self improvement Archives

Leading by following - grainy video still in glass orb

#047 – The Courage to be Second – Leading by Following

04/01/2022 by Mike Clargo

Oftentimes change is more dependent on the first follower than the initiator – Confident humility can make the biggest difference Leading by Following

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Why take this challenge?

Work with others to support your values and make a difference

Develop your understanding of followership and think through strategies for it

Be sufficiently different to matter

Graphic image reflecting different pathways to take the adventure

In January 2001 The Harvard Business Review published an article by Jim Collins subtitled: The power of humility and fierce resolve. It is a groundbreaking paper that turned our view of what sort of person makes a brilliant CEO on its head.

In a nutshell, Jim Collins’ extensive research on the subject revealed that those who make the biggest, and most sustained, difference are those who support others to make things happen.

Derek Siver’s video ‘how to create a movement’ is a wonderful illustration of the ‘leading by following’ effect. The second person in the video makes the biggest difference, but its the first person that people will remember.

And that is humility. The willingness to do things that other people will get the glory for. To fall into someone else’s pattern but take the risks that increase its chances of success. And the resolve to keep doing it.

I wonder how many voices in the head of the second young man screamed at him ‘its not working’ and ‘give up before you look even more stupid’ and ‘its not even your idea’. And how much these voices sapped energy from his limbs and disrupted his flow? That is the potential sacrifice of leading by following.

Which brings us back again to values.

Are your values important enough to you to simply find and support others who are making them real?

+ Green track - taking it in your stride

Pause for thought

The green track this week is simply about examining your own motivations in pursuing the values we explored in the last two adventures. If you have not done so already, watch Derek Siver’s video.

It is often the case that we can have a bigger impact supporting something that someone else has started than in creating our own version of it. But most of us (me included) are more prone to do attempt our own thing.

How does that work out for us? And why do we do it?

That’s it really. Just spend 5 minutes in serious self-honesty working through these two questions. The idea of leading by following may have a number of psychological obstacles for us, and it is good to take a look at these from the outset.

+ Blue track - a bit of a workout (click to open)

Try out leading by following for yourself

Think about anyone around you who is trying to do something different in some way and not getting any traction. This may be because they are not doing it very well. But that doesn’t matter. It is their heart that matters in this.

Think about stepping in and supporting them by joining in with them. But humbly. Not taking over. Not correcting them or improving on what they are doing.

Does this create anxiety for you? If it does, that is good, it probably means it is different for you. Something new. An opportunity to grow.

And are you willing to step into that anxiety? To make a difference? And to stretch yourself?

If you are, try out leading by following in those situations, and see where it takes you.

+ Red track - stepping up to bat (click to open)

Systematic supportiveness

Make a list of those you are aware of that are trying, single handedly, to make a difference. Then highlight where those differences are in line with your values.

Make a choice to move alongside one or two of those people. Practice leading by following and show your support by taking some of the load from them. Be careful not to risk usurping them, or risking them thinking you are taking the mickey.

Choose carefully who you will support, since you are making yourself, and your identity vulnerable by this sacrifice. The fact is, people do not readily understand sacrifice and will likely interpret your own motives from their own prejudices.

But allowing that to happen, unfair as it may be, is in fact part of the sacrifice.

You may find the following resources helpful in tackling your challenge or in gaining further benefits from the skills and insights you develop

The power of humility and fierce resolve.
Derek Siver’s video on leading by following: ‘how to create a movement’
Co-Active Leadership – The five styles
(In Part) 1988 Harvard Business Review Article: In Praise of Followers

To catch up on past adventures you may have missed, feel free to browse our Adventures Library

Let us know how you get on.
Share your experience, your insights and your observation using the comments section at the bottom of the Linkedin post.

Please help us to extend and develop our community by sharing what you are doing. Click on the links below where you are most active, and then like or share the article to your network. Thank you for helping.

