A whole new perspective is a big idea. Exceptional individuals, teams, and leaders are always under construction and growing. They love to be around exceptional people and hear all sides of their big ideas. They love mixing it up with energetic, edgy people just this side of chaos. They habitually study, learn, and apply not to get smarter, but instead to get stronger. They love getting better, not necessarily bigger! They are like Leonardo, insatiably curious. They are interested and interesting. They believe together we improve.
They believe nobody is as smart as everybody, and then live accordingly. Do not miss this. This is not a normal person’s perspective. Exceptional leaders surround themselves with diverse, independent, and energetic people and trust these peoples’ collective wisdom, even over his or her own. Talk about unconventional and chaotic! Everything about our system tells us this must be wrong. Experts are better than amateurs. People are smart, but crowds are stupid. Everything rises and falls on leadership. CEO’s are better decision makers than their collective team members. This really is a whole new perspective.
James Surowiecki, in his book, The Wisdom of Crowds, presents a compelling argument for his new perspective, but still warns that most organizations are not prepared. He highlights the four conditions that cause group intelligence as follows:
- Diversity of opinion
- Independence
- Decentralization
- Aggregation
Intelligent groups do not reward conformity and consensus, but instead they embrace disagreement, contest, and productive fights. Leaders with this perspective have learned what it means to really fight to improve performance, not to prove a point. This team is not normal. This team is operating just this side of chaos. This team is BUILT TO LEAD.
Today, I held practice with a leader learning to embody this kinda leader. He’s already really good and he’s super smart.He’s a few thousand nuances from being freakin’ magic.He’s gonna work on becoming even more curious and he’s working on focusing his five senses so they feel like a sixth. He’s getting comfortable in his own skin and, at the same time, continuing to challenge himself and avoid the enemy of complacency.
How ’bout Y.O.U.?
- How diverse is your team?
- Are different worldviews not only respected and accepted but also invited, encouraged, and actively recruited?
- How often does your team fight to improve performance? Tell me more.
- Is the majority of your team comprised of individuals with strong CORES?
A whole new perspective is a big idea because once we become really knowledgeable and masters of our craft, it’s hard to be childlike with curiosity. And full circle we’ve come. Do you sense it?
BUILT TO LEAD 