Posts Tagged ‘choices’

Last week we discussed Capt. “Sully” Sullenberger and “The Miracle on the Hudson.” In resilience engineering there is a constant search for the character traits one must possess to be successful when dealing with complex socio-technical interfaces, which are increasingly becoming the norm. In line with the speed with which decisions have to be made in foggy situations it seems appropriate to have a checklist. I love checklists. When done correctly they serve two functions simultaneously: setting the right frame of mind and helping establish a focus on successful behaviors.

A checklist can also help during more mundane times such as trying to get back to sleep (or maybe just GET to sleep) at 2 AM when your head is spinning because of a challenging project.  Below are two checklists that may help in terms of those specific behaviors and attitudes.

What Makes For a Good Pilot?

The civil aviation authority in France has published a list of capabilities pilots feel are essential for effective execution in complex situations:

1. Be able to construct and maintain an adequate distributed mental representation of the situation.
2. Be able to assess risk and threats as relevant for the flight.
3. Assess one’s self-proficiency envelope, know the boundaries, and adapt one’s tactics and strategies accordingly.
4. Be able to switch from a situation under control, to a crisis situation.
5. Be able to construct and maintain a relevant level of confidence towards self, others, and the technology involved.
6. Be able to learn, implement and maintain routines and skills associated with basic flight functions (fly, navigate, communicate).
7. Be able to contribute to decision-making in complex, uncertain environments.
8. Manage interactions with aircraft automated systems.
9. Know, understand, and be able to speak aviation jargon.
10. Manage interactions with, and cooperate with, crewmembers and other staff.
11. Make intelligent usage of procedures.
12. Use available technical and human resources, and reconfigure as needed.
13. Be aware of time and time pressure.
14. Properly transfer acquired knowledge and know-how from specific context to a different one.
15. Properly use and maintain information and communication technology equipment.

Another way to look at this from a purely psychological perspective is to have the following traits:

1. When under pressure acknowledge your feelings and then focus on the work at hand. Emotionality leads to out of control behavior of simply freezing up.
2. See through the situation to success. Stay focused on the long haul.
3. Look. Let go of projections. Simply see what is there and understand the trends.
4. Decide how much you believe in yourself and whether or not that is sufficient to maintain your leadership position.
5. Practice humility. This means knowing what you can and can’t do…which leads to the next point.
6. Learn how to ask for help. The goal is to get the job done rather than being Superman or Wonder Woman.
7. Let people know you see them and need their help. Practice empathy and address people as they are. If it’s details they like then give them details. If there is a need for the overall picture then paint the picture (time permitting).
8. Stay positive while admitting difficulties are present. To paraphrase Andy Groves when asked if all could be lost if the next generation chip failed, “Yes. Keep moving. We can make it.”

Again, these are checklists — mirrors. When having a hard time go through and see where you are working well and where things could improve. Use the results to drive the next day’s agenda. This is probably preaching to the choir but bears repeating: by having the right attitude, knowing where to focus, asking the right questions, and risking action leadership emerges.

—

Tagged as: center for change management, checklists, choices, confidence, decision making, fears, gary monti, Leadership, Project Management, Project Plans, Reslilience Engineering, situations

We are rarely 100% committed to what we say we want.

I’m assuming that because you are reading this that to some degree you are committed to the concept of bringing spirituality into business. On a scale of 1-100, where would you put yourself in relation to the degree to which you are committed? If you were 100% committed there would be nothing to stop you and you’d be fulfilled in having reached your desired outcome. However, generally speaking, there are underlying or conflicting commitments that create obstacles to us moving forward towards our stated desires.

These conflicting commitments are in alignment to a desire to remain invulnerable and avoid what we consider undesirable. In essence we want to remain secure and stable within our comfort zones. The degree to which we are committed to our conflicting commitment is the degree to which we use avoidance, distraction, procrastination and denial as strategies; this keeps us doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results. What occurs is a dilemma, the consequence of which is a feeling of being stuck, confused, doubtful and lost. The bottom line is that we are confounded by the dilemma with which we find ourselves.

Dilemma

I’m prematurely slipping in a D word here, because this is where life gets sticky. How one chooses to be with dilemmas will contribute to the inevitable outcome.

When we distinguish what we are committed to from our conflicting commitment we can see that we are at a choice-point. So, on the one hand we want change; on the other hand we want to avoid the undesirable consequences that accompany change. Hence, we have a dilemma. How do we choose? How do we choose to choose what we choose?

What most of us do, because we are unaware of our choice-making process that has brought about this dilemma, is to compromise our stand for what we say we want, at the same time compromising our stand for what we don’t want. We become professional fence-sitters. If you are interested in creating transformation or a paradigm shift within yourself or your organization it won’t happen by using compromise as a strategy.

What becomes clear as you sit with this dilemma, at this choice-point, perhaps with a thinking partner who can see the bigger picture for you, is a couple of things:

• First, either choice will require surrendering or relinquishing your attachment to the outcome.
• Second, the consequence of either choice will mean being confronted by vulnerability and loss of whatever you are attempting to hold onto. This is the nature of cultivating spiritual practices within the workplace. It is an allowing of the unfolding of the natural course of things to occur in service to what you say you want. This is also when the practice of faith kicks in, as you begin to consider the possibility of crossing the threshold, anticipating that first step required of you in order to begin this journey.