And share your progress and insights with the Twitter LbA community using #leadingbyadventure

Useful links:

Introduction to Leading by Adventure  |  What we mean by spirituality?  |  Why Adventure
Adventures to date   |  I did it, but it didn’t work very well   |  How do I know if it is working
Bringing this thinking into your meetings   |  Adventure & Mental Health
Leading by Adventure community   |  Explore Strategic Support options

Ladder in water - metaphor for spotting adventures

#023 – Spotting Adventures

08/06/2021 by Mike Clargo

Open your mind to the wider potential of your environment – Use de Bono’s PMI tool to better identify new possibilities

Please help us to get the word out in just two clicks – click here – then click the like button

Why take this challenge?

Look beyond your initial reactions to more creative understanding

Hone your ability to better see both sides and new possibilities in things

Find unexpected treasure that you might otherwise walk straight past

Graphic image reflecting different pathways to take the adventure

I grew up at a time when thinking was a lot more linear than it is now. Creativity was something you either had or you didn’t. So the ideas of Edward de Bono were a revelation to me. His insight into the natural tendencies of the mind, and his techniques for managing them were a joy.

There is a lot more individual creativity about now, but sadly only a very small proportion of it finds its way into business thinking – particularly via teamwork. We know about creativity, but we are often too busy to think about using it as a natural part of our work.

So de Bono’s tools are as important now as they were forty years ago. At least in terms of putting something in place to help us to make creativity more common-place.

One very quick and easy tool to use is PMI. PMI stands for Plus, Minus, Interesting. It reflects the whole tool in three words. The tool is simply a matter of taking a few moments to consider new ideas or options in a balanced way.

This may sound trivial, but if you think back a bit – how often do we do it? How many of the new things that came to us have we deliberately evaluated beyond our initial response? In how many meetings have all those assembled deliberately analysed both sides together, rather than simply taken sides?

By taking a more systematic approach to considering the things we encounter, we can spot new perspectives, new possibilities, new adventures, that we might otherwise miss.

So this week’s adventure is to practice and apply PMI, and to see what it does for you.

+ Green track - taking it in your stride

Balancing your mind

Simply take a recent idea or option that you dismissed. Or a new choice that you are already aware you need to make.

Use the PMI timer on the right (You can right-click it to copy and paste, or open it from this page).

Deliberately and determinedly use the time available in each session to focus only on the relevant perspective:

Plus: Pros and positive possibilities of taking this route. Its potential upsides – not just directly but indirectly, both short and longer term.
Minus: Cons and negative risks associated with this route. Its potential downsides for people, practice, plant, planet, over whatever timescales.
Interesting: Things that don’t fit in either camp. The questions that remain. The what-ifs, and the if-onlys.

And that is it. Reflect for a moment to see what impact the exercise has had on your perspective. To what extent might there be subtle differences in how you think and feel about the choice? See whether you believe it is something that was worth 5 minutes of your time.

+ Blue track - a bit of a workout (click to open)

Fairer debates

How well balanced is the exploration around the decisions we take in meetings?

There is a view that the balance is present in the debate, with alternate sides reflected in the arguments presented. But is that really true? Are both sides equally well equipped to think creatively about the plusses and minuses, and to express it cogently?

Do people deeply understand both perspectives? Or do we tend to find they only focus on the perspective they are arguing? And are those arguments fairly balanced in terms of airtime, vigour, persuasive force? Or is it biased toward the most dominant characters?

PMI does a great thing for teams. It helps them to ensure that the same skills and brain power are applied to both perspectives. The exercise opens people up to greater listening and insight, enabling their minds to better adventure into the possibilities. It is more efficient and objective. And it is more likely that the final decision carries everyone with it.

For your blue track, use PMI in your next team meeting for one of the decisions to be made. Simply share the timer. Or use the virtual flipchart (click on it to download the PowerPoint file).
At the end of it, develop your own perspective on how it went.

It is unlikely to be perfect first time through, but hopefully you can see how it might be improved for the future.

+ Red track - stepping up to bat (click to open)

Design Strategy

PMI can be surprisingly useful in a design task – a situation, where your team needs to propose a solution. We would suggest the following approach.

