3 May 2022, Yorkshire, UK. – Julia Felton believes in a world where rather than humanity solving the problems of nature, nature can solve the problems of humanity. She believes that there exists in nature a blueprint for a better way to live and lead businesses and she presents these findings in her latest book, Unbridled Business: Unlocking Nature’s Wisdom To Reinvent Leadership.
There is no doubt that the events of the past two years have changed everything. Even before the pandemic business needed to change but recent events have accelerated this. No longer do businesses simply need to change, they need to reinvent if they are to become agile and adaptable to navigate the uncertainty in which we now live.
We now have the opportunity to shed all the old work practices that no longer serve us and start afresh.
The challenge is that up to now there hasn’t existed a blueprint on how to do this. How do we move from the command and control leadership structures designed for the industrial age to a leadership style based on connection, collaboration and community?
Julia discovered that a solution lies in nature and herds of horses. After all, they have navigated change and survived for millions of years. In Unbridled Business, she codifies this solution into the Unbridled Business BlueprintÔ that can be used to help business leaders reinvent their business so that it is fit for purpose for the 21st century.
It all starts with Embedding The Purpose into everything you all and then Evolving The Leadership, Empowering Others To Act and Engaging The Environment and the result is Unbridled Performance. A business that can create real impact whilst delivering increased productivity, profitability and team engagement.
Why look to nature and herds of horses? 1) Adaptability – Horses have existed on the planet for over 50 million years, whilst humans have only lived here for 6 million years. They have learnt how to become agile and adapt to changing situations to survive.
2) Leading Through Uncertainty – There exists in herds of horses a model to help us lead through the uncertainty, that this VUCA world presents. It’s based on the premise of four simple steps – The Diamond Model of Leadership.
3) Shared Leadership – In this attention vying world there is simply no way that one person (typically the leader) can know everything. Now more than ever there is a need for Shared Leadership, with the best person stepping forward at the right time.
One of the biggest awakening moments for humanity from the Pandemic is that we are all inter-dependent and inter-connected. We all impact each other whether we are consciously aware of it or not. Nature has always understood the power of inter-dependency as everything works as a system in harmony together, and when something falls out of balance nature self-regulates itself to correct that imbalance. Nature understands the importance of the collective “we” rather than the “me” model of being that is so prevalent in society today.
These are all themes that Julia has addressed in her latest book Unbridled Business – Unlocking Nature’s Wisdom To Reinvent Leadership due for release 3rd May.
To book Julia for an interview today, please contact her:
No one doubts that many of us are struggling with Zoom fatigue and meeting overwhelm as a result of working from home over the last six months. In my experience, many business leaders are not very skilled at running effective meetings. Now that the process has morphed on-line, their skills, in many cases, are definitely not up for the job.
The challenge is that with more and more people working remotely, it is essential that we hold regular meetings to ensure that everyone is kept in the loop and knows what is happening. There is so much conversation that is “lost” when we are not working in close proximity to each other. This “lost conversation” is what I refer to as the water cooler talk. It’s the time when you learn informally how other projects are doing, how other colleagues are feeling, and generally get a sense of what is going on in the business. It’s also a time that we can informally share resources with each other and provide guidance on different approaches to solve problems.
With this mechanism taken away from us, at least for the time being, how do leaders structure meetings to be effective, deliver results, keep team members engaged, and not waste people’s valuable time? One framework that I have found to really work is the EPIC Meeting Framework™, devised by the team at Engagement Multiplier. They use it for all their meetings as it puts an end to pointless gatherings that waste time and slow momentum. Instead, by adopting this simple framework, they have been experiencing a significant increase in team engagement and productivity over the last few months. So let’s unpack this 4 step framework and show you how you can use it in your business.
1) Energy
Why It’s Important: Boosting energy at the beginning of a meeting sets the stage for more productive conversations and, ultimately, better meeting outcomes.
