Disruptive Learning Solutions

The antidote to stupid teams is leadership and teamwork?training The truth hurts. And this is what organizations avoid at all?costs. Sorry? “We put people first.” Sincerity, genuineness, caring, openness; all words chiseled in mission statements so beloved by organizations that so obviously don’t… put people first. Somehow, executives and senior administrative staff use communication techniques to avoid the truth that would even embarrass the dictators in George Orwell’s?1984. Just watch the debacle that is the Post Office debacle in the UK in which 900 Post Office staff were turned into criminals by the software supplier, Fujitsu, and PO executives; it makes you want to scream, shout and be ashamed all at the same?time. “Between 1999 and 2015, more than 900 sub-postmasters were wrongly prosecuted due to faulty software. Incorrect information provided by a computer system called Horizon, developed by Japanese firm Fujitsu, meant that sub-postmasters and postmistresses were prosecuted for stealing money.”?—?Nick Edser for?bbc.com What interests me is the psychology of how people conspire, cooperate, collaborate, and knowingly cooperate, to misrepresent the truth and scapegoat …

Unveiling the critical role of behavioral skills in adapting to?change People on a beach looking at the waves, every day, it’s a normal thing happening around the?world. Minor problem: there is the biggest cyclone in like living memory heading towards you, faster than the speed of light. Obviously, it’s not, but you get the drift. Warnings are being announced everywhere, telling people that they should stay in their home for a minimum of two days, and not to come out when it’s calm, under any circumstance… because, guess what? That’s the eye of the?storm. People still laughing on the beach watching the waves… What is it that makes people unable to recognize significant danger to their lives, and to the lives of the emergency services who have to pick up the pieces when it inevitably goes?wrong? You would think that the ability to absorb key information?—?like when hell, the largest waves since Neanderthals walked the earth, is coming your way?—?but, Oh, no! Homo Eructus is playing on the beach, watching the waves increase in size. Maybe there is a lost species of humans, one known as Homo Stupidus. In the business of Innovation?—?which is so dependent o…

From scientific discovery to corporate resistance Continue reading on Get Out The Van ? ———

Redefining errors as opportunities for learning Continue reading on Get Out The Van ? ———

Setting goals, planning, problem-solving, and execution Waiting to be told what to do. In the simulations we run, a common characteristic of players is that they sit and wait to be directed by someone. It just blows me away that in the 21sy Century, people have been conditioned to sit at rest until they receive orders to do otherwise. You simply can’t think, talk, or act, in a way that would let you take ownership of the situation! So the dominant model of teamwork and leadership is far removed from the actual needs and behaviors an organization needs to survive and flourish?today. If I asked a whole group of people who work in business?—?or even people outside this world —, would they be able to answer the question? What question? You’re kidding,?right? What’s your model of leadership and teamwork? How do you know what to do, when to do it, and why you do?it? First of all, you will be surprised at the responses: it’s like no one has ever questioned or outlined the requirements for these soft skills. Wait, leadership and teamwork are soft skills? Yup. I thought soft skills were about communication and being nice? I’m not saying it right, but you get my meanin…

??? Empowered Teams?Podcast ? Why Is Leadership Training Failing? Discover the missing link between tech and people?skills! In this episode, we tackle one of the biggest challenges in today’s business world: the gap between leadership training and real-world results. With experts in training, data fluency, and soft skills, we explore how leaders can create a culture of trust and collaboration to thrive in today’s rapidly changing environment. From psychological safety to using data effectively, this discussion is a must-listen for any team looking to level?up. Breaking Down Barriers was originally published in Get Out The Van on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story. ———

Stories bridge theory and practice, inspiring people to learn, grow, and take charge of their?futures Our podcast series is born from the idea that facts, no matter how convincing, do not help change our performance. We live in a post-truth age where meaningful narratives are king. Stories shape?reality. Our experience is defined by disruption and impermanence, operating at the speed of light. We are being drowned in a tsunami of change. The emotional climate at all levels is one of fear, and at times, sheer desperation. Quite frankly, with geopolitics knocking on your door, it is a wonder that people still step out and continue to live their?lives. Our faith in institutions is at an all-time low, and our trust in leadership teams and managers is equally at rock bottom. Gallup’s research on people?—?especially engagement?—?has constantly shown this to be true, and that this is a worldwide issue. Organizational distrust is hierarchically distributed: the lower you go, the greater the distrust, and it has been found that people would move jobs in a blink of an eye if the opportunity appeared. People actually hate their managers, viscerally. Given that Leadership and Management training a…

Embracing discomfort in the learning?process You know what no one tells you? That when you start something new, it’s going to hurt. What is? Well, it will feel like everything. Why? Because you will be deskilled, like a fish out of water, like your comfort zone took a holiday and didn’t return from vacation. Learning hurts. People complain, cry, moan, and do everything to dodge the bullet. You’re kidding, right? Nope. They?do. What’s more, when they are faced with group learning situations, they will gang up and attack the trainer or coach, or whoever is in charge. When they get it wrong, which they inevitably do because they are learning, they will hoist the blame on someone else. For damn sure, it won’t be them. They will say stuff like, “you didn’t tell us what to do”… the cry of the?ages. As a coach, you have to help your people understand the meta process of learning. Why? Because they can relate the feelings of being lost, upset, irritated, even angry, to the situation they are in; they can understand that it is a matter of moving from being an unconscious incompetent to a conscious competent; and while many people may be familiar with these four stages of learning…

Fundamental shifts in personal development, teamwork, and leadership Failure. That’s what happens to businesses and organizations when they fail to evolve, no matter what vertical they sit?in. Seems common sense. So why do people acknowledge it and then seem stuck. Like they know the rules of the game have changed. But are unable to turn the switch off and on?again. No, don’t worry, I am not going to use the frog in boiling water metaphor; instead I will discuss the fact that your ability to change direction is based on your training; how you think, talk and act comes from how your habits have been formatted to deal with the context, culturally, socially, and individually. I won’t beat around the bush: Legacy training and education systems do not prepare you to work in teams, develop leadership skills, and solve problems, at scale. In the face of the mind-blowing headwinds we are experiencing from scientific, technical, digital, and social, disruptions, staying still is not an option, but looking at how leaders and organizations are adapting to these threats, you would think it was business as?usual. Command and control hierarchies are inappropriate s…

Revealing the Truth About?Teamwork Bursting the bubble. Sorry? Putting people to the test as to whether they can walk the talk. OK, I think I get where you’re going… What I mean is that, in general, people overestimate their skill sets, and in particular, their soft skills, their capacity to solve problems, communicate, collaborate, take risks and execute iterative plans. In truth, most senior executives have climbed the ladder without having any of these power skills tested, or even measured. It is the sport of thing that is paid lip service in executive training courses and the like; a sort of business person’s technique to improve their bedside manner… you know, when doctors have to be provided feedback on how to treat patients as human beings and not objects. Lo and behold, they have even discovered that if Doctors improve their bedside manner, patients recover quicker and treatments seem more effective (look it up!). Anyway, that’s by-the-by; maybe the idea is that if business leaders raised the scale of how they treat their people, then productivity and sales would?grow? Because, as BrewDog discovered not too long ago, dropping salaries below the living wag…