Split into breakout groups and ask each to propose their own idea or arrangement for the way forward.
Have each breakout present their proposal, and after each one have the whole group (including the proposing team) do a disciplined PMI exercise on that proposal
After the final PMI, ask the group to select one proposal (not necessarily the best). One that would be easiest to adapt by incorporating the good ideas from the other proposals.
Work through the ‘Minuses’ for that proposal. find things in the other proposals that can address each of these. Adapt the proposal to incorporate these.
Do a final PMI on the adapted proposal to test it out.

You may find the following resources helpful in tackling your challenge or in gaining further benefits from the skills and insights you develop

De Bono’s explanation of creative thinking as a web page and as a PDF
PMI explanation
Virtual Timers, including PMI Timer
Virtual Flipcharts including PMI Virtual Flipchart

To catch up on past adventures you may have missed, feel free to browse our Adventures Library

Let us know how you get on.
Share your experience, your insights and your observation using the comments section at the bottom of the Linkedin post.

And share your progress and insights with the Twitter LbA community using #leadingbyadventure

Useful links:

Picture of someone timidly stepping onto rickety bridge - metaphor for tapping intuition

#019 – Clues in Timidity – Tapping Intuition

11/05/2021 by Mike Clargo

Tap into your intuition and use it to ensure a more secure footing – Use your subconscious to check whether your conscious has the whole picture

Please help us to get the word out in just two clicks – click here – then click the like button

Why take this challenge?

Access deeper levels of wisdom within yourself

Increase your success rate by recognising and avoiding issues in advance

Develop the skills of your team in predicting the future

Graphic image reflecting different pathways to take the adventure

It is a little known fact, but it turns out that most project failures could have been foreseen before they launched. The article ‘Using intuition to predict the future’ tells of a study of failed projects across a wide range of businesses.

The study was undertaken by a large consultancy firm. The interviewers asked those who had been involved a very insightful question. They asked whether, at the point of launch, people would have bet $500 of their own money on the project’s success. And overwhelmingly the answer was ‘no’.

It turns out that, after we have applied all of our logic in planning success, there is still an emotional component within us which has more to tell us. A subconscious sense which assesses things that are too complex and involved and uncertain for factual assessment. One that doesn’t return its answers in words and numbers. But in a sense of discomfort, or disquiet, that is highlighted when we are asked to ‘bet our own money’.

This week’s adventure is all about tapping into that intuition.

+ Green track - taking it in your stride

What am I not telling myself?

Read the article ‘Using intuition to predict the future’, and consider the projects that you currently have going – both business and private. List them down on a sheet of paper and slowly, one by one, seriously consider the question: “If you could bet £/$/€ 500 of your own money on the success of this project, would you place that bet?”

For any that you feel a sense of disquiet on placing the bet, ask yourself: “What things would need to be different, for me to feel comfortable in placing that bet?”. Consider the question with your heart, not your head. And then ask yourself if you can do anything with what it has thrown up at you.

+ Blue track - a bit of a workout (click to open)

Making the $500 bet

If you have gained confidence in this approach through the Green Track exercise, consider using it with your team. Pick a project that is about to launch or to move onto the next stage, and ask the question of your team: “If you were each allowed to bet £/$/€ 500 of your own money on the success of this project (this next phase), who of you would place that bet?”

You may need to clarify what is meant by success before people answer, but that’s a good thing, right?

Then ask people (whether they were willing to bet or not) what could be different that would give them (even) more confidence to place that bet? List down the answers so they are visible to everyone. You can use a virtual flipchart to help with this.

Once you have a list, use it to explore with the team whether there are any changes we should consider making before we launch onto the next stage?

+ Red track - stepping up to bat (click to open)

You may find the following resources helpful in tackling your challenge or in gaining further benefits from the skills and insights you develop

To catch up on past adventures you may have missed, feel free to browse our Adventures Library

Let us know how you get on.
Share your experience, your insights and your observation using the comments section at the bottom of the Linkedin post.

