Pick A Side?
Choose your side! Think like me! I can show you that you’re wrong and we’re right?
What? Why?
In the world today, seems we’re being asked, sometimes TOLD, to pick a side.
War, politics, religion, right, wrong, even down to beans in our chili!
(Beans belong in chili, by the way. I’m right.)
My question is why? Why do we HAVE to pick a side? Why must we always have a dualistic approach to everything? We’ve done it since time began, it seems. Evil versus good, light versus dark, either in the Garden or Out.
As leaders, choosing a side can be dangerous. We, as leaders, have a duty to hear ALL sides, listen objectively and empathetically, and to make fact based decisions for the good of our people and our enterprise.
Everyone will come at you with their version of a story, their biases of something happening and a belief that their rationale is the rationale. It is oh so easy to get caught up in the fervor, especially if one side of an issue has a master story teller or a larger than life personality about them. Marketing 101.
Being swept away with emotion can lead to emotional decisions, and we have to be on guard about that. Heck, it’s happened to me. I’ve been swayed by the convincing and sometimes dramatic pleadings and convincing that people were using on me.
What happened? Most every time, I made a short sighted decision, without all the facts or without taking the time required to think through it all.
In the Navy today, both Sailors and civilians alike are being taught to Get Real, Get Better. It’s a mindset on how to be transparent, open and honest in our thinking and problem solving. One of the key tenants is we should spend at least 70% of a problem’s life span thinking about the problem. Yes, 3/4 of the time should be in thought.
Seem high? Consider the time consequence of having to go back and redo, rework and rethink a problem. Seems smarter now, doesn’t it.
You don’t HAVE to pick a side in anything. But if you do, take the time to consider everything, then consider it again.
And go put beans in your chili.
Until next time,
Semper Fortis
Chief Chuck