Mousetrap Locus of Control

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Mousetrap Locus of Control

WRITTEN BY: JOEY NG

Mousetrap, it’s a Locus of Control.

Handling an active mousetrap surfaces two very distinctive reaction from our participants – on one hand, there is the almost nonchalant attitude, and on the other hand, too fearful to even consider how embarrassing one’s reaction is.

The differences in these polarize reactions are more than a matter of being able to bear some pain or having confidence in handling the mousetrap. It has plenty to do with the belief in who has more control over each other. Human or Mousetrap?

Locus of Control was part of psychologists Julian B. Rotter’s theory on Social Learning. Developed in the 50s, its original intent was to study human personalities. Over the years, its application stretched into the domain of industry and organizational psychology.

Locus of Control refers to an individual’s perception on how much influence one has over events in his/her life. Spread on a continuum is a set of dichotomies – Internal and External Locus of Control.

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Those who have high internal locus of control believes that they are the responsible of most, if not all, happenings and occurrences in their life. Outcome and future are dictated by their deeds and actions. On the opposite, people who are highly external believe forces outside of their control determine their fate. They are not in-charge of their destiny.

Because they believe success is within their control, those skewed towards internal control are more likely to put in extra effort and by and large, self-motivated and approach activities with more optimism. On the contrary, external believers see their endeavors independent of the outcome, and thus, would likely question the need for additional effort, if there were any at all to start with. They are generally more pessimistic.

Internal locus of control does carry more positives over external, but like everything else, there are potential perils that should not be overlooked. Firstly, not everything is within our powers. By trying to control too much, we could become overly aggressive towards others. Second, we might ignore aspects outside of our grasp that are highly significant. And lastly, we might falsely perceive success or failure as our own doing (some parallels between this point and Attribution Theory).

So back to the mousetrap. Participants react according to how they feel. The feeling of fear and anxiety when handling a mousetrap derives from the anticipation of the worse possible scenario – getting hurt by it. But the matter of fact is, the only way to be hurt by the mousetrap is when it is not properly dealt with. We are the one that handles the functioning mechanisms. So long as the instructions are correctly followed, no harm will occur. In other words, we are in control over the situation and we dictate the outcome – pain or not pain. To succeed in this activity of Mousetrap, it is then essential for one to have high internal locus of control, and believe that they are the difference maker. At the end of the day, the mousetrap is just a … mousetrap. Why should we allow it to control how we feel?

This activity is a great metaphor of the life we face everyday. We all live in the same world and are presented the same challenges. There are of course many aspects of life that are not within our powers to control – like weather phenomena, economic crisis and epidemics. But, we can always control how we react and respond to the situation and influence ourselves and maybe, those close to us.

Look at your hands now; this is where you find success.

Web Reference

http://www.psych.uncc.edu/pagoolka/LocusofControl-intro.html

http://www.attitrade.com/commentary/locus-of-control/

http://www.wattpad.com/724132-locus-of-control

 

 

 

MORE IMPACTFUL FINAL DEBRIEF

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MORE IMPACTFUL FINAL DEBRIEF

WRITTEN BY: DEAN MARTIN

Clients to FOCUS Adventure come from all walks of life, ranging from those with serious objectives for their programs to those who just want their employees to have fun and enjoy the day away from the office. Facilitators spend a bulk of their time trying to master the art of the debrief and actually provide clients with a program which will not only impact them physically but mentally and emotionally as well.

In my experience, the time in which people can actually be impacted most is during the final debrief. However, most of us tend to focus on the activities and regularly cut the final debrief to one which is very short and, in my opinion, may not create the impact we set out to achieve. This is one of my biggest challenges as well and thus, I took up an initiative to find a better way of finding such a debriefing strategy and came across one which seems very promising in the book ‘Awaken the Giant within’.

The biggest message we try to put across to clients in the final debrief is that they need to remember all of the things they speak about and experienced during the program when they go back to the office. The best way to ensure it is that they move away from the program with a firm conviction that in order to improve, they need to change the very way they communicate and deal with each other. Many of us believe that changes take time, however, a book written by Anthony Robbins – a very successful individual in the field of turning people’s lives around – basically claims that change can occur in an instant. This can be done using a framework with 3 basic steps:

 

The first thing that the client needs to believe is that in order for things to improve, something must change. What could this change be? It could perhaps be the application of the lessons learnt during the activities back at the workplace.

The second step is to believe that change starts with me. This can be linked to the morning portion in which we inform the clients that the people who are responsible for achieving the expectations they set is themselves, and drill into them the fact that the change needs to start somewhere and the best place to begin is oneself.

The third step is to believe that I can make the change. We could stand around talking all day about how well the activities went and how much fun we had along the way, but the essence of the entire program comes with the knowledge in each client that they can change the way they have been functioning all this time and experiment something new which could boost their efficiency much more.

The final question to ask after everyone has absorbed all 3 steps is “Are we willing to make the change?”

 

Give the clients a short while to ponder on the point and then, move into the video and closing segment of the program. I think this is something that truly impacted me and inspired me to write this as soon as I read it. I hope it has the same impact on all of you and I am very sure I will try it to see if it works in one of my programs which involve a lot of learning soon. Combined with the concept of making the client figure out the purpose behind all the activities we do, I think it has the potential to have an unforgettable impact if executed well.