How Do You Do It: Get everyone to speak at the start of the meeting by sharing one thing they’re feeling great about right now (it can be work related or personal related).
The Outcome: Team members will be engaged and start contributing to the meeting leading to better results.
2) Purpose
Why It’s Important: Every meeting needs to have a purpose, as well as clearly defined outcomes, as it is impossible to run an effective meeting unless everyone is clear on why they are there and the outcome required.
How Do You Do It: Distribute an agenda in advance that states the purpose, objectives, and what needs to be true at the end of the meeting, as opposed to simply listing points for discussion.
The Outcome: Team members come prepared and solution focused. Consequently, meetings become faster and more efficient when the focus is placed on outcomes.
3)Insight
Why It’s Important: During the exchange of ideas and perspectives, new opportunities emerge that create transferable insights. Sharing these insights amplifies the value and productivity of any meeting.
How Do You Do It: At the end of the meeting, ensure that everyone shares at least one unique insight or learning they’ve derived as a result of attending.
The Outcome: Being able to capture opportunities and connections in real time between people can help spark more innovation, and amplify the value of the meeting for all attendees.
4)Connection
Why It’s Important: Getting team members aligned behind a shared purpose ensures everyone is on the same page and builds connection within the team. Team members are more confident their inputs and efforts will be appreciated, so are more willing to speak up and express their opinions. Culture and purpose are thus reinforced.
How Do You Do It: By encouraging adoption of these habits and the structure for the meeting.
The Outcome: Barriers to progress caused by poor communication and lack of direction are overcome and the team adopts a much more agile culture towards working.
So my invitation to you as leader is, go and try the EPIC Meeting Framework™ and let me know what is does for your next meeting. I’m sure you will be pleasantly surprised by the results, and the increased levels of engagement that you get from your team members.
With so much going on in our lives how do we get anything done, and prioritise what needs to be accomplished. In this article I look at the key components that help ensure an idea moves from just that, an idea into action. These are the exact same techniques that I used to help me get my lovely ponies Bracken and Thistle under saddle.
“Daily routines, superficial behaviours, poorly prioritized or unfocused tasks leech managers’ capacities—making unproductive busyness perhaps the most critical behavioural problem” in business today, contend Heike Bruch and Sumantra Ghoshal in their book A Bias for Action.
For so many of us—whether CEOs for major corporations, small business owners or solo-entrepreneurs—there is a fundamental disconnection between knowing what should be done and actually doing it. Calling this disconnection the “knowing-doing gap,” Stanford University researchers Jeffrey Pfeffer and Robert Sutton pose the question: “Why does knowledge of what needs to be done frequently fail to result in action or behaviour consistent with that knowledge?”
Is there anyone in business today who hasn’t wondered the same thing?
The answer, argue Bruch and Ghoshal, is both simple and profound. They sum it up with the term “willpower.” The problem they say is not that managers’ time is sliced, but that their intention or “volition” is sliced as well.
Getting things done requires two critical components: energy and focus.And both are at risk in the modern workplace. Building a bias for action in yourself and your organization requires developing and reinforcing the skills to become a “purposeful” or “volitional” manager. These are people who can consistently achieve their objectives by making an unconditional commitment to their goals and then leveraging the power of that intention to overcome the obstacles in their way, whether their own doubts or the bureaucracies within their organizations.
“Purposeful action-taking depends on engaging the power of the will,” according to Burch and Ghoshal. “Not only does willpower galvanize your mental and emotional energy, it also enables you to make your intention happen against the most powerful odds: distractions, temptations to move in a different direction, self-doubt, and negativity. Willpower is the force that strengthens your energy and sharpens your focus throughout the action-taking process.”
Burch and Ghoshal identify four key steps that form the basis of successfully taking action:
Form your intention. To work, your goal must appeal to you emotionally and be something you can define concretely enough so you can clearly visualize its success.
Commit unconditionally to your intention. This is the key step, which the authors liken to “crossing the Rubicon,” Caesar’s irreversible decision that led to his conquest of Rome.
