The right answer sometimes stares us in the face. We know how things are going to unfold and what we should do about it. But execution can be uncomfortable, messy, or difficult. Perhaps, all three. So, we delay the inevitable, waiting for a better time to pull the trigger. We frequently regret that decision later, often wishing we had acted earlier.
Every decision we make can be looked at with improvement with 20/20 hindsight. We make decisions based on the information we have at the time and what guides us in making "wise" decisions learned over time. Personally, I have learned it is better to spend more time in contemplation and discussion over major decisions rather than making snap judgements that often lead to mistakes. Better to be persistent and constant than expeditious in most cases. The session sounds interesting ...
It is Frank, and thanks for your thoughtful comment.
We will be in dialogue around the common behaviors we have observed in admired leaders that we have studied over the past 30 years. Are you local to the NYC area?
In my experience, many teams are quick to put suboptimal solutions in place or work arounds to cover up problems. They say they are too busy to stop, identify the root cause and then attempt to fix it for good. Instead, they continue to do their work around until it becomes business as usual and they forget there is a real problem laying underneath festering. What I’ve found is it is less about making the decision to do something and more about lacking the skills necessary to fix the problem for good.
Yes. Their desire to not look unprepared or unknowledgeable is at the root of this kind of procrastination. How might you have brought yourself to better self awareness when this happens for you, David?
For me it isn’t self-awareness as much as it is bringing the issue up in a non-threatening way and offering my help to help them fix their problem. My go to line when people push back how long it will take to fix something is, How long has this issue been around? Sometimes it can be several months if not a year or more. The six weeks it will take me to help them fix doesn’t look to bad.
For me it isn’t self-awareness as much as it is bringing the issue up in a non-threatening way and offering my help to help them fix their problem. My go to line when people push back how long it will take to fix something is, How long has this issue been around? Sometimes it can be several months if not a year or more. The six weeks it will take me to help them fix doesn’t look to bad.
Every decision we make can be looked at with improvement with 20/20 hindsight. We make decisions based on the information we have at the time and what guides us in making "wise" decisions learned over time. Personally, I have learned it is better to spend more time in contemplation and discussion over major decisions rather than making snap judgements that often lead to mistakes. Better to be persistent and constant than expeditious in most cases. The session sounds interesting ...
Thanks again, Frank. You might enjoy the 15 minute discussion we hosted to further unpack this idea. https://twitter.com/AdmiredLeaders/status/1671874876817244161
It is Frank, and thanks for your thoughtful comment.
We will be in dialogue around the common behaviors we have observed in admired leaders that we have studied over the past 30 years. Are you local to the NYC area?
Major decisions = maintain the optionality.
Does that idea sometimes infect the process for you when painful and obvious decisions need to be made, Frank?
In my experience, many teams are quick to put suboptimal solutions in place or work arounds to cover up problems. They say they are too busy to stop, identify the root cause and then attempt to fix it for good. Instead, they continue to do their work around until it becomes business as usual and they forget there is a real problem laying underneath festering. What I’ve found is it is less about making the decision to do something and more about lacking the skills necessary to fix the problem for good.
Yes. Their desire to not look unprepared or unknowledgeable is at the root of this kind of procrastination. How might you have brought yourself to better self awareness when this happens for you, David?
For me it isn’t self-awareness as much as it is bringing the issue up in a non-threatening way and offering my help to help them fix their problem. My go to line when people push back how long it will take to fix something is, How long has this issue been around? Sometimes it can be several months if not a year or more. The six weeks it will take me to help them fix doesn’t look to bad.
For me it isn’t self-awareness as much as it is bringing the issue up in a non-threatening way and offering my help to help them fix their problem. My go to line when people push back how long it will take to fix something is, How long has this issue been around? Sometimes it can be several months if not a year or more. The six weeks it will take me to help them fix doesn’t look to bad.
Is it a group delusion David?
Do individual leaders allow it to infect an entire team?