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I was being followed by the Shrinkonian police. They somehow knew I was in possession of the manuscript. The secret document that contained the Three Insights that would change the project world.
How did they know? The only one I talked to earlier that day was Sara. Did she inform the authorities? Noooooo. Impossible.
How did they know? The only one I talked to earlier that day was Sara. Did she inform the authorities? Noooooo. Impossible.
The Project Prophecies were three “truths” or “insights” that would alter peoples perspective on projects. They were described in some crappy, new age narrative that had an unbelievable storyline. Something like the “The Celestine Prophecy“, but only much shorter.
I had this manuscript in my briefcase. Well. It was a plastic bag from the grocery store. A briefcase would be too obvious. People would suspect I have something important in a briefcase. Why would I have a briefcase, if I wasn’t carrying something important?
Earlier that day I had explained to Sara the first insight.
First Insight. It’s a balance. Really.
Sara was sitting on the opposite side of the table. She drank coffee. She always did.
“You know,” I told her, “My focus has always been projects that require resilience. Projects that have to handle many disturbances and uncertainties.”
She knew. For years I just would not shut up about this. Really. She knew.
“Yeah. yeah. And you assume diversity as the key element in creating resilience. Diversity creates different viewpoints, different ways of problem solving, other ways of looking at the world in general. This clash of perspectives produces creative solutions. I know,” she yawned.
“Great. Glad you remember.” For a short moment I considered if I was boring her with this topic.
“Well,” I continued, “this diversity operates on two levels. In the group, where you seek people with cognitive diversity. And the mind. Being able to use multiple mindsets, handle different viewpoints.”
“Yeah. So. Why is this so important to you?” Sara said with her eyes closed. I couldn’t tell if she was meditating or asleep.
“I found an ancient manuscript that talks about this. When the world is ready for it, it will know that there is more to it than just diversity. It’s a balance. That’s the first insight. It’s a freaking balance!”
I was screaming. People were looking. Sara woke up.
“A what?”
“Do you remember the days when every body wanted to be in IT? When it didn’t matter what your background was, as long as you were intelligent?”
Sara remembered. She was herself a celebrity chef turned supply chain management consultant. She had found her true passion.
“Of course you remember. You would end up with a craftsman that was used to feel with his hands how much he could get out of a log of wood. He would turn out the be a fabulous developer with a feeling of how to mold the code. Truly. Do you remember the girl with a background in martial arts that could really kick the crap out of a system? She was natural when it came to testing.”
“Yes. Yes. I do remember.” I got Sara’s attention. For the first time. Ever.
“Great times! As I recall the key with this diversity wasn’t that you were selecting it. You aren’t selecting a martial art fighter and a wood craftsman to implement software. I think the essence is that we discovered the cognitive diversity within the team and used it to our strength.”
“Exactly!”
“Being in hotels and spending lots of time together created a close team. We embraced each others diversity. It was so incredible interesting to talk about all our different background and interests. And by sharing and working on a common goal we also created something unique for our group. Something that made our team our team.”
“Wow. This is exactly what the first insight is about. It formulates it like this.”
I showed her a piece of paper that read:
The balance between homogeneity and cognitive diversity among tribe members. Cultural diversity can provide different interpretations of situations resulting in creative problem solving. Homogeneity makes sure the group operates as one. In a resilient tribe you need both.
However, if you put stress on this balance, people either lean towards diversity (“not being like them”) or homogeneity (“being among your own people”).
“Oh yes.” Sara said. “In the end there is always a mix between “we are the world” and “I want to go home”. The magic doesn’t last forever. People are always getting on my nerves in the end.”
I remembered getting on her nerves.
“This is an incredible insight on the team level. Does the manuscript say something about resilience on the mental level?”
“That is the awesome part. It does! Think about the times you were tired or in a noisy room and had to write a report. How good was the report?”
“Not good. Actually, very bad. When I’m tired I switch to auto-pilot and start using the theories that people expect me to use. So I actually start writing what people expect me to write. I miss the open mind and creativity at that moment to get to the true spirit of things.”
“How do you solve that?” I asked.
“Sleep and isolation. Sitting in a quite room after a good nights sleep will do the trick.”
“That’s the second part of the first insight.” I yelled, while handing her another piece of paper.
There is a balance between a closed mind and an open mind. If we are putting stress on ourselves, if we put fear in your mind, if you are exhausted, we will lock into one dominant mindset. This is great for focus. An easy reference frame to make decisions against. But it also makes a bad problem solver and communicator.
Having an open mind, being able to switch context, to use other mental models or mindset helps you to be more creative in problem solving. You are looking at the same problem from multiple perspectives. It also allows you to see other peoples perspectives faster and with that improving your communication effectiveness. An “open mind” also has drawbacks like a lack of focus. Lack of opinion. Unable to make decisions.”
“That last sentence is so true. If everything seems possible, it is very hard to make a choice.”
From the corner of my eye I saw a suspicious looking man observing us. It was time for me to go.
I said goodbye to Sara and took a taxi.
Bas de Baar is a writer who draws about people in transition. He loves to make visual maps and travel guides for the collaborators of our brave new world.
Posted on: September 21, 2013 08:43 AM |
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