Protect your intention. Once you have made your commitment, you have to protect it from forces both within yourself and your organization.
Disengage from your intention. Unlike Caesar, your Rubicons aren’t life-and-death affairs. You have to define your “stopping rules,” the point of success—or failure—from which you walk away and take up the next challenge.
From the commitment comes both the emotional energy and the focus that are critical to your success. In short, the process of getting things done in business is pretty much the same as in any other aspect of life: The only things that get done are those that you genuinely believe in, and believe will get done.
So just think about your day and how you can stay focused and set up for success. I’ve stopped taking calls when I’m focusing on a specific task and it is incredible how much more I get done. It tests me as just whilst writing this article a client called me. At first I wanted to take the call but then realised how my lack of focus in that moment would not be serving anyone. So I “missed” the call and will call them back once I’m finished.
How can you stay focused on the in hand and not get distracted by all the other activities happening around you? I’d love to hear how you cope.
Business stakeholders—customers, investors, and team members—are now demanding more from the businesses they “work” with. Millennials and Gen Z want to know that the businesses they engage with have a social purpose and are behaving in a responsible manner. This societal accountability is changing the face of business and how leaders behave.
A number of recent surveys from McKinsey research have identified three traits that are becoming leadership imperatives to respond to this growing demand for social accountability.
Transparency
As consumers are more and more demanding that they see the provenance of items they purchase to ensure they align with their values, leaders are being forced to rethink their supply chain and the materials that they use. Especially as some two-thirds of consumers around the world say they would switch, avoid, or boycott brands for their stances on controversial issues.
Given that millennials will make up 75% of the buying population by 2025, and 52% of them say that they always research background information before buying goods or services—compared with 45% of Generation X consumers and 41% of baby boomers—the onus on leaders to pay attention to the ripple effect their business is creating is significant.
One way some companies are seeking to be more transparent is by adopting B-corp status. In order to become a B-corp, a company must pass an assessment that measures its impact on its employees, customers, community, and environment. Ben & Jerry’s and Patagonia are two such companies that have shifted to becoming B-corps in a bid to be more transparent and socially responsible in how they operate.
Cognitive Empathy
In 2015, the World Economic Forum predicted that emotional intelligence would be one of the top 10 skills demanded by employers by 2020. Emotional intelligence (EI) relates to qualities such as empathy and curiosity, the so-called traditional business soft skills that enable effective communication and relationship building.
However, it turns out that there is more than one type of empathy. Emotional empathy involves:
feeling the same emotion as the other person
feeling our own distress in response to their pain
feeling compassion toward the other person
This is distinct from cognitive empathy, which seeks to recognise and understand another person’s emotional state. When leaders practice cognitive empathy, they practice taking the perspective of another person. In essence, you imagine what it might be like to actually be this person in their situation and put yourselves in their shoes.
For leaders to be socially accountable, it is essential that they practice this type of empathy, as it enables them to fully understand and appreciate the perspective of all their stakeholders so they are able to make better decisions, as they consider the holistic impact of what they are doing.
Purpose and Values Driven
Consumers are also demanding that business recognizes the impact it has on society and that it aligns the 3P’s—purpose, profit, and planet. No longer is it acceptable for CEO’s to focus on short-term gain to line their pockets. Rather, business leaders need to take a longer term approach, which means no longer being driven by the 90-day reporting cycles of the world’s stock markets.
In his new book The Infinite Game, Simon Sinek refers to these leaders as being infinite in their approach, as they understand that long-lasting success only occurs if they build long-term value for customers, which translates into healthy enduring for the business.
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff is an example of an “infinite leader” who understands the importance of social accountability, as he always strives to ensure that the company lives up to its values of trust, innovation, equality, and customer service. “There will be times when prioritizing values, especially trust, will come at the expense of profits. In the short term, that is,” he is quoted as saying. “But the money your company makes in any given quarter will never be more valuable than the trust you stand to lose over time.”
