Issue #189: How Tom Hanks Provides Hope, What the “Outlier Phenomenon" Teaches Us About Teamwork, and More

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INSIGHTS (on leadership/self-leadership)

I was recently in Houston, and took the time to tour Johnson Space Center, site of some of the most important events in human history. It was one, nondescript room in particular, in an unremarkable looking rectangular building, that really captured my attention and inspired a sense of hope. The room, famously known as "Mission Control," is seen below, carefully preserved as it was on July 20, 1969, the day its occupants guided the Apollo 11 astronauts to become the first human beings in history to set foot on another planetary body.

An utterly remarkable, seemingly impossible, fraught with peril every step of the way mission, accomplished. After the Apollo 11 journey, the room housed scores more engineers and scientists working side-by-side, ultimately landing a dozen people on the moon. All united by the noblest of goals – achieve the mission and return the astronauts safely. Period.

It was inspiring to think about the level of team work that had to take place to make such miracles happen. But it was movie star and seemingly all-around good guy, Tom Hanks, that helped me draw the most important takeaway of all from this piece of history. Said Hanks of the work done in Mission Control (in an instructional film he narrated on my tour):

“I remind my children and grandchildren, if we can put 12 people on the moon and return them safely, honestly, we can solve any problem.”

It’s a poignant reminder to never underestimate the power of the human spirit, especially when people have a common, compelling goal that unites all. It’s this combination that restores my sense that everything is going to be all right.

I know, I know. It seems like at times in the world today, we’re incapable of coming together. And I’m betting, on a smaller scale, at work, you’re experiencing a truly daunting problem that requires people uniting like you haven’t experienced yet in your job.

My point is this. Don’t lose hope. Even in the face of the most devastating issues, remember what human beings can do when they come together for the same, meaningful cause. Then, frame the problem to solve in a way that it compels everyone to pull together, in “Mission Control” mode.

The pairing of reigniting your belief in human potential and framing a problem in a universally critical way is a powerful duality. It might not lead to a “giant leap for mankind,” but it will make the impossible seem far more possible, in your world.

IMPERFECTIONS (a mistake many make)

Let’s continue with the theme of the power of people pulling together. A common mistake I see leaders make is to continually deprioritize investments (time or other resources) on the team-building front. “It’s a nice to have, given all we have going on,” I often hear. I won’t share best-practices on how to build a sense of teamwork, here. I’ll just point out something you intuitively know but likely don’t think about often. The power of a shared sense of identity, drawn from membership of a tightly knit team, is not to be underestimated.?

Case in point, I give you what social psychologists call the “Outlier Phenomenon.” I’ll explain. Studies show that when a new individual is introduced into a group, and that individual brings in behaviors and beliefs different from those of the established group (as often happens), it creates uncertainty. This uncertainty threatens a clear prototype to which team members have strongly assimilated themselves. Thus, the newcomer is often ostracized not for his/her identity, but because of the threat he/she imposes on the identities of the existing team members. In other words, the draw to maintain a clear social identity via membership of a harmonious team is so strong, we quickly create outliers to protect it. ?

This phenomenon also plays itself out in failed acquisition or mergers, as Wharton research indicates. Many such failures have been primarily attributed not to financial causes, but to a prevalent “us vs. them” dynamic that had employees refusing to relinquish their old identities and morph into new ones.

My point is not to illustrate the downside of a sense of shared identity, just to hint at its power. Imagine this sense of identity working for you – compelling everyone to row together, fiercely in support of one another, muscling towards a common goal. In fact, a sense of shared identity is so powerful, it’s a primary source of meaning people derive from their work lives. As a famous social psychology study showed, “membership in workplace groups drives meaning through a sense of shared identities, beliefs, or attributes because team members feel like they belong to something special.”

So, make a special effort to fuel this special ingredient for productivity and achievement.?

IMPLEMENTATION (one research-backed strategy, tip, or tool)

Here’s an unlikely source for a “strategy, tip, or tool,” as this section promises every week. A poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson I was recently reintroduced to, titled, “What is Success.” It’s chock full of tips on how to look at success differently, perhaps in ways you haven’t considered before:

“What is success? To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate the beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded!”

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? Check out my bestselling, award-winning books: The Mentally Strong Leader: Build the Habits to Productively Regulate Your Emotions, Thoughts, and Behaviors, and Leading from the Middle. A Playbook for Managers to Influence Up, Down, and Across the Organization.