my wanderlust and passion to experience the world, its people and opportunities (my friends interpret this as “restlessness”). However the title also addresses my passion of leadership and in particular, an aspect of leadership spirit necessary in contemporary institutions and businesses. Effective leadership requires a nomadic spirit.

For various reasons traditional nomads sought new territory; better grazing, more fertile land, peace, etc. The “contemporary nomadism” I endorse for leaders is a response to the ever-shifting opportunities and challenges presented by a world that is increasingly defined by the global highways that carry people, ideas, beliefs, traditions and commerce. Those who lead any type of organization must therefore be somewhat ‘nomadic’ in their thinking; able to view the landscape, respond to multiple cultures, see the potential threats and opportunities, be ready to move when the need arises. Fixed thinking and strategies, while they provide security for a while, will relegate a leader and his or her organization to the sidelines.

Just what this ‘nomadic leader’ might think and believe and do is the ongoing quest of this blog. I want to reflect with anyone out there on this emerging topic. I think a nomadic leader comes out of his/her proverbial ‘tent’ most mornings and ask questions like:

• Where is there new ‘land’ to explore and utilize?
• How can we find new pathways to engage employees & team-mates more effectively, helping them ‘find their voice’ in this world as Covey says. Where is there better pasture for them to feed on and become better people and better employees?
• In what ways can we better engage multiple cultures in our organization?
• What is coming our way as an organization and how nimble must we be in response?
• When is it time to get a new tent?

Looking forward to a nomad’s journey across the global information highway...

Harv Matchullis – currently in Kuwait