What do you need to do to shape your leadership, so that it meets the needs of all stakeholders and recognises the social accountability that consumers now demand of business?
There has been a lot written about the power of business having a purpose and how with a compelling purpose business can become a force for good, and yet many leaders I speak with really don’t fully comprehend what purpose is and why more than ever it is a pre-requisite for business survival.
Simply put the different between a vision (or mission) and purpose is emotion. Vision and mission statements are logical, they talk to the head part of the business. Purpose is emotional and talks to the heart of the business. So whilst vision or mission articulates goals and tactics for achieving those goals, purpose defines the essence of the business – why it exists, who it exists for and how it makes the a difference in the world.
And continuing using the metaphor of head and heart, whilst the head gets things done (20th century leadership) it is the heart that is essential to pump blood around the body, and so enable the head to operate. This is increasingly why we are seeing a paradigm shift in leadership and purposeful leaders know that the old control and command structures are not going to appeal and be successful in the more collaborative 21st century where people are seeking more purpose and contribution from their work.
A PURPOSE DRIVEN BUSINESS
Many might argue that it is a waste of time defining the company’s purpose because operating results have been fine up to now, and this is just another fad that is taking us away from delivering results. The problem is that the evidence is compelling as to why becoming a purpose driven business is essential for 21st century success. The benefits are not only commercial but also include improving the culture and the well-being of team members
JUST SOME OF THE BENEFITS INCLUDE:
Customers Want It – 73% of consumers have stated they would change brands if a different brand of similar quality supported good causes
Buyers Reward You – 80% of the general population would rather pay more for products and services produced ethically
Employee Well-being – 88% of team members say they feel more fulfilled working for a business that is making a difference
Increased Productivity – when team members are inspired by a compelling purpose they generate 225% more productivity than team members who are merely satisfied with their role
Improved Retention and Employee Loyalty – team members who find their work rewarding and impactful report being 2.8 times more likely to stay with a company
Easier Recruitment – 93% of employees want to work at a company that cares for them as an individual.
Increased Revenue and Growth – in the past 3 years 85% of purpose driven companies showed positive growth whilst 42% of non-purpose led companies showed a drop in revenue.
CHANGING COMPANY CULTURE
So why wouldn’t a company want to become purpose led and help contribute to the triple bottom line of people, performance, planet? Because it’s tough. Creating a purpose driven culture demands time and resources. This is not some quick fix that can be rolled out and forgotten. Purpose needs to become imbued into the DNA of the company and impact everything that the business does. It’s not just some fancy words on the wall, but rather it demands a culture shift that helps foster an environment where people’s hidden potential can be unlocked. It helps team members understand why they work for the business and clearly articulates for them the contribution that they make. And of course for the purpose to survive the company must adopt behaviors that align with that purpose.
It is the leaders role to activate the purpose within the business and galvanize the team members to come along. Through their behaviors day in and out they help inspire and motivate the team and when they do the result is a highly engaged and productive workforce. Team member well-being improves as they feel more valued in the business and also because they understand the context in which the business is operating and how they contribute to this.
Creating a purpose driven culture really is a win-win for both the business results and the many business stakeholders, but implementing this is not for the feint of heart, and should not be undertaken without a solid commitment to see it through.
I don’t think anyone can dispute that now, more than ever, we need great leaders. People who can step up and show others the way. People who take charge, not in an overbearing way, but in a way that inspires others to follow. After all, you can’t be a leader unless others will follow you.
Leaders emerge in all shapes and sizes and from all ranks of the organization and society. Leadership is not something just reserved for the top bastion of an organization. It exists everywhere, and right now we are witnessing some great leadership and also some really poor leadership. I’ll leave you to decide which is which!
To help leaders navigate this situation, I have identified 7 characteristics they need to embody to be successful. These form the acronym LEADERS.
