In yesterday’s Advisor, three leadership myths were busted by Jackie Barretta, author of the book Primal Teams: Harnessing the Power of Emotions to Fuel Extraordinary Performance (American Management Association (AMACOM), 2015). Today, Barretta presents three more myths your leadership should be aware of.
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Myth 4—Efficiency and Expertise Are the Holy Grail
Most teams focus on increasing their productivity and efficiency, and they encourage their members to become experts at their jobs.
Reality: These practices actually make them less adept at solving the challenging problems faced by most teams today.
The human brain has evolved for efficiency and will easily get stuck in the ruts forged by the constant repetitions that it takes to perfect a process or become an expert.
Action: Help every team member approach each situation with freshness and novelty. Promote curiosity, exploration, and learning so your team can avoid mental ruts and come up with better solutions.
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Myth 5—‘Big Data’ Holds the Answers
Teams are increasingly turning to huge stores of computer-based data to inform their decision making.
Reality: The collective knowledge of the team members is most often the best source of data. They are constantly exposed to valuable details, such as customer reactions to products and services, which can never be codified in a computer’s bits and bytes. These details are stored in the members’ subconscious minds, often without their conscious minds even being aware of them.
Action: Encourage people to use their intuition. When people use their intuition to read the data in their subconscious minds, it’s not just a hunch or guess; it’s based on real data. Embrace practices to engage this data in creative problem solving.
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Myth 6—There Is No Place for Love
“Love” is still a foreign word in most business environments.
Reality: Teams need heartfelt emotion to deal with today’s challenging problems. This is not the gushy love you feel for your partner but rather the sensation you feel in the area of your heart when you are inspired by doing something meaningful. These heartfelt emotions are the ticket to sparking their highest levels of energy, insight, focus, and creative problem solving.
Action: Embrace love as a must-have. Help team members find and experience deep meaning in their work.