What’s at Stake?

What I like about working in corporations is that there is far more at stake for individuals, departments and the organization itself to actually walk its talk. The risk is greater and so is the reward. Not unlike any other institution and group of individuals, there is a culture and that culture has rules – some are spoken and some are not. Always – always we are walking the line between cultivating an environment that supports us and one that protects us. Again, if we are looking for a paradigm shift we have to surrender our attachment to this walking-on-a-fence approach to change and really challenge ourselves to practice acting in alignment with our speaking. What’s at stake will be different for each individual and organization. Generally though, we are afraid of losing what we have.

The distinction between business coaching and transformational coaching is that transformational coaching requires you to step into your commitments; to expand your comfort zone; to confront beliefs, interpretations, expectations and assumption that may not serve you or your organization; and to create a practice within which you exercise muscles that support cultivating consciousness and compassion for yourself and all beings impacted by the current paradigm shift. Transformational coaching requires you to be with the BIG-FAT-BE-WITHS that challenge current interpretations regarding personal gain and loss, as well as death of a way of being that no longer serves the highest good of all. It also requires a different way of choice-making in support of your commitment.

To choose to shift the degree to which you are committed by even one degree is enough to allow even baby steps to be taken towards your desired outcome; it’s enough to empower you to be with the anxiety and discomfort that comes with letting go and letting a higher power provide support, the consequence being that the process unfolds effortlessly. This is where the spiritual rubber meets the three dimensional world.

If Nothing Else

If nothing else, cultivating awareness through the practice of noticing will inevitably create profound shifts. Consciousness generates a greater capacity to change, to create and to generate from an empowered stand. This stand is grounded in a conviction to follow through with intent. It is far more powerful than just wishing and hoping for change to occur. A fascinating phenomenon that is challenging to grasp from a logical/rational perspective is that by intentionally increasing your awareness of what you are wanting, and bringing yourself – your being into alignment with your intention creates a vibrational modification in yourself and your environment. This in itself generates profound shifts beyond your wildest imagination. What isn’t in alignment with that vibrational state will either shift or it will disappear. Transformation at its finest!

Consciousness results in self-realization that we hope will translate into self-actualization. Without acting in alignment with our realization – well, all things will remain the same except for the fact that we know more then we use to. As I said above, if you shift how you are being to be more in alignment with your highest knowing, this in itself is transformational. You don’t have to overtly attempt to change your world or your organization. Just notice, shift and allow. This in itself is bringing spirituality into business.

Editor’s Note: Dr. Rosie Kuhn will be speaking on the topic of “Spiritual Wounding in the Workplace” at the San Francisco New Living Expo, Concourse Exhibition Center, Room #7, San Francisco, April 29th, 2011 at 7:00PM.

—

Tagged as: Change, Choice-point, choices, comfort zone, commitment, compassion, compromise, Conflict, Confronted, consciousness, creativity, Dilemma, Dr. Rosie Kuhn, Spiritual Practice, Spirituality, Spirituality in Business

We strive to do this all the time. What they don’t tell us is that with every action that we take, we not only create some possibilities, we also shut off a few. Whether we know it, don’t know it, mean it, don’t mean it … it doesn’t matter. This just happens.

Consider the “Entrepreneurs action map”, below:

* The ‘Start’ marks the point where the entrepreneur starts to act.

* The ‘Final Perceived Goal’ is the Goal he has in mind at the time he starts.

* The ‘Actual Final Goal’ is the Goal he ends up where he declares it to be so.

* The full red dots along the path represent the ‘Decision Points’ where he must make a choice (amongst many paths) on which path to take next.

* The ‘Solid lines’ denote the path he actually travels on.

* The ‘Dotted lines’ denote the path he chooses not to take.

So, what is the meaning of all this? Here’s what it means to me:

1. Every time you make a choice (on any of the decision points), you end up creating the possibilities along the chosen path and you shut down the possibilities on the paths you did not choose (hence the dotted lines… depicting fading possibilities).

2. Once you choose a certain path, the other paths emanating from the decision point (the ones you did not choose to take) will cease to exist for you. That is to say, they will be in your ‘blind spots’.

3. You will not know for sure where you’ll end up, when you begin the journey and more likely than not, it will be somewhere other than your perceived goal. So, no point in fretting or spending too much time worrying about it and its prudent to not get stuck in the analysis for too long.

4. Here’s a big one: The farthest point to the ‘Final Perceived Goal’ is the point where you start from. There is a possibility of not making it on any of those paths but it is guarantee of not making it if you don’t start!

5. Ready for the Biggest one? – On every path, you touch other people and their lives, in many ways… and that creates endless possibilities for you, some of which may not be apparent immediately. Brings the old adage to mind… “It’s all about the journey, not the destination”.

Here’s a little example that you might find useful to think with: Lets say you always wanted to write a book but did not start because you needed the entire journey mapped out beforehand. Now, consider that you started it, anyway. Can you imagine the possibilities you would be creating for yourself along the way?

Now apply this to anything that you always wanted to start and ask yourself – Are you waiting for the entire journey to be mapped out or will you start, even if it’s not?

Tagged as: actions, active garage, choices, decisions, entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, goals, himanshu jhamb, http://activegarage.com, Leadership, possibilities