"Maintaining or growing your curiosity brings you success"

I'm starting a new series called "What's Underneath", where I ask my most human intelligence and improvisationally-minded #1 Linkedin connections how they move their way out of common resolvable workplace issues into solutions that work for everyone. I am also looking for unusual drops of knowledge and wisdom, that are highly central to resolving problems. The fact that they are unusual doesn't discount their power.

Interview #1 is with Gunnar Habitz. He worked for Hootsuite and was a critical in bringing Compaq computer back to life post-merger with HP. He has a wealth of knowledge, a good relationship with uncertainty and using it to its fullest potential.

TAKEAWAYS:

1. Change is possible when you see the challenge from different angles.
2. Leaders lead people, managers manage systems.
3. If you are starting out on your business or career journey, the ones who bring others up aren't the top people, it's the ones in the middle.
4. Helping people first builds your connections.

OUR CONVERSATION

Some of the things we talked about, was needing knowledge from as many different areas, leadership vs managing, and staying/becoming curious.

POWER OF OBSERVATION

"When I observe a meeting, I don't only go by my agenda. I step out to observe and take no viewpoints. This helps lead an inclusive culture where all voices are heard."

The ability to step outside one's own perspective and observe, instead of persistently seeking acceptance, forms a cornerstone for nurturing and enhancing trustworthy relationships.

TAKING ON ANOTHER PERSON'S POINT OF VIEW, AND OF DIVERSITY

I asked him '???????? ???? ?????? ???????? ???????? ???? ?????? ?????? ???? ???????????? ???????????? ???????????????????? ???? ???????????????? ????????'?? ?????????? ???? ???????? ?? ?????????????????? ???????????????????'.

"I imagine I'm the buyer. I can then work on what I need to do as a salesperson. It avoids the habit of doing things as they have always been done."

"Diversity is often classed as accepting people from different cultures, genders etc. But diversity also means different viewpoints from people of different functions and organisations.

He followed with "For example, out of hiring six sales reps who usually go in a common direction, one should come from a completely different background. Because the diversity of viewpoints and experience is critical."

"If you work in food and beverage in a hotel, why not spend half a day in the housekeeping department to understand how they work?"

COMFORT ZONES

One reason why people's comfort zones are so locked in and hard to move is because people generally tend to stay in one area, get very good there and lack large exposure to other areas.

"Many people are good order-takers, and I don't mean it disrespectfully. But they are not the thinkers or explorers. They keep the economy running. For instance, I admire everyone who's worked in a supermarket. They're not necessarily going up the career ladder, but it's what society needs."

"In my line, typically people in marketing work against those in sales. I've been a marketer for seven years, and it was awesome to then move slowly into sales and come from a different perspective."

"I always saw marketing from a selling perspective, and vice versa."

WHEN YOU ARE GIVEN A CHALLENGING ROLE

His view on making a challenging role one of your own: "After the merger of the HP consumer business and Compaq, I got exactly the job I wasn't after. However, I recognised it was the best that could have happened, because I could remake the job as I wanted. So I worked on reintroducing a Compaq brand, six years after it disappeared from it's merger with HP. And I was one who hated the brand in the past, however, I raised the flag for a reintroduction of Compaq."

"So change is possible if you see it from different angles."

"Many on the lower part of fortune ladder only know the hierarchical approach from growing up, so they know their place. This is not necessarily a good thing. And occasionally some of them want to get out, and they need a leader (not a manager) to figure out their potential."

CURIOSITY

I finally asked him "???????? ?????????? ???????????????? ???????? ???????? ???? ?????????????????? ???????? ???? ?? ?????????????? ?????????". He answered that "there needs to be either 1?? a negative trigger event 2?? they realise the need to do it, particularly from layoffs, or 3?? when they are surrounded by change-makers."

So if I want to change my mindset, I'll find mentors, even on LinkedIn."

CONCLUSION

And Gunnar finished with: "If you rank people from 1 to 10 out of who you want to follow, most tend to want the attention to those already on stages 8 to 10. But that's pretty hard to do when you're at stage 2. So if you find a mentor on stage 4, and they'll pull you up. Those in the middle of the journey are so critical."

I want to thank Gunnar for his time and wisdom today. He is also a voracious writer, and is finishing his latest book "Social Selling for Jobseekers". Follow him on Linkedin and explore his past publications.