Six thought habits of an agile leader
?Our world is not only defined by the constancy of change anymore, it’s defined also by the extremity of change – not just incremental evolution but truly disruptive, extreme shifts that increasingly come from dimensions of life beyond the traditional system…COVID, conflicts (Ukraine), environmental events, technology advancements (Chat-GPT!?) etc.
To define ourselves as agile and adaptive is surely something we cannot deny as fundamental to our success. Whether we are a leader, an employee, a mother, a brother, or any member of society.?
How does an agile, adaptive human think? How do they behave? What are the characteristics that define them to others?
I operate in the world of leadership and transformation – however, so often in conversation with family and friends I share some of these techniques and thought habits I help people develop, and more often than not, people relate, they agree, they want to know more and know how they might be able to also build that adaptive mental muscle in preparation for that inevitable ‘what next’, few of us can really predict with accuracy.
Last week, for a group of practitioners in our framework (The Dilyn WayTM framework of modern mindset for humanising transformation), I shared what I consider to be the most important mindset areas and behaviours that support anyone, anywhere develop these all-important agile and adaptive set of mental muscles.
1: See beyond the Obvious.
It’s so easy to look at things using our logical brains. As described in Daniel Kahneman book, Thinking Fast and Slow, our System 1 brain looks for patterns and familiarity to make quick decisions but our System 2 brain almost takes a pause to look again and analyse what’s before us. The next time you go to follow the pattern of your ways, stop, and think: Is this way serving me best? Is this me doing the right thing, or doing what’s right?
2: Habitually expanding
This is important for everyone. We’ve all got a story that relates to the quick demise of people who retire, without purpose or without expansion. I relate a lot of this to my own family story, more specifically my father's story.?Time and again we are shown by medical science and research how important it is for us all to develop and build our mental muscles around expansion. Learning a new hobby, reading to learn, and asking questions instead of only giving the answers. Start building habits around this area now to support your own fulfilment in life later. There is no substance to the saying: “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” Just watch me!
3: Leaning into 1% of Difference
Comfort. Ah yes, that feeling of safety and warmth and security. It’s a wonderful thing until it becomes the only thing that defines us. Living in this place of comfort mentally, behaviourally and physically only results in becoming static. When we are static, there is no movement, when there is no movement, we become more reliant on the place we are stuck within and anything beyond only becomes scarier and more frightening and impossible as a result.?We watch television habitually not because it helps us evolve, it’s because it takes us away from what’s important. When do we say ‘I need to put the washing on, or I need to mow the lawns before I get stuck into that important work around future investment or professional planning for success? That’s just our comfort brain trying to stop us from leaving that place of security.?The secret I believe doesn’t lie in taking a cold shower or going cold turkey on yourself – it lies in bringing a tiny amount of difference into your life each day. As days flow into weeks and then months, that place of comfort starts looking darker to you and you naturally gravitate towards the light – the exit – or should I say the entrance to the world of possibility. Don’t restrict yourself to where you apply that 1% difference each day – just commit to 1%. Brushing your teeth with your opposite hand (quick nod to Jim Kwik for sharing this!), drinking tea instead of coffee, learning one new feature of technology…One thing is certain, you will never run short of finding 1% difference to bring into your day.
4: First Principles Thinking
I love this principle. From the textbooks of physics labs – First principles thinking (or reasoning from first principles) is when we focus on removing complexity from our work, our projects, and our lives. We can do this by habitually thinking “What are the foundational elements required to achieve success here?” A great example story showing the power of first principles thinking comes from Elon Musk bringing his vision into reality for SpaceX. If you were to look at the complexity surrounding the building of a rocket based on the then NASA processes, norms, ways etc…it would be nigh on impossible to replicate in terms of complexity and more importantly cost. Elon, therefore, applied first principles thinking to the challenge of designing and building a rocket that could also be used again and again.?First principles thinking led Elon and his team to identify the foundational blocks, the primary elements required to design and build a reusable rocket – at 80% less cost (apparently!).
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5: Seeking the Root Cause – Origin Story
This could be confused with my preceding point about First principles thinking. However, this is different, this is deeper, and this is all about why. Why are we doing this? Why do I think like this? Why do we behave in this way? The more we recognise and build awareness of our own root cause or origin story for thinking, behaving and then acting in a certain way, the more likely we are to become more empathetic to the origin stories of people around us. ?A beautiful story shared by a dear friend of mine told of a time when he was rushing to catch a train. Unable to use the turnstiles, he had to go through the ticket attendant at the gate. However, on this particular occasion, the ticket attendant was focused on their mobile phone. My friend's initial reaction was to think negatively and build up some anger towards this person who clearly thought playing or texting friends on their mobile phone was more important than work. And then, in an instant, he checked himself and realised this was nothing more than an assumption he had created, what if the attendant had just received a text from the school where their child went to, saying they were not well and needed picking up??I’m not saying this was the case, however, this story illustrates the power our assumptive mind has over how we see others and create stories about people and the world around us. Next time you go to create a story that’s not yours – think again!
6: Seeing through the eyes of a child
“Show me the boy at seven and I will show you the man.” Have you heard that saying by Aristotle??It may not be completely accurate but is a lovely illustration for this final thought feature. The saying comes from the idea that up to the age of (approximately) seven, a child has little or no filters through which they see the world. They are able to see only truth and fact – rather than a built-up reality made up of all those filters we pick up from this age onwards – rules of the house, beliefs from our parents, conformity amongst peers, societal belonging, expectations for the definition of success and, sadly beliefs that stop us reaching our full potential because we don’t believe we can or deserve to shift paradigms.?When we practice seeing things through the eyes of a child, we are essentially trying to remove our filters to see the truth beyond. What am I really seeing, hearing, sensing, and reading? I practice this all the time and have had many profound moments that helped shape decisions I would never have made without seeing the good, the truth and the potential in something right in front of me.
?These are 6 areas that support my agility in mind and life, and areas that support great shifts in leaders and people I work with.
Which one resonates most with you?
If you were to commit to one of these, which one would it be?
I would love to hear your thoughts, your stories and your comments!
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If you would like to know more about how you can develop the habit of agility into your own work, life or project as part of a wider modern mindset shift, are a few options for you:
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You can also follow me on Instagram: @melross.energymindsetcoach
Senior Cyber Security Advisor / Program Manager at Queensland Government Cyber Security Unit (QGCSU)
1 年I love this Mel, thank you. Goes to brush teeth with left hand immediately ????