 

MONKEYS, BANANAS, WATER & POLE

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MONKEYS, BANANAS, WATER & POLE

WRITTEN BY: ADAM CHAN

In an experiment, four monkeys were placed in an enclosure. In the enclosure, there is a pole. Atop the pole were some juiciest bananas waiting to be grabbed by the monkeys. Indeed, with no hesitation, the monkeys started scaling the pole for their pricy rewards. However during their climb, they were doused with a cold stream of water from the top thus preventing them from getting to the bananas. Monkey likes water slightly more than cats. That how much they would enjoy the splash. In the end, none climb the pole anymore.

In the next stage of the experiment, the scientists removed three monkeys from the enclosure and introduce another three new monkeys that were never splashed. The new monkeys responded to the bananas immediately in the same way which first batch had. The first monkey has seen and felt the cold water; with all his might he prevented the three new ones from climbing the pole. He shouted, growled, pulling legs, jumped up and down, etc. In the end, the three new monkeys even without experiencing the splash of cold water, they did not climb the pole again and they were not soaked.

In the final stage of the experiment, two monkeys were removed and three new ones were introduced. In the enclosure, there were two existing monkeys. One which has seen the water and the other has not. The three new ones responded to the bananas immediately, jumping onto the pole at the first instance. One of the existing monkey that was not splashed previously by water nor has seen the water, bared his teeth, shouted, jumped, growled at the three new monkeys, prevented them from climbing without knowing the reasons behind it. Eventually, no monkey gets to eat the bananas.

What is the connection between the monkeys, bananas, pole and water to corporate culture? Our beliefs are subterranean a.k.a. iceberg beliefs or more commonly known as assumptions. We think of assumptions are the by-products of iceberg beliefs. Most people are familiar with our assumptions but are not discerning about our iceberg beliefs. It takes some willingness and effort to discern its existence and its potent effect it has on our cognitive development. As stated by BF Skinner, humans can be conditioned both positively and negatively. Operant conditioning is the most popular behavioral phenomenon discovered by him in the 60s which set forth the school of behavioral science in the field of psychology.

The monkey story above has demonstrated the definite effects of conditioning coming from external stimulus that has reinforced, changed, altered, transformed, inculcated, influenced, etc the behaviors of the monkeys, to be precise, their beliefs. This can be true for humans too. The facts in the monkey experiment have such uncanny similarity to the works in any organization.

Senior staff members can easily influence the new comers in both the good and the bad manner; this is one parallel aspect between the story and reality.

New comers adapt and live the existing culture with no discernment, following suit for the sake of compliance, in a total blinded manner.

Conditioning is potent as the effect it exercises on us is unobtrusive and subliminal. Conditioning can be premeditated too. Both constructive and destructive results can be achieved by understanding the mechanics of conditioning. Like the movie Spiderman, with great power comes great responsibilities. Leaders, Head of departments, CEOs, Directors have the authority and opportunities to do so. With or without the knowledge of conditioning, they are exercising it daily in both verbal and non-verbal communication occasions. Let’s understand its power use it wisely both at work

Source:
The Resilience Factor by Karen Reivich and Andrew Shatte, Chapter 12.

 

MINDFULNESS & ITS IMPACT IN THE WAY WE REACT TO EVERYTHING

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MINDFULNESS & ITS IMPACT IN THE WAY WE REACT TO EVERYTHING

WRITTEN BY: MUGAN TAYALAN

From the moment we get out of bed, we are bombarded with many distractions. Distractions include emails, notifications, messages, social media updates and many more have largely defined how we start the day. Within moments, our attention span gets shortened. Given the fast paced and busy schedules that most of us adhere to on a daily basis, how then do we slow down and focus in order to make correct and informed decisions? The answer is Mindfulness.

Each of us has 100 billion neuro connections in our brains. Yet, according to a study by Heart Math Institute, only about 15% of them are activated. This is because we focus so heavily on the outer world. Mindfulness is the practice of self observation without judgement, with a focus on inner world. Some mindful practices include daily meditations, blogging or jogging alone. In a fast paced world that we live in, mindfulness helps to clear our mind of distractions, retain focus on important priorities and be more creative. Dr Andrew Newberg, a Neurologist and Director of Research at Philadelphia’s Myrna Byrd Centre of Integrative Medicine, did a study on the brains of spiritual leaders during their meditation and prayers. He concluded that the more an individual does a “practice like” meditation, the bigger the brain gets and the better the brain functions.

Harvard University’s research showed that 2 months of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is the first study to prove that it produced physiological changes. MBSR has heightened cortical thickness in the hippocampus, which controls memory and the prefrontal cortex which affects planning, sight and emotions. The study also showed a decrease in brain cell volume in the amygdale, which triggers stress, anxiety and fear.

Therefore, a diligent approach to mindfulness can help that split second of a mental space between an event/stimulus and the response to it. A split second is all it takes to be the difference between making a rushed decision that potentially leads to failure and an informed decision that leads to performance enhancement. This is also the difference between reacting in anger and being patient and calm. No matter what happens externally, we always have a choice to find the meaning that we create internally.

At this point, some of us may start to wonder whether mindfulness training helps to develop people. The answer is Yes and No.

Yes, because studies have shown that mindfulness training improves three aspects of us at work: resilience, collaboration and ability to lead in challenging situations.

No, because mindfulness development depends on the level and amount of practice that is done on a regular basis. Without any or even minimal practice, mindfulness cannot be well developed.

