Can you see beyond your frame? Can you escape it?

How do you go about solving a problem? We're all taught to first define the problem fully. But we should spend more time on how we are describing the problem in the first place - because the metaphor shapes our thinking, unconsciously. Framing matters.

In a 2011 experiment, two groups were given the same problem but it was described differently. Crime was described as a beast terrorising the city, or a plague spreading through the city - an animal vs a disease metaphor. They were asked to come up with solutions.

The first group's solutions were all about control - patrols, penalties, prison. The second group's were about diagnosing and treating the root cause - reducing poverty.

Are Coke and McDonalds examples of Not For Purpose companies?

We are all susceptible to this. I work with "not for profit" organisations. We have collectively accepted the language of a US tax concession and framed purposeful organisations through the lens of accountancy. "For purpose" is used as an alternative, but it feels a little kooky and forced. Why? Because our dominant linguistic framing for 'organisations' is through a legal and financial lenses.

The word profit sends a little shiver down the sector's spine. When I use the word surplus instead, it implies stockpiling food for winter; something with which i can do good. So I listen closely to the language my stakeholders are using, and flip between profit (the CFOs are very happy with that word) and surplus as needed.

Practicing re-framing for better strategic conversations

A common creative writing exercise is re-writing a known story from another character's perspective. In one such re-write, some workers were very happy in their prosaic lives until Snow White showed up and disrupted everything, and then left, after which their world went back to normal.

It's a great exercise for strategy. Some prompts, depending on experience and comfort, from concrete to abstract. Describe your organisation's strategy:

• from the perspective of your stakeholders, funders, clients, suppliers.
• as seen by your Board, Executive, staff. What does the newest, most junior casual staff member think you're doing? The person with 40 years service?
• As one tiny part of a huge ecosystem, and as the fulcrum for the whole world
• As a competitor, as a hostile politician, as your bitter ex
• As a food, as a country, as an art form, as a wedding guest, as a sport, as an animal, as a building

Actively interrogate the familiar frame

Strategy is often described as 'how we shall win'. The TV series Ted Lasso showed a sports coach who cared more for the game than for winning. What if you didn't seek 'winning' with your strategy, but instead worked so that everyone you encountered would have a great day?

The Netflix TV series Three body problem posits an alien opponent who can see and hear everything. What if your all your conversations about strategy were entirely public and everyone knew everything. Would that change your approach?

Scarcity mindsets abound in NFPs. What if you did have all the resources you needed? Alternatively, what if success meant shutting down?

I'm currently reading Anne Enright's The Wren. A young woman is frustrated by her dowdy, withdrawn and dull mother. Then the author shows you the mother as a girl: vivacious, clever. It's disconcerting, because Enright has persuaded you of the truth of the daughter's perspective. Which suggests the challenge: what if your dustiest and dullest activity was your superstar? What if your beliefs about your organisation's vivacity and beauty were thought wrong by those close to to you?

John Cage's 4'33" asked the question, what is music performance without the music? What would your organisation be without a strategy? In what ways would it break and fail? In what ways would it thrive?

Perceiving and questioning the frame is why diversity adds value to strategy

This should be obvious: every person who experiences marginalisation perceives how they're being framed by the 'other'. My wheelchair-bound grandmother could see the bumps in the path that no-one else noticed.

One of my most powerful experiences in governance was watching another member of the LGBTQI+ community eloquently destroy a ludicrous discriminatory proposal in committee - because he saw the frame and contested it, rather than accept the plaintiff's position at face value.

This, to me, forms the strategic case for diversity in Boards and Executive teams. Beyond that it is right for leadership groups to reflect society, increasing the number of different framings leads to better strategy. Make alternate frames safe to discuss, partly by demonstrating you know alternate frames exist.

Reframing during implementation

As Strategy cascades outwards through an organisation and stakeholder network, everyone will read it through a different frame. For example, for middle management this will often be 'what do i have to do now?'. If you've managed communication really well, it will also include 'how is this relevant and useful in my part of this organisation?'

Be aware of this during strategy communication and implementation. Who will need to take this on? How will they reframe it? The only certainty is that they will reframe it. So consciously describe the framing. Be overt. And when questioned, make sure your answer includes your frame.

To return to my first example of what if crime was an illness and not a beast? And, if you have called it an illness that needs diagnosis and treatment, what happens when a group of leaders describes it as a beast? In other words, if you experience misalignment, is it about the issue or about the framing of the issue? (Narrator voice: It's usually the frame.)

Close

One of the things I enjoy in consulting is offering different framings for people. An unusual generalist squiggly career path, a restless mind, and relatively low fear of being wrong makes me good at spotting frames and offering alternatives. It's why i recommend all professionals do some job hopping, and build and maintain a rich hinterland of experiences.

LinkedIn lore says there must be a call to action. What happens if I reject that framing? See you next bi-week.