Leaderself
Great leaders understand that they need to look after themselves first, before they can look after others. It’s a classic case of putting your oxygen mask on first before helping others. For many leaders, this means indulging in self-care—which could include meditation, exercise, and eating and sleeping well. There is no one solution that fits everyone, but prioritizing your own well-being is paramount if you are to have the energy to inspire and motivate others.
Engaging
Leaders understand that they need to engage others. This is particularly true when so many team members are working remotely. Leaders need to spend time with these remote workers really understanding their needs and effectively communicating what is happening. During these times you can’t over-communicate—team members, customers and other stakeholders will only feel engaged if they know what is happening. And even if you don’t know what is happening, share that as well!
Adaptable
Being adaptable is a key attribute of a great leader. They are easily able to see the whole picture, recognize opportunities, and then pivot their resources to solve the challenge they have identified. There are plenty of examples of companies adapting to this change. For example, Brew Dog in the UK has pivoted to creating hand sanitizers rather than making beer.
Decisive
Great leaders are decisive. They make the difficult decisions that others won’t. Here in the UK, I think our Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, made some good decisions early on putting us into lockdown. Was it popular? No, it wasn’t—but undoubtedly his actions have saved many lives.
Empathy
A component of emotional intelligence, empathy is the ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes. Great leaders understand that how they view the situation might be very different from their team members, and indeed everyone is experiencing this situation differently. Taking the time to really connect with team members and understand their concerns is paramount to being seen as a caring leader at this time.
Resilience
Mental toughness is a requirement for leaders at all times, but none more so than now. Being able to bounce back from adversity is imperative, as is being able to maintain a great state of mind. Being positive and encouraging inspires your team to want to follow up. Resilience enables leaders to stay focused and on track, despite everything else that is happening around them.
Solution Focused
One of the great things to come out of this pandemic is the high level of innovation that we have seen. Companies have changed their work routines literally overnight, as team members have had to start working from home. Other businesses—like Brew Dog—have redirected resources to help provide much needed hand sanitizer, whilst some car producers have pivoted to create ventilators. Restaurants have moved into the takeaway market. Product development has been speeded up. For example, James Dyson designed a ventilator in a matter of days rather than months.
No one doubts that this pandemic will totally transform the way that we operate business going forward, and I firmly believe that the leaders that display great leadership at this time are the ones that will enable their companies to survive in the long term. Team members and other stakeholders will remember how they have been treated, and I firmly expect them to vote with their feet, leaving companies where they have not been supported and cared for during these challenging times.
The COVID-19 pandemic has turned many businesses on their heads overnight, as people have had to adjust to remote working. Many industries that had been resisting allowing team members to work at home have, in a matter of a few days, had to pivot and adapt to this new norm.
For both team members and employers, there have been challenges to navigate along the way. Not least of all is that employers have had to trust that team members will do the work. For some companies that had resisted remote working up to this point, I know they had an inherent distrust in their team members and didn’t believe that the employees would do a full day’s work. Ironically, I often hear of exactly the opposite happening. Stuck at home with their families, some people are gravitating to work as a means of escape and so are working way more than the standard working week hours. I know my brother is one such person. It’s so easy to go back into this office after his kids have gone to bed and just check email again or finalise that report he was writing.
So, how do we find a happy medium—and how do all parties communicate effectively at this time? I’d like to propose the 5 E Framework as a model for helping navigate this change:
Embed The Purpose
Now, hopefully your organisation has a clear purpose that every team member understands. Purpose provides the raison d’etre for the business and, combined with company values, helps everyone have clarity on where the business is going. It provides the true north of what is expected and therefore can guide team members in how to prioritise their work and decision making, when there are no colleagues directly around.
Clear Expectations
When working remotely, it is essential that everyone is clear on what is expected of them. Know what the protocol is for answering emails and responding to messages, what the work hours are, etc. Many people I know feel that they have to respond immediately to every notification that pings on their computer, or else their boss won’t think they are working. This is foolhardy, as all these notifications distract us and, in fact, hamper our productivity. Remember the technology should be there to support you, not negatively disturb you.