And share your progress and insights with the Twitter LbA community using #leadingbyadventure

Useful links:

Flamingos taking off - metaphor for the space between one situation and the next

#007 – Using the Third Space

19/02/202116/02/2021 by Mike Clargo

Use small pauses between things to best ready yourself for each challenge and opportunity. Divest yourself of the debris of what’s past and put on your best for what’s to come.

Why take this challenge?

Be at your best for each challenge and situation throughout your day.

Better work-life balance through intentional transitions between the ideal work you, and the ideal home you.

Improved mental health for you and those around you

Graphic image reflecting different pathways to take the adventure

In our second adventure – Fixing ‘ … that’s not me’ – we explored how ‘who you are’ is something you can choose. You can put on the ‘you’ you want. You can choose the ‘you’ that will be best for each situation. Even each moment.

Out of his research into top performing athletes, Adam Fraser has discovered that in many cases our success is determined by something most people take for granted – the transition between one thing and the next. Too often we bring who we were in the last battle into the beginning of the next one. And the fact is, that may not be the best option for us.

Around this idea, Adam has prepared some excellent (brief) resources that I heartily recommend you take a look at. This week’s adventure is about better understanding what happens to YOU in those transitions, and then trying out his simple three step approach.

+ Green track - taking it in your stride

A bit like the Third Space

Our adventure this week involves watching a short video (6 mins) and then trying it out (4 mins). You will find the video here. But before you watch it, please try out the following:

Reflect (30 seconds) … on your last activity. Identify what positives you achieved within it, and any learning you put into place (NOTE: this is not a critique – you did some good. Look at it!)
Rest (30 seconds) … sit square in your chair, arms and legs uncrossed, feet on the floor. Close your eyes to cut out distractions and breathe slowly. And bring your attention to each of your senses – in yourself, in this moment. Re-centre them on yourself. And pause for a minute.
Reset (30 seconds) … think about the video you are about to watch. Think about what version of yourself is likely to get the best from the next 6 minutes. And determine to bring that version of yourself to watching the video.

Then watch the video. And make whatever notes or intentions you want to make. And then, before you move on to the next task you have set:

Reflect (30 seconds) … on how you watched the video. Identify what positives you drew for yourself from within it (Remember it is not a critique)
Rest (30 seconds) … sit square in your chair, arms and legs uncrossed, feet on the floor. Close your eyes to cut out distractions and breathe slowly. And bring your attention to each of your senses – in yourself, in this moment. Re-centre them on yourself. And pause for a minute.
Reset (30 seconds) … think about the next situation you are about to step into. Think about what version of yourself is likely to most helpful to those around you and achieving the best outcomes. And determine to step into your next situation as that version of yourself.

That’s it. One short video, and two (very brief, and unrefined) applications of Adam Fraser’s insight. But hopefully enough for you to begin to get a glimpse of its potential. And, of course, to have taken another adventure in your mind.

+ Blue track - a bit of a workout (click to open)

Trying the Third Space for Real

The Blue Track is about trying out the Third Space on some things that are real and meaningful for you. This could be all of the transitions in one day, or it could be a number of what you believe will be important transitions over the next week. Whichever you choose, do the following:

Consider how much time you have for each of those transitions to use the Third Space properly, and how you can find somewhere uninterrupted to have your Third Space.
Set your alarms (calendar, phone, whatever) to give you time for your Third Space before each of the upcoming activities. Remember that if you (rightly) want to review and critique the preceding activity, this needs to take place outside of your Third Space. Keep your intention for the Third Space very simple and straightforward – it is about the best possible transition, nothing more.
When your alarm goes, make sure you cannot be interrupted, and work through Adam’s Reflect-Rest-Reset process. Don’t worry if you struggle a bit, there is plenty of opportunity to perfect it for yourself.
Bear in mind that Rest does not have to be the process described in the Green Track. Depending on the time that you have available, there are many mindfulness exercises available through YouTube (although, personally, I find prayer works for me), but it could be a walk, or other exercise, or something else you find restful.

+ Red track - stepping up to bat (click to open)

Over to Adam Fraser …

For many of us, the restrictions of the Pandemic have meant that we no longer have the travel time that enabled us to make the most important transition in our lives – that from work to spouse, parent and/or friend. Work live balance is not about the hours, it is about who you are in those hours.

