Chapter 4 was very interesting. I learned several things reading this chapter. The first was about confronting the brutal facts and the second was regarding motivating people was a waste of time. My aha moment was based on ... "Spending time and energy trying to 'motivate' people is a waste of effort. The real question is not "How do we motivate our people?" IF YOU HAVE THE RIGHT PEOPLE, THEY WILL BE SELF-MOTIVATED. (That one statement was my aha moment. Collins is right, if you hire the right people, they are self-motivated.)
Question: Did you have an aha moment when reading chapter 4? If so what was it. If you did not have one, what part of chapter 4 do you agree with?
I agree, Chapter 4 was interesting but I did not have an “aha” moment. I did find that very same concept interesting and very realistic. Breakthrough and productive results come from making good decisions. It isn’t based on motivational speeches or acts. It is about accepting things as face value and making decisions based on the evidence/facts. Everyone wants a visionary leader. In fact, it is necessary, however; a great leaders has another characteristic. That is the ability to create an environment that fosters honesty.
ReplyDeleteSuccessful organizations with leaders like this understand that a series of good decisions doesn’t happen until the brutal facts are faced.They do not hold out false hopes. This belief is aligned with individuals that are already motivated and focused on the overall organizational goal(s). In conclusion, in confronting the brutal facts, the good-to-great organizations left themselves stronger and more resilient. They did not give up hope or appear to be weak. They were the true definition of champions!
I agree that productive results come from making good decisions. And good decisions cannot be made until the brutal fats are faced. Ignoring the facts because they may be uncomfortable and going on with making a decision is a recipe for failure.
DeleteI did not really have an “aha” moment when reading chapter 4, however, I did enjoy reading the part of the chapter where Collins talks about “creating a climate where the truth is heard and the brutal facts confronted.” I believe it is important to be a leader who is up front and honest, no matter what the situation may be. Trust can be the most powerful form of motivation and inspiration in an organization, and it can be the ultimate source of influence. On the other hand, however, low trust slows decision-making, communication, relationships, and results. No quality is more important – and, sadly, rare, than trust. I believe there are three beliefs that keep people from telling and accepting the truth in the work environment:
ReplyDelete1. People believe that their managers and leaders really don’t want to hear the truth.
2. People don’t think they can safely tell the truth.
3. People don’t know how to discuss the “undiscussable” issues and still be perceived as a positive force in the organization.
All of these beliefs are responsible for the lack of truth in our day-to-day interactions. They force people to say what they think others want to hear rather than what they believe to be true. As a result, we don’t become real in our expectations, in our thinking, or in our interactions. Building a culture of truth telling means creating an environment where employees know it’s not just OK but actually preferable to tell the truth, no matter what others – including leaders – may think.
I did not have an aha moment! Personally, I agree with the part in chapter 4, where it talks about having A Climate Where the Truth is Heard. After reading this chapter, I noticed, it consist of four basic practices for creating the right climate for moving an organization from good to great. First, it mentioned, we should lead with questions, not answers. Here, I do agree, we should be thinking in terms of what is in the best interest at all times for the organization, so this means questioning everything at every aspect. This will allow us to gain more understanding and a greater understanding of what is happening and what we need to be happening. Leading with asking questions, I believe, it is not a method for manipulation of people or blaming people, I think it is a way of getting people to be inclusive and forthcoming about what is really happening and it is a means for getting the best possible answers.
ReplyDeleteThe next section about engaging in dialogue and debate, not coercion. To me this meant, after you have face the brutal truth about your issues, how will we best come together to solve them? Here, we must allow ourselves to engage in dialogue by debating the issues of which we face. We do not won’t people to be afraid to speak up about what they feel is right. Therefore, intense dialogues may very well be the needed way to get to the best answers. After all, if we are allow false hope to be our guide, then we lose.
In addition to the above information, in confronting the brutal truth, I agree, we must conduct autopsies, without blame, we must take the time to dissect all/any mistakes we have made. It does no one any good to pass blame on other members in the organization. After all, we should be focusing on learning and building our understanding as to why we are where we are.
Lastly, build red flag mechanisms in confronting your brutal facts, I totally agree with this idea, because if we ignored what the real data is telling us, then we are headed for failure. There must be flags that can signal us,that certain important information may need our immediate attention, answers for solving must be handle quickly in an effort to keep things moving as desired. Overall, when we fail to confront the brutal truth about changes, issues, or ideas that we face, then we are sure to be working with false hope that is sure to lead to sheer failure.
Miss Cynthia, I agree with your comment that "There must be flags that can signal us that certain important information may need our immediate attention and answers for solving must be handled quickly in an effort to keep things moving as desired." Great leaders plan ahead for avoiding train wrecks by studying the problems/data intensely and knowing what "flags" to look for. When the brutal situations arise, leaders will know how to quickly rally their teachers in conversations to solve the issues and move forward. Thank you for your insight!
DeleteI really did not have an "aha" moment but the quote "If you have the right people on the bus, you should almost never need to assign blame but need only to search for understanding and learning" caught my attention. We all know that mistakes happen and that's why getting the right people on the bus is very important. If someone intentionally throws a twist into the works, that person should be removed out of the organization or put off of the bus. That kind of behavior is unhealthy and can be be toxic. When you have good people on the bus you know everyone will be willing to pitch in and do their part to keep the same mistakes from happening again.
ReplyDeleteMy “aha” moment in chapter 4 was based around the concept of “How to create a climate where the truth is heard”. I had not considered a conscious effort had to made to create a climate where the truth is heard. Doesn’t everyone tell the truth? Doesn’t every leader want to HEAR the truth? But reflecting on the concept I arrived at the answer of “Maybe NOT.” When you learn the truth about the brutal facts, then a leader has to go to work and DO something about rectifying the problem. Collins maps out four steps for creating such a climate
ReplyDelete1- Lead with questions, not answers. When you respect and solicit others’ opinions, they open up and feel valued. A great educational leader realizes that they are working with professionals who have a huge stake in every decision in the school. A leader who comes to teachers with an answer to a problem without consulting the people who the decision affects most can create a climate in which faculty members are closed and unhelpful.
2- Engage in dialogue and debate, not intimidation. Intimidation = Bullying in my book. The “because I said so” attitude from a leader has the potential to create bad vibes and therefore close off the healthy communication that causes an organization to flourish. Many difficult conversations need occur in a school. The leader who displays respect to their employees will always make more gains than the leader who does not.
3- Conduct an examination of the root causes of the problem. Looking at data is always the first place to begin to solve a problem. Employees should all brainstorm what they perceive the source of the problem and then discuss how their responses are related to come up with a few agreed upon causes.
4- Build “Red-Flag” Mechanisms. Then for each cause, determine “what that cause LOOKS LIKE”. If scores are falling because students are not doing their homework, break down the reasons: lack of parental support, lack of understanding concepts, lack of communication regarding homework to parents, etc. Once all of the possible underlying causes (red flags) are discussed, viable solutions can be implemented. The brutal facts must be dealt with in a fashion that allows all stakeholders to feel like they have a hand in the solution. Ownership = shared responsibility for improvement.