Cultural biases and our unconscious leanings

For a very eye-opening experience of how strong our unconscious biases are, check out the Implicit Association Test (IAT). Extracted from the background information from the Harvard study:

The IAT was originally developed as a device for exploring the unconscious roots of thinking and feeling. The web site has been constructed for a different purpose -- to offer the IAT to interested individuals as a tool to gain greater awareness about their own unconscious preferences and beliefs.

Many years ago, Fyodor Dostoevsky wrote: "Every man has reminiscences which he would not tell to everyone but only his friends. He has other matters in his mind which he would not reveal even to his friends, but only to himself, and that in secret. But there are other things which a man is afraid to tell even to himself, and every decent man has a number of such things stored away in his mind."

These lines from Dostoevsky capture two concepts that the IAT helps to examine. First, we might not always be willing to share our private attitudes with others. Second, we may not be aware of some of our own attitudes. Your results on the IAT may include both components of control and awareness.

How well do we really know ourselves?

Probably not as well as we think. And yet, truly understanding oneself is perhaps one of the most significant differentiators of great leaders from merely good or even poor leaders. This is the realm of emotional intelligence (EI or EQ), a term popularized by Daniel Goleman in his published books from the late 1990s. Components of EI include empathy, organizational awareness, inspirational leadership, influence, developing others, collaboration, conflict management, optimism, and the like. However, at the core, and perhaps most fundamental to EI is self-awareness. Being truly in touch with ourselves, our emotions, and how we process information is not a simple task. As Aristotle once said, “Anyone can become angry – that is easy. But, to be angry with the right person, to the right degree, at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way – that is not easy.”

When I first started my professional career, I quickly learned that the skills possessed by the most successful employees were not purely intelligence-based (everyone was very smart in the field I worked – electrical engineering), but rather what I called “soft skills”. The people who were full of passion, energy, and enthusiasm … the ones who worked very well in teams, had good personalities, and had a great sense of humor (whether overt or not) – these were the people who did very well. These people rarely, if ever, lost their temper and were able to easily resonate with others. To this day, when I interview people for a role in my company, I am much more concerned with their soft-skills than their IQ, grades, or particular degree. Of course raw intelligence matters, but only to a degree … it’s the soft skills that really tip the scale.

But, in order to really hone those soft skills (which, by the way, can be learned and developed to a large degree), one needs to first understand their current baseline. And, the best way I’ve found to establish such a baseline is to “get a 360”. Getting a 360 is the process by which feedback is obtained from your peers, your bosses, your subordinates, and even your clients/customers (a 360 degree view of your world). Best if the feedback:

• Is solicited from a broad range of individuals (not your best friends)
• Asks the right set of questions to derive the essential characteristics
• Is collected by a 3rd party organization that can effectively process all the data and “anonