Developing
a new habit, implementing a new way of working or forging into a new market
takes a lot of effort and persistence as well as knowing when to experiment and
change or adapt your approach. How
versatile are you in these traits?
There
is an interesting example of a man who at the age of 22 lost his job, the
following year he decided to go into politics but was defeated in the
election. Two years later he set up a
business and due to circumstances beyond his control it failed and he ended up
in debt. He cleared his debts and had
another attempt at politics, this time he was elected – he was only 25. The following year his beloved sweetheart
died and he was reported to have had a nervous breakdown, although this may
have been a malicious fabrication. He
was defeated in his bid to become house speaker and five years later he was
defeated in his bid for Congress. He was
eventually elected but two years later he lost the re-nomination and was
rejected for another senior position he wanted.
Over the next ten years he was defeated in his run for the Senate, his
nomination for vice president and another run for the senate. However, at the age of 51 he became President
of the United States of America and is widely recognised as one of the best
presidents the country has ever had.
That
man was Abraham Lincoln and it would be fair to say that he had
persistence! It is also true to say that
he was willing to adapt and change the way he did things in order to learn and
ultimately succeed: not only in becoming president but in changing one of the
most pernicious, and at the time entrenched, economic models of the day –
slavery.
A Fine Balance
There
is a curious paradox with taking an innovative approach. It is quite a fine balance, and as the New
Year gets going you may want to consider your own levels of persistence. For example, are you tenacious enough to see
things through despite difficult obstacles?
It is also worth exploring how willing you are to try new things and new
ways of doing things, especially if what you are doing is not getting you the
results you want.
The
key thing about very successful people is that they have just made more
mistakes than the rest of us. However,
they don’t just make mistakes, they learn from them and keep going . . .
relentlessly adapting and experimenting what they do and how they do it.
The Paradox of
Innovation
It
is useful to look at this paradox by using the graphic below. It neatly illustrates the way you need to
have a balanced approach between the traits of ‘Persistence’ and
‘Experimenting’. The trait of being ‘Inventive’
could be summed up by this little maxim; “The
key to invention is to have focused determination while letting the imagination
run wild”. Inventive is defined as having
the tendency to experiment with different ways of doing something while at the
same time, maintaining focus on the desired objective or result (High
Persistence and High Experimenting).
If
we are not careful we can end up with an imbalance that can lead to ‘Stubborn
Persistence’, this is where our persistence outweighs our willingness or
ability to experiment. This is the sort
of behaviour that can generate resistance to change and narrow tunnel-vision. This century has already seen the rapid demise
of numerous big-name companies because they had leadership teams who just
stubbornly persisted with their old marketing and production strategies when
the world around them was changing. They
were blind to the need for a change in direction and ultimately lost their
business. Sticking with what they knew
was more comfortable than the mental effort of seeking a new approach. It is also worth noting that it takes courage
to admit you were wrong and that new thinking is required. Stubborn persistence can also be exacerbated
by feeling that the amount of effort and investment you put in will have been
wasted if you change direction.
Successful people take it all on the chin and move on.
The
other imbalance that can manifest is when we experiment too much and don’t see
things through. This is the trait of
‘Non-finishing’ and can come from an addiction to the new, novel and latest
bright shiny idea, for example jumping on the latest technological or
management fad. I have come across a
number of Entrepreneurs who attend a seminar or read the latest management book
and then implement some grand idea, but within a couple of months they don’t
see the results that were promised and they change to the next big thing. This frustrates Operational Managers because
many initiatives take several months, if not years, to properly implement. They need to become a way of life, not a few
cosmetic changes. Non-finishing can also
afflict highly reactive managers who implement a new way of working as a
knee-jerk reaction to a complaint or other error. This rapid experimentation with trying to fix
a particular problem without properly analysing the root causes can lead to
half-baked solutions that get dropped quite quickly. This also creates immense frustration amongst
managers and staff, especially if they are not involved in the proposed
solutions.
Some
people fall into the trap of becoming ‘Unresourceful’ where they lack
persistence and have no desire to try new things. This can happen when faced with a significant
amount of volatility, uncertainty, complexity or ambiguity (VUCA). The best solution in this case is to get help
from outside to introduce some new perspectives and encourage new levels of
motivation.
We
all enjoy different aspects of work and we all have different strengths that,
when applied in the right context, help us to succeed. What do you enjoy most with regard to the
paradox of innovation? Is it the
persistence or the experimentation? Are
you driven to see things through or are you full of bright ideas about how
things could be improved or changed? Do
you have a good balance of both?
You
may find it valuable to explore how you are getting on with the goals or
resolutions you set yourself at the beginning of the year by regularly
considering your approach. If you would
like the answers to the questions above or to explore precisely what you enjoy
most at work, you can now complete a very simple questionnaire that provides
numerous reports, including a snapshot of the innovative characteristics of
your team. For more information about
this and our unique approach to team development and recruitment just contact
Amanda at info@InspiredWorking.com.
With best wishes,
David Klaasen
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