If as a result of trying out the Green and Blue Tracks, you can see the potential in the Third Space (particularly in respect of moving between work and home) and want to take it further. Then I need to hand you back to Adam Fraser so that you can use his resources (most of which he seems to have made generously available for free) to further think through and refine your approach. I have included his website and some of his words of wisdom in the Pack section below.

The Third Space has huge potential for our own mental health, and for the mental health of those around us who benefit from us (and others) turning up in our most helpful form. So the pack area also contains other resources you might want to reflect upon.

You may find the following resources helpful in tackling your challenge or in gaining further benefits from the skills and insights you develop

Three simple steps to not take a bad day home – Adam Fraser TEDx Talk
What is the Third Space – Adam Fraser providing examples of people using it
Adam Fraser’s website

Other resources to help you create healthier environments

You are Not a Frog – Rachel Morris’s podcast for busy people in stressful work
Information on looking after your mental health
Articles on creating creating flow in your organisation (as the alternative to stress)

To catch up on past adventures you may have missed, feel free to browse our Adventures Library

Let us know how you get on.

Share your experience, your insights and your observation using the comments section at the bottom of the Linkedin post.

And share your progress and insights with the Twitter LbA community using #leadingbyadventure

Useful links:

Picture of painted face - metaphor for making more memorable meetings

#005 – Disrupting the Camouflage

21/12/202102/02/2021 by Mike Clargo

Disrupting the Camouflage; Better Embrace Diversity in your Meetings; Make your virtual meetings a visual feast

Why take this challenge?

To redress the effect that web conferencing (Zoom, Teams, etc.) is having on our ability to remember meeting content.

To make discussion within meetings more memorable, and thereby easier to apply and recall in practice.

To increase creativity and diversity in virtual meetings.

Virtual meetings have enabled so much to take place through the Covid pandemic that otherwise would not have been possible.

But there are problems, and one of these is that people are finding it more difficult to remember them. The visual similarity between one meeting and the next (same interface, same room) is limiting the cues our mind uses to connect pieces of information together, and this means we are getting more forgetful.

So this weeks adventure is all about creating new perspectives in your meetings to aid people’s ability to ‘connect the dots’ in their own memories.

+ Green track - taking it in your stride

A radical location every day

Most virtual meeting software has the ability to put in a virtual background. Some people use this to blur their background, or to place themselves in a scenic location – a beach, sunset, room, mountain, … but often the same one each time.

The green challenge is to select a new background every day – and not just a conventional one, but something radical and memorable which expresses something about your situation that day.

Simply think about your recent experience, your attitude, a statement, Google an image or symbol that expresses it, and put it in as your background.

It will help those who meet with you that day to associate the ideas you talk about. It may also help to make diversity a more practical element of each gathering.

+ Blue track - a bit of a workout (click to open)

Start a movement

Of course, if you are the only person changing your background each day, the impact on memory will be limited, particularly for you.

But if everyone does it, there will be many more visual cues available to trigger associations and link the things that were spoken about – the mind works that way.

So the blue track is to start a movement – get your whole team to select their background of the day. And use this to better engage people in check-ins (a few words about the background you have selected and why) and sharing at the start of meetings.

This helps better appreciate and acknowledge people as individuals, and it helps further diversity.

+ Red track - stepping up to bat (click to open)

You may find the following resources helpful in tackling your challenge or in gaining further benefits from the skills and insights you develop

Article on meetings & memory – 15 things you can do to improve it
Guidance on changing your background: Teams | Zoom
Good sources of free images to use as backgrounds: Pixabay | Pexels | Unsplash | Wikimedia

Let us know how you get on.
Share your experience, your insights and your observation using the comments section at the bottom of the Linkedin post.

Share the Linkedin version of the challenge
Tweet the challenge on Twitter
Share your progress and insights with the Linkedin LbA community
And share your progress and insights with the Twitter LbA community using #leadingbyadventure