Empower Team Members
When working remotely, it is even more important than ever to stop micro-managing your team members and empower them to get the job done. Give them a clear briefing; make sure they have understood the briefing, the deliverables, and the timeline; and then, let them get on with it. Continually checking in to see how they are getting on with the project will just demotivate and frustrate them.
Engage and Connect
In the absence of “water-cooler” chat and seeing colleagues face-to-face, it is important to check in with them and make sure they are okay. Everyone is reacting differently to these challenging situations—so, as a leader, spending time to really connect and find out what is going on for your team members, outside of work, is essential. It helps builds trust and connection, and demonstrates empathy.
Efficient Communication
Ensure that you communicate regularly with your team members when they are working remotely. In this time of rapid change, that might mean a daily check-in call for the team to make sure everyone is on the same page and has all the information they need. It’s amazing how much information you glean when working in an office, and how often people forget to communicate really important things when they don’t see the other person face-to-face. I was recently coaching a client, and her boss had forgotten to tell her the deadline had changed. It wasn’t malicious—it was just an oversight. So, regularly ensuring everyone is on the same page can mitigate this.
Effective virtual communication also means that you need to use the appropriate level of energy. As a leader, it is your job to inspire the team, and your energy and enthusiasm needs to be contagious at this time, in order to keep your virtual team motivated.
I’d love to hear about the lessons you’ve learnt about effective virtual communication at this time!
For centuries us horses and you humans have shared a special partnership. In times past we were your sole mode of transport. We were your partners in battle, in life, and at work ploughing the fields. The railroads are 4 foot and 8.5 inches wide as that is the width needed to accommodate the width of two horses! Our partnership has thrived since the beginning of time and we have worked harmoniously together until you designed those crazy motor vehicles.
With the car you literally sped up your life. You started charging about with little or no sense of purpose. You forgot to stop and pause. You became insular and disconnected from each other and eventually over the years your communication began to disintegrate as you lost the sense of unity, trust and collaboration.
We know that you humans are going through a tough time right now and we horses are here to help you return to your own innate state that you have all forgotten. Would you let our principles of living help guide you to re-connect, re-kindle renew and nourish your soul, as we help you align with the basic principles of nature and the Universe.
Let us share our wisdom of survival and how we have had to adapt to survive over millions of years. After all we’ve been on the planet for over 55 million years and you humans for around 6 million years.
Not since saber tooth tigers and woolly mammoths died out, have you ever been in the position of being the prey. Typically, you live daily as the predator creature on the planet. The coronavirus (COVID-19) is treating you as its prey. You can’t control it and it is impacting your daily lives. Some of you are scared, afraid and uncertain of what to do. No-one on the planet today has experienced a situation like this before, we understand. All our lives we have been prey animals, literally fighting for our lives on a daily, hourly and minute by minute basis, but it is this that has made us strong, powerful, adaptive and creative. We understand your fears and anxieties, so let us share with you the practices that help keep us safe.
Stay Present, Aware and Grounded. Live in the moment. You never know what is round the corner so be grateful of what you have now.
If Others Frustrate You, Say Your Piece and Go Back To Grazing. Now is not the time to hold grudges. By living in the moment and focusing on each second and minute you can’t stress about the past or the future.
Care For Each Other: Look after your herd members and keep them safe. Foster community spirit, unity and harmony.
Step Up and Play Your Part: In the herd we are all responsible for ensuring the safety of the group. If we don’t do our role we can put the safety of the herd of risk. That is why we are punished with exclusion from the herd. Believe us that this is a really scary place to be as you are alone and afraid for your safety. So co-operate with each other and listen to the guidance of your elders.
Act With Integrity and Trust The Process: Know that this challenging time will pass and you’ll have the opportunity to design a different world, one more in harmony with nature.