According to Bill George, Senior Fellow at Harvard Business School, he shared that one of the reasons for Google’s success is that mindfulness is practiced to improve the health and decision making of its leaders. This is also the key factor for their innovative and harmonious culture. Research done by Mr Richard Davidson of Wisconsin demonstrated direct correlation between mindfulness and changes in the brain: move away from anger and anxiety and move towards a sense of calm and well-being. University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)’s Mindful Awareness Research Centre discovered that mindful meditation increased attention span and decreased distraction better than medication in most cases.

One way to boost willpower and focus is to manage distractions instead of letting them manage us. The key to effective leadership is the ability to integrate our Head (IQ) with our Heart (EQ). Once we are able to successfully integrate them, leadership qualities such as passion, compassion, courage from the heart along with awareness, thought processes and informed decision making from the head can be exhibited.

Our minds and thoughts can be trained and results will show through regular practice. Here are some ways in which we can become more mindful:

  1. Practice at least 15 minutes of mindfulness training each day. Meditation or Yoga is a good start or just having more quiet time to connect with one’s inner world will allow for heighted suggestibility and improved performance.
  2. Remove all distractions such as phones, people, emails etc and focus solely on one’s breath, with the whole body relaxed throughout the session
  3. Avoid reading emails or looking at the phone/laptop screens first thing in the morning. This may increase the stress levels and distract the mind from its highest potential. Our minds are generally most focused, creative and expansive in the morning. Instead, look at them after practicing mindful training.
  4. Avoid multitasking. Multitasking allows the brain to shift from tasks to tasks, sometimes consciously or sub-consciously. Mentally shut down all incoming tasks entering our thoughts and maintain focus on the task on hand.
  5. Control one’s breathing: recommended to follow the Yoga’s Pranayama Breathing exercises for instance and feel the lightness in the body, all focus on self.
  6. Keep practicing daily and results will eventually show through the work output and the enhanced quality of life

 

Mindfulness training is not a magic that would give instant cures and remedies. But when this is practiced correctly and consistently, it will help us to select our responses more actively and make informed choices rather than succumb to reactionary decisions.

Written by Mugan TAYALAN (Facilitator)
on 3rd April 2017

 

MASLOW HIERARCHY OF NEEDS AND TEAMBUILDING

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MASLOW HIERARCHY OF NEEDS AND TEAMBUILDING

WRITTEN BY: DAMIEN TEONG

Resonating Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs theory of a person and applying it in a Team.

I have always been intrigued by theories created by the founding fathers of Psychology, and among these founding fathers, Abraham Maslow is perhaps and arguably one of the more profound ones. He stressed the importance of focusing on positive qualities in people as opposed to treating them as a “bag of symptoms”, which led him to found and create his theory best known as Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

His theory, namely Maslow hierarchy of needs suggests that there are 5 levels of motivation and each level has to be achieved before one can proceed to the next level. These 5 levels are namely, Physiological needs, Safety Needs, Belongingness and love needs, Esteem needs and finally self-actualization.

For the rest of this article, although profoundly abstract, this article would demonstrate how Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs theory can be applied into the Teambuilding framework.

First of all, the most basic level, Physiological needs refers to the physical requirements for human survival. In Maslow’s context, an individual has to first satisfy this level of needs before him or her can proceed on to the next level of needs. In the context of Teambuilding, the team must have some form of compensation or revenue for it to continue its survival.

The second level refers to safety needs; safety needs refer to absence of threats to physical safety such as war, natural disaster or violence. Safety needs also include personal security, financial security, health and well being and safety net against accidents/illness and their adverse impacts. In the context of an organization or a team, it would refer to the trust and faith in the skill sets of the individual team members and that each team member would have the backing for one another. It could refer to competition from other competing teams and/or organizations which could threaten the source of revenue, resources or compensation. Hence the team would have to ensure that their survivability is ensured.

Next level along the hierarchy of needs would be love and belonging. Superficially, this level of needs refer to the interpersonal relationships and feelings of belongingness; that said, it is highly important for an individual to achieve love and belongingness as deficiency in this level of needs can override the need of safety as witnessed in children who cling to abusive parents resulted with negative impact to the individual’s ability to form and maintain emotionally significant relationships. In the context of a team, it would refer to the loyalty of the members towards one another and if they feel a sense of belongingness to the team and if the team’s mission and values resonate with the individual. It would be of imperial importance for the team member to resonate with the team’s mission and values or in the very least align his/her values with the organization’s/team’s.

With the previous three levels of needs satisfied, the next level of needs would be Esteem needs. Everyone has a need to feel respected which includes the need to have self-esteem and self-respect. Esteem refers to the need/desire to be recognized, accepted and value by others. Maslow identified that most people have the need for stable and consistent self-respect and self-esteem. Malsow also noted that there is a “lower version” and a higher version” of esteem needs. The lower version refers to the need for respect from others (such as fame, status, recognition and attention) and the higher version presents itself as a need for self respect (an example is that an individual may have a need for strength, competence mastery of a certain skill , self confidence and independence). Maslow noted that this higher version would take precedence over the lower version as the higher version depends on individual competence through experience and deprivation of these needs may lead to inferiority complex, weakness and helplessness.

Esteem needs for a team could most likely be referred to branding or brand establishment. The need for an established and recognized brand is almost similar to Malsow’s identification of the need for stable self-respect and self-esteem. While the lower version of esteem needs seem to resonate with the principles of having a strong and recognizable brand, the higher version of esteem needs would refer to the team members achieving strong competency levels in what they are doing, professionalism and a high standard in its industry.

Maslow also emphasized that while he originally thought that the needs of humans had strict guidelines, he came to believe that the hierarchies are interrelated rather than sharply separated and that esteem needs and the subsequent levels are not strictly separated; instead, the levels are closely related. Thus, in the context of an organization or a team, the subsequent levels or the basic needs of survival and safety are just as important as belongingness to a team or a mission and also as important as developing core competency levels with professionalism.

The next level, self-actualization refers to what a person’s full potential is and the realization of that potential of that potential. In other words, “What a man can be, he must be”; for this level, individuals may perceived or focus this need specifically, such as becoming an ideal chef or in other scenarios, it may be expressed in paintings, pictures or inventions. Maslow went on to mention that the individual must master the previous needs in order to understand this level of need.

In the context of a Team or an organization, the Team/Organization would strive to achieve what is their ideal form in terms of utilizing individual’s strengths and weaknesses to complement one another.

In his later years, Maslow discovers a further dimension of needs, namely self transcendence. Throughout this process, he criticize his own version on self-actualization; “the self only finds its actualization in giving itself to some higher goal outside oneself, in altruism and spirituality”. In other words, if a team were to reach this level, it would be giving itself a higher goal outside the Team itself. The Team/Organization would be looking at developing the industry, reshaping the industry, bringing or moving the industry as a whole. The Team would be concentrating its efforts into developing leaders and the direction of its vision as well.

With all these theories in mind, it begs the question of why would this Hierarchy of needs theory be useful in developing Teams or Individuals? Maslow theorize this theory in an effort to understand how do people improve themselves and why and what was their motivation; thus, if we know if an individual is on a certain level, what kind and type of motivation he or she or the Team requires to move up to the next level. Although there have been critics saying that this manner of understanding people is humanistic in nature rather than contesting on the facts that humans are perverse in nature, nonetheless, it is a useful theory in understanding and finding out how to motivate an individual or a Team.

 

MAGIC AND INNOVATION

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MAGIC AND INNOVATION

WRITTEN BY: JOEY NG

Magic and Innovation – An Analogy

“Logic only gives man what he needs…Magic gives him what he wants.” – Tom Robbins

Magic defies the law of logic.

Logic is common sense. Through our common sense, we form a perception of how things should be, which in turn, shapes our basic expectation of how things should become. When things turn out the way they were meant to (in accordance with our own set of universal logic), common sense prevails and our expectations are met. So, if our intention is to not match but exceed expectations, then changes must be introduced to break or disrupt the pattern of logic and common sense.

People like changes; this is inherent in our nature. We enjoy things that are new and fresh, things that are different and exceed what we would normally expect. People like surprises. These are some of the reasons why magic is such a popular form of art.

So is Innovation a form of art or a scientific subject? The debate is endless. There are numerous ways to define and describe Innovation, and however it is explained, it surely has to involve the element of change.

Magic and Innovation are similar in many ways and both share many characteristic and descriptive. The main idea behind Magic is to surprise by presenting the unexpected. This is the same for the concept of Innovation. Innovation requires the outcome to be different, original, to shift away from the norms. It would be contradictory to claim an idea to be innovative when everyone knows what the outcome would be.

Another key feature both Magic and Innovation shares lies in the significance of the presentation. For all his fame and reputation, the tricks/effects performed by David Copperfield (perhaps the most wellknown magician/illusionist) are not very different from what lesser known illusionist others can do. The key difference is in the way David Copperfield presents his magic, in the form of storytelling combined with music and stage lighting. The same goes for Innovation. When a new idea is launched, the way it is package and presented will hugely influence how well it is accepted by the market. Sometimes, an idea can sell by itself, other times, it needs something extra to push the idea.

Here is a list of other similarities Magic and Innovation shares:

  1. ‘I can’t wait to see what is going to happen!’

Magic and Innovation get people excited because they are focus on the creation of something new. The though of experiencing something never seemed before excites people. The further the gap is between current reality and perceived change, the greater the excitement level. Remember the buzz the first Apple’s ipad creates before it was launched? Everyone was raving about how it would look like, what it can do and of course, how cool we will look carrying one around.

What really gets people excited is not so much the actual change, but, the gap between the now and the unknown future. Truth is, be it a trick or an innovative idea, the excitement only goes as far as the moment before all is revealed, when the unknown becomes the known. After a short while, everything becomes status quo. This is why it is more important for organizations to build an innovative culture rather than an innovative idea.

  1. Everything is possible! (Well, sort of).

‘‘When you think differently, magic happens’’ – Anonymous

In magic, everything is possible. Humans can fly and paper can turn into money. To innovate, we too need to start with a mindset of ‘everything is possible’. During the exploratory stage of any Innovation process, it is crucial that all ideas are considered as possibilities. Judgment has to be suspended, assumptions of how things usually work have to be challenged. By adopting an open mindset, we will allow ideas of all kinds, no matter how ridiculous they might sound, to generate, grow and synergize. At the end of the day, idea generation is a numbers game; the more ideas there are to work on, the higher the chances for success.

  1. They are deliberate, it doesn’t just happen!

By deliberate, we mean intentional. In other words, any trick starts with a magician wanting to perform a trick first and foremost. Without this intent, no trick will ever happen. Driven by intent, the magician will then work through the process of getting the trick ready.

Similarly with Innovation, all the most original ideas we have ever seen are not nature’s creation but are put together by people who want to contribute towards a novel ideal. Innovation does not just happen, it is driven by those who wants it. But, good intention alone is not enough. Innovation is too important for modern day organizations to leave it to just thoughts and desires. Intention must translate into action in order for ideas to materialize. Central to this transition is the Innovation structure used to facilitate the process.

  1. “One man’s magic is another man’s engineering’’ – Robert A. Heinlein

As much as Magic sometimes appears to be spontaneous, they are not. All tricks are carefully designed, calibrated and put together. In other words, they are by design and not by chance. Before a trick is performed, a magician goes through a 6-stage process, which consists of preparatory work and post performance review. Here is an overview of the process:

  1. Established performance type – ‘What do I want to make appear, disappear or change at the end?’, ‘where and who am I performing for?’
  2. Environment and equipment check – ‘Is the stage big enough?’, ‘Do I have the necessary equipment to perform this trick?’
  3. Planning – ‘How am I going to piece the performance together?’
  4. Practice and rehearsal – Dry-runs after dry-runs to perfect the performance.
  5. Actual presentation – The ‘Live’ performance.
  6. Post performance review – Identify area for improvements.

Likewise, Innovation is not from the sprinkling of magical dust, it is a process driven concept that goes through stages that are similar to Magic.

  1. Objective setting – What do we want to change or improve?
  2. Resource management – What kind of resources are available for us to work with?
  3. Planning stage – Now that we know what we are doing and what we are working with, how do we go about with the change?
  4. Development of idea– The process of modifying, adjusting and fine-tuning the idea.
  5. Implementation – Executing or delivering of the idea to the users.
  6. Feedback from users – To further improve the idea.

Seeing Innovation as a process allows us to approach the concept with a systematic point of view. By breaking the concept down into a series of sequential stages, it can better facilitate Innovation as we are able to move one step at a time instead of attempting a giant leap, which the word Innovation sometimes appear to suggest. And also, should things not go according to plan, we can trace through the different stages to identify where remedy is required.

  1. Harry Houdini was not born a Magician!

“Magic is believing in yourself, if you can do that, you can make anything happen.”- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Some of us might come into this world with characteristics that all fine Magician posses (e.g., nimble fingers, natural flair in entertaining, witty sense of humor) but no one is born with a card trick in his mouth. All Magicians, no matter how good they are, goes through a learning journey. Some find it easier, while others struggle. Whatever it is, the tricks and traits of any Magician can be acquired.

The same goes for people whom we considered to be Innovators. They are not born with a gamechanging, revolutionary idea. They most likely go through a learning journey that span decades, filled with plenty of trials and errors, possibly met more failures than success, before achieving something that make us ranked them as a true innovators. The point here is, Innovation is a proficiency that anyone can have as long as they are willing to learn

  1. ‘This trick looks familiar, haven’t I seen it before?’

There are many ways to learn Magic tricks. One of the most effective ways is to learn directly from others and from there, make it better than the original. So, instead of reinventing the wheels, we strengthen it.

Likewise, innovative ideas do not have to come from a complete novelty; it can come from the redevelopment of a current idea. We can either take a vertical approach by improving or refining the idea (doing it better), or, we can adopt a laterally approach by applying the principles of one idea to another seemingly unrelated idea (doing it different). Take a moment and think of the 3 most innovative ideas you have ever come across. Chances are, they have their roots in some earlier innovation.

 

 

LESSONS THAT WE CAN LEARN ABOUT THE V FORMATION TO SUCCEED AT WORK

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LESSONS THAT WE CAN LEARN ABOUT THE V FORMATION TO SUCCEED AT WORK

WRITTEN BY: MUGAN TAYALAN

Lessons that we can learn about the V Formation to succeed at work

Not every follower can be a great leader. But every great leader is a great follower. “If you want to go fast, you go alone. If you want to go far, you go as a team” – African Proverb

The importance of teamwork and leadership can be largely learnt from the V Formation of the Geese. During the fall, thousands of geese fly out of the cold winter. They will take flight above the waters and form a V-Shape flying pattern, known as the V Formation. There will be one rotating goose at the centre of the leading pack and all the other geese will fly behind in two close lines. Wildlife scientists have done extensive research and studies to determine why geese fly in this V Formation and the results were intriguing.

1)      When geese fly together, each goose provides additional lift and reduces air resistance for the trailing geese. This V Formation allows the geese to fly 70% further than an individual goose. Therefore, geese have discovered that by flying together, they spend lesser energy and shorter time to reach their goal.

The lesson that we can learn from this is that everyone in a team should be aligned towards a common goal. If one member decides to do everything alone, the member will require a great deal of time, effort and energy to reach the goal. But when everyone shares the common vision, goal and direction, tasks can be shared among members. Members should stay in formation and in unison towards the goal, while helping each other. This in turn creates synergy and enthusiasm which moves teams towards the goal faster and with lesser effort than an individual. Small effort, big results.

2)      When the lead bird gets tired, it moves to the rear of the formation to capitalise on the lifting power of the bird in front of it. The new lead bird takes charge and leads the flock. This rotation happens frequently due to the long journey towards the eventual destination.

The lesson that we can learn from this is leaders share the responsibilities within the team and sometimes, different members are empowered to lead when called upon. A leader should model the way and inspire a shared vision within the team to move towards the common goal. Micro-management and over leading may cause burn out, disengagement and low motivation among members. Enabling others to act with proper guidance will help the members gain more confidence and have more field experience. Great leaders do not always have to lead; they can be great followers and empower the rest of the members with the relevant skills and knowledge to become better, if not great leaders.

3)      Geese regularly make loud honking sounds when they are flying together. These sounds were done to communicate with the flock and encourage them to persevere on during the long journey. When one goose falls out due to sickness or being shot, two other geese follows it to help care for it till it either dies or is able to fly again. Thereafter, the geese form another formation to catch up with the front flock.

The lesson that we learn from this is many a times, things will not be smooth sailing. In organizational and teams setting, things will get VUCA: Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous. Therefore, it is important to note that recognition and praise is duly given when members perform outstanding tasks or are able to get things moving towards the right direction. In many contexts, the lack of recognition regular open communication are some of the key factors in which a member feels unsatisfied and leaves a team, or worse still, leaves an organization. It is also common for members ‘efforts to go unnoticed in the busy and fast paced environment. Members should standby each other during the challenging times and the strong times. With praise, constant open communication, recognition and encouragement (encourage the heart); members will feel rejuvenated and motivated to achieve the common goal.

4)      Geese never change their routes and usually follow the same route, year in and year out. Even when the flock members change, the young geese learn the route from their parents. When spring arrives, the geese would fly back to its original location where they were born for food and breeding.

The lesson that we can learn from this is to always stay true to the core values and purpose. In a team or an organization, members, products and strategies may change due to the demands of the market. But the core values and purpose separates a good team and a great team. It is easy and comfortable to always want to be a part of the winning team. But when members face challenging times (VUCA), grinding tasks and results together forges stronger bonds and higher commitments.

Conclusion

With the spirit of teamwork, regardless of any differences, members can meet the challenges and reach the goals much more efficiently. Time and tide waits for no men and women. Thus, it is imperative to adopt the lessons learnt from the geese to work together effectively towards achieve success as one team.

 

Written by Mugan TAYALAN (Facilitator)
on 3rd April 2017

 

LEARNING, MISTAKES, INNOVATION & RISKS

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LEARNING, MISTAKES, INNOVATION & RISKS

WRITTEN BY: ADAM CHAN

The paradox of “Ship in the harbor is safe, but that is not what it was built for” is pervasive in the way when every leader are confronted with tough issues, stretched decisions to be made, and communicating the unpleasant news.

Risk is never exclusive from learning. One can never learn to be proficient without making mistakes. What about scholars and brilliant academics? Do they make mistakes too? Nothing can be further from the truth; they do. However, nobody says we have to announce the mistake we make to everyone. Inadvertently, everyone will make mistakes but not everyone learn from it. Individuals who welcome the challenges brought about by changes and see it as excitement is likely to succeed in overcoming these challenges.

If we are going learn, we should be prepared to be wrong. Otherwise we would never learn. A parable of ski trainees and instructor;

 

A ski trainee took up a skiing lesson and the trainee managed to stay upright the whole session without falling. The trainee then bragged to the instructor about his no falling record. Surprisingly, the instructor was not the least impressed instead he told the trainee that it was indeed a lousy session for him. The trainee was not satisfied with the response and he confronted the instructor, demanding for an explanation. The instructor said, “If you have not fallen, this means you have not learnt.” The trainee immediately felt a sense of realization from the reply.

 

The essence in the parable tells us about taking risk whilst learning. Making mistakes is part of learning. In the corporate world, making mistakes can mean stalled in career progression or even termination. In the sporting arena, mistakes can mean losing the pinnacle. In mountaineering, making mistake can mean life and death. So how can we promote the attitude of taking risks that lead to learning? Another parable about mistakes and innovation;

 

In an art class, the students are told by the teacher to draw the presented still life. Sitting right at the back of the class was this young girl who is immensely absorbed into her own world; drawing but not the still life. The teacher noticed her distraction so she decided to check on her. The teacher asked, “What are you drawing?” The girl told the teacher it is GOD she is drawing. However, nobody knows how GOD looks like. The teacher asked, “Nobody knows how GOD looks like, right?” The girl gave a tongue in cheek reply to the teacher and she said, “They will know in a minute!”

 

Is the parable about making mistakes or being innovative? To make sense of the parable, we ought to examine the connections between making mistakes and innovation. Once we are able to discern the connections, we can then relate it to learning. Perhaps we should ask ourselves does innovation means making mistakes or inadvertently learning comes with making mistakes? Firstly, kids don’t know about making mistakes let alone feeling the social pressure of making mistakes as a cardinal sin. In fact most kids would not even care if they got it right. As long as they are not held back by what is right or wrong, they will give a go at any questions posed by adults.

As we grew from childhood to adulthood, we learn from the world and certain worldviews are etched within us. The knowledge we gained enable us to function in the world, create significance, make progresses, etc. By the same token, the knowledge could become stumbling blocks to what we want to achieve in lives. These stumbling blocks are often intangible, linked robustly to the each person’s worldviews. The link; could very well turn into major barriers that stop us from moving forward. Much like the parable of the girl who draws GOD, she did not carry such “links”, she simply draw GOD as what she deemed fits. However the teacher possessed the notion of “nobody knows how GOD looks like” that inhibited her from understanding how the girl thinks. Perhaps she can never think like the girl.

So what is the connection between innovation and making mistakes? It seems like making mistake is innovation or to innovate is to make mistakes. Perhaps there are risk components in the innovation process too. What is paramount is the attitude rather the ability. If we are not prepared to be wrong (an attitude), we would never derive anything original (an ability). Isn’t it? In an environment where mistakes are stigmatized, innovation will not survive.

In summary, when we are learning, inadvertently we make mistakes; mistakes are results of taking risks and to innovate is about taking risk. The connections between learning, mistakes, innovation and risks are strong yet elusive. So the next time should you ski, do remember to take a fall.

 

LEADERSHIP MEMBER EXCHANGE THEORY

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LEADERSHIP MEMBER EXCHANGE THEORY

WRITTEN BY: JOEYNG

LMX theory proposes that leaders develop different type of relationship with members and do not treat everyone equally. Understanding how the different relationships are formed provides insight on how leaders and members influence each other. Relationship between leaders and members are group into high-quality (in-group) or low-quality (out-group).

The characteristics of an in-group:

  1. Counted on to perform unstructured task
    2. Volunteer for extra work
    3. Take on additional responsibilities
    4. More influence in decision making
    5. Leader assign more resources to members
    6. Leader display more attention and support

The characteristic of an out-group:

  1. Formal relationship
    2. ‘just here to do a job’
    3. Given little support
    4. Minimal influence in decision making
    5. Less responsibilities
    6. Low level of trust

Leadership = Fairness?

LMX theory is proposed to challenge the notion that leaders treat everyone the same. In reality, no relationships are equal. A leader will consciously (deliberate) and unconsciously (unknowing) treat some better than others.

Conscious – Leaders knowingly treat some better to improve job satisfaction and performance. In the real world, a leader does not have the resources to give each of his member equal attention. Through a series of exchanges, certain members are identified as ones who will produce more than others. These members are then given more attention and resources, and in return, produces more for the leader/organization. It is here that leaders find leverage, concentrating on a few members who could influence the rest of the team.

Unconscious – People like people who are liked them. If both leader and member share the same personality, most probably, they would enjoy each others company and spend more time together. The more time spent, the more exchanges take place, the better the relationship. The problem with this form of unconscious exchanges is that, blinded by ‘likeness’, the leader might inadvertently and unconsciously make decisions that favors some over others. When questioned by others, the ignorant leader might turn defensive and reject any notion of biasness and this put the leader’s credibility at stake.

3 Relationship Factors

Competency, Compatibility and Personality – these are the 3 main factors that determines the quality of relationship between leaders and members. Competency – Members past accomplishments, current performance level and potential.

Compatibility – How well leader and members work together. Fit between the member and the team culture.

Personality – Initiative, positive attitude and outlook

Team building framework infographic

Positive perception of these factors will see member fall under the ‘in-group’; members who are viewed negatively moves to the ‘out-group’.

Members are not the only one being evaluated in this relationship, leaders too are evaluated and members have the choice to accept the ‘invitation’ into the group or not. It is obvious why members aspire to be in the high-quality relationship in-group, but, there are also various reasons why members would not be keen:

  1. Genuinely dislike the leader
    2. Do not value the rewards of being in the ‘in-group’
    3. Leader is abusive or unethical; being close to such a person may imply guilt by association.
    4. No interest in advancing further in current company
    5. Just want to do what is required.

Taking, Making and Routinization

The relationship develops over time, through a series of exchanges and interactions, and the formative period is the most crucial. According to the theory, the development of role is the corner stone of the relationship forming process. This process consists of 3 phases:

  1. Role Taking (Stranger phase) – A formal stage in the relationship where the leader assesses the member’s abilities and talent. Leader defines clear responsibilities and member does what is prescribed.
  2. Role Making (Acquaintance phase) – Based on the works in the 1st phase, either party will initiate an offer to improve the working relationship. Relationship (trust) will develop both professionally and personally. It is this stage where member start to ‘make’ their own role.
  3. Role Routinization (Maturity) – Exchange patterns start to emerge in a reciprocal manner.

Benefits for All (even the out-group)

4 stakeholders (Leader, In-group Member, Out-group Member, and Organization) are involved in this theory and here are the benefits each group can draw:

Leader and Organization:

  1. Member commitment
    2. Loyalty towards leader, team
    3. Higher productivity
    4. Positive influence on others
    5. Find leverage

Members of the in-group:

  1. Higher mutual trust
    2. Closer bond
    3. Independence
    4. Job satisfaction, positive attitude
    5. Open communication
    6. Confidence
    7. Respect, rewards & recognition

Out-group member:

  1. Examine reasons for being in the out-group and question the ‘fit’ between self, leader and organization.
    2. Identify improvement gaps.

Critique Vs Support

Like any management theories and models, there is always a fair share of supporters and opposition. Those in a favor of what LMX theorize say it reflects reality – people will never treat everyone equally. And also, LMX advocates leverage. Resources are scarce, thus, leaders are always looking for best ways to maximize what they have.

For those against what the theory proposes, the arguments are that it discriminates, it questions the ethics of the leader and lastly, LMX emphasize too much on the leader instead of the leadership.

Summary

No relationships are equal. LMX theory reflects the reality in leadership and organization – leaders treat people differently; some will be treated better than others. Most, if not all, members would like to fall under the in-group for obvious reasons, but, the presence of out-group also serves many benefits: for the leader, if members prefer to stay in the out-group, perhaps the question is on his leadership. For those who are in the out-group, the reasons they are there could help them identify performance gaps to work on, or, it could be the case of non-fit between themselves and the leadership. In the latter case, perhaps moving on to another organization where they are more likely to be in the in-group could be better for everyone.

For leaders and in-group members, this model represents a winwin situation. With the leader is a group of individuals who exceeds expectations, and for the individuals, more opportunities to develop themselves. Over time, the leader-member exchanges feed on each other and result in an upward spiral for the leader, the members and organization.

References:

  1. http://www.flatworldknowledge.com/node/29104#web-29104
    2. http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/leader_member_exchange.htm
    3. http://leadershipchamps.wordpress.com/2008/04/21/leader-memberexchange-lmx-theory/
    4. http://www.bealeader.net/109/the-lmx-leadership-theory

 

KILL BILL AND HELIUM HULA

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KILL BILL AND HELIUM HULA

WRITTEN BY: JOEYNG

‘Majestic Cinematography’, ‘Magnificent Directing’, ‘Masterful Production’. These are just some of the common terms we often see splashed on magazine reviews and movie posters when a film is out. Sometimes, we will catch that film just because so-and-so said the movie was ‘Brilliantly Directed’. But, the truth is, how many of us actually understand and truly appreciate the art of cinematography and directing amongst others? When someone picks up a ‘Best Director’ award, do we really know what he was acknowledged for?

 

This ignorance is the reason why I pick up the book ‘Quintessential Tarantino’. The book provides an in-depth analysis of all Quentin Tarantino works. For those who have no idea who he is, Quentin Tarantino is a director/producer, fame for genre breaking films like ‘Pulp Fiction’ and ‘Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2’.

 

While seeking to understand the art of movie making, I discovered a number of similarities between FOCUS programmes and Tarantino’s films. Some of the elements that made his films such a standout share very similar traits with several aspect of our program. In this write-up, I will attempt to draw the connections I discovered while reading the book and the limited field time I have running programs. If you have not watch any of the film I will be referencing from in this article, you will have to use a little of your imagination.

 

Circularity

 

In Pulp Fiction, the movie begun with a robbery in a diner and it ended with the same scene. Kill Bill Vol. 1 started with the scene of a smashed-up Beatrix (Uma Thurman) and Bill shooting her in the head. Vol. 2 ended with Beatrix taking her revenge on Bill. The element of circularity in both films is very similar to our program’s Expectation Setting. When the expectations are checked out at the end of the program, the feeling of fulfilment is very similar to the feeling one gets after watching Beatrix kills Bill. You can say the same about Pulp Fiction when audiences get to finally find out the fate of the robbers.

 

 

Reusing Element from other Works – Scene, Actors, Film Structure…

 

Any avid Tarantino fan can easily identify repeated elements in all of his films. Ranging from the obvious (casting: Uma Thurman, Michael Madsen) to the subtle (Uma Thurman suddenly waking up from a coma  in Kill Bill echoes her waking up from a overdose in Pulp Fiction). The rationale is to arouse the interest of the audience, giving them something to think about and discuss.

 

In our program, we do not reuse, instead we reinforce. For example, using Whale-Watch and referencing it to the Tuckman’s Model. On the topic of change, we can draw similarities between Key Punch and the ‘Yellow Ball’ from Trolley. We can also do the same with Helium Hula and Trolley on the topic of cooperation Vs competition. When we are able to draw out linkages between different activities, I believe it will present a stronger point for discussions.

 

 

Implied Action and Off Screen Violence

 

The ear cutting scene in Reservoir Dogs, Marvin’s head exploding behind the car in Pulp Fiction and the fate of Elle in the trailer in Kill Bill Vol. 2. The use of implied action allows audience participation in a film to a greater extent than if they actually see the events. By ensuring that certain elements have to be played out in viewers’ minds rather than on screen, Tarantino is able to play with audience imagination. Sometimes, the images audience conjure up are far more realistic and disturbing than any special effect.

 

In FOCUS, the room between the instructions and final objectives is almost the same as implied actions. It brings about greater involvement and sometimes, the ideas participants conjure up are far more imaginative than we could ever think of.

 

The same applies to debriefing. Ending a topic or subject with an open ended statement, rather than painting them the entire ideal situation will allow participants to draw personal linkages to their work experience. Something which they might not want to share, or, we are not able to relate to.

 

Music to Augment Scenes

 

This technique is used in every film. In Kill Bill, it was used very consistently. Every time Kiddo comes eye to eye with someone on her revenge list, the same music will be played. It changes the tempo and raises the excitement level before the fight begins.

 

Similarly, in FOCUS, music has always been a great assistant to the program. Just like how it changes the tempo in the movies, it adds excitement to our activity. And at times, it sure helps to amplify certain behaviours which we planned to bring out (Helium Hula). The same relation can be drawn in the use of lightings.

 

Nicknames and Alias

 

In Reservoir Dogs, all the main characters are named after colours (Mr Pink, Mr White, Mr Brown…). In Kill Bill everyone in the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad has a snake related alias as well. The use of nicknames and alias provides effective character definition. It creates more interest and the name stays longer in the mind of the audiences.

 

These reasoning are pretty much the same in FOCUS. A team name provides stronger definition and more importantly, tighter association compared to numbers. Similarly, it creates more interest and compared to numbers, a name definitely stays in the mind longer.

 

It seems attending a FOCUS programme is not very different from a cinematic experience. Through the relations I drew, we can see many similarities. Perhaps, there are many more which I have yet to discover. So the question is: how can we all relate to this? As a learning organization, continuous improvement is just one of the many directions we are heading. We seek not only self-progress, but progress as an organization and improvement in our programmes is something we look for amongst other. The common angles we often look at are ‘what do we think the participants want’ and ‘what do we think will benefit the participants’.   Here, I am suggesting another angle – let’s view our programme as a cinematic experience.

 

So, what can we do? Pick our favourite film, any film for that matter, and ask ourselves why we love it so much. Break the reasons down to elements and consider how they can be incorporated to improve our programme.  The improvement or change need not be wholesale. If it is able to better a programme or an activity just that little bit, I guess it is worth the effort.