Know That We Trumps Me Any Day: Foster the spirit of the herd and know we are in this together and can only survive if we work together. Any self-serving behavior (hoarding of toilet paper!) will only serve to alienate each other.
Slow Down, Be Grateful and Appreciate All You Have: Often you only appreciate things when you no longer have them. As horses we love to hang out together doing something and nothing but we observe you humans never stop. You’re always doing something. We invite you at this time to slow down and reflect. Remember everything in the Universe has a rhythm and this provides certainty. The sun rises and falls daily, the seasons change with regularity throughout the year yet humanity lives at full throttle, pedal to the metal day in day out, and then you flat line as your energy burns out. You’re not designed for this and whilst you know it you can’t seem to get off the treadmill. Use this as a time to make that switch.
Remember We Are All Part Of The Ecology Of The Planet: We are all inter-connected and inter-dependent. The current crisis is showing you that most clearly. Everything you humans do has a ripple effect. Become aware of how your ripple impacts others because it does even if you’re not consciously aware of it.
Humanity, the coronavirus pandemic is providing you with the gift to wake up and become more aware of the rhythms of nature. For everyone who has been sleep walking your way through life, we urge you to enjoy being in the moment, to slow down and become more aware of your impact on others. We invite you to become more horse like!. Let us show you the principles of how to live in harmony and unity with each other and nature. Let us help you return to your roots and find your unbridled spirit.
We know you can do it. Will it be easy, no, but the results will be transformative and spectacular for all of us – humanity, the animals, plants and planet. Let us help you, our life-long partner navigate these challenging times. Leverage our wisdom to help you create your success and thrive once again.
Many of you might have recently read or seen extracts from Simon Sinek’s new book on the Infinite Game. In it, he suggests that business leaders should stop focusing on short-term (finite) gains and instead focus on the long-term (infinite) game of the business. This is something I wholeheartedly agree with—but it’s nothing new as a concept.
When at school, I clearly remember learning about Japanese theory management and how, in Japan, people were more concerned with the long-term outcomes of what they did rather than the immediate short-term benefits. The challenge for leaders in the West today has become the fixation on short-term results. Public companies are measured by their 90 day success on the stock market. If the CEO fails to make the numbers, the stock price plummets. The result is that business leaders make decisions based on short-term success, rather than considering the longer-term consequences.
When leaders are always seeking to win the game, rather than acknowledge and appreciate that their decisions today have a ripple effect throughout society, the quality of their decision making can be significantly impaired.
That is why it was so heartening to see Paul Polman, former CEO of Unilever, stop publishing quarterly results back in 2010 and informing shareholders that “if they didn’t buy into this long-term value-creation model, which is equitable, which is shared, which is sustainable, then don’t put your money in our company.” Curiously, over the decade that Polman was at the helm, Unilever’s shareholder return has significantly outperformed the FTSE index. What Polman clearly understood was that if you are kind to the planet and the communities in which you operate, that long-term success is inevitable.
So, what exactly are the differences between a finite and infinite approach to business and life? In his book Finite and Infinite Games, the author James Carse identifies the difference as being:
Finite games have a start and finish. They are played within a boundary. There are rules that shape the play on the field, and whoever is the most powerful at the end of the game wins.
In contrast:
Infinite games are ongoing. There is no start and no finish. Once you enter an infinite game, the critical asset is endurance and resilience.
What can we learn from nature about having an infinite mindset?
Nature is always playing an infinite game—after all, it has been around for 3.8 billion years. In nature, if you don’t play the game and adapt, you die. Which is why we see so many species that have endured over time simply by adapting to the changing environments in which they find themselves. Contrast this with the abject failure of household brands such as Nokia, BlockBuster, and Kodak—all companies that failed to realise they were playing a long-term game, and so steadfastly resolved not to change and innovate as the environment and changing landscape shifted.
For leaders, really understanding that work is infinite can massively change your perspective on things. Just imagine, if you really appreciated that business was an infinite game, you would stop saying things like: “If I just stay late I’ll get caught up” (we all know that never happens!) or “If I just sacrifice seeing my kid’s event this evening, I’ll be in a better position for work tomorrow.” When we focus on work and business being an infinite game, we realise that it will never stop, there will always be something to do, a pivot to make, a promotion to plan.
The work will never stop—however, as leaders, what we can control is how we respond to this.
When leaders recognise that work is continually evolving (just like nature) and their job is just to harness and direct it in order to get the best overall outcome, it brings a degree of flexibility and freedom to the role. With an infinite mindset, leaders can build stronger, more innovative, more inspiring organisations that are committed to bringing meaning and contribution to their lives.
One of the first steps in creating an infinite business is to create a compelling purpose and vision, something that will make a real difference in the world and which will drive you forward on a daily basis.
“We need to get rid of rules – real and imagined – and encourage independent thinking.” –Howard Behar, Starbucks
Great leaders recognize that business success is a team sport and they cannot do it all for themselves. That is why the old paradigm of command and control structures will no longer be a successful leadership model.
There is an unprecedented need to effectively delegate to get everything done; however, there is a spectrum to delegation. At one end of the spectrum are task-based activities that team members are asked to perform, with little understanding of the context of that task; whilst at the other end of the spectrum, delegation becomes empowerment that ultimately morphs into Shared Leadership.
Empowerment vs. Delegation: The Difference
Whilst both empowerment and delegation are important concepts in business, as they involve entrusting others to take on important roles in the business, empowerment is much more of a motivational strategy whilst delegation is more of a doing activity.
When team members are empowered, they are encouraged to take personal responsibility and make decisions based on the situation they find themselves in—which means, from a customer perspective, they can take action to resolve client problems without having to escalate it to a manger, safe in the knowledge that their manager will support the decision they have made.
Great leaders empower others to success by setting the GPS for the business and then rallying the team members to follow. However, team members will only follow if they:
are aligned with the vision
feel valued and recognized
recognize and see value in what they can contribute
When team members understand these aspects, they are able to take ownership for the activities they are responsible for and ensure that the outcomes are aligned with the business strategy, which can be very inspiring for them.
Conversely, delegation occurs when a manager assigns a task to a team members. The task emphasis of the delegation is different the decision focus of empowerment. When a leader delegates tasks, they typically provide details of the requirements, often in a step-by-step manner, including the deadline for completion. There is little or no opportunity for the team member to provide any creativity or innovation to the process, and often learning is limited.
The Delegation-Empowerment-Shared Leadership Continuum
I like to envisage delegation, empowerment, and Shared Leadership on a continuum. At one end is delegation, which is task-focused with no decision making capability and lots of control and monitoring. In the middle is empowerment, where the team member has decision making capability within an assigned framework and therefore less control is required. At the far end of the continuum is Shared Leadership, where the team member and leader are jointly responsible for the task getting completed and work in a collaborative and co-operative way, each individual focusing on their own area of expertise.
Whilst many leaders may be reluctant to relinquish the control needed to engage in Shared Leadership, or its lesser cousin of empowerment, I strongly urge you to shift your thinking on this important matter. Yes, there are times when simply delegating a task may be enough—but the evidence is overwhelming that when team members feel trusted and empowered, they become more engaged. According to the Corporate Executive Board, leaders that can move team members from low to high engagement through empowerment experience increases in productivity of over 21%. Just think about what impact that could have on your bottom line.
If you think you are doing a great job empowering your team, just remember that, according to Gallup, only 13% of the global workforce is highly engaged. That means only 13% of your team are prepared to go the extra mile for you and feel fully satisfied with their work. Just imagine the possibilities and impact on your business if, through empowering more team members, you could increase the level of engagement.
And remember that control and creativity are the antithesis of each other. Control stifles creativity and innovation, the thing that can bring competitive advantage, and it can also dampen team members’ enthusiasm and motivation.
What can you do today to start empowering your team members and making them feel more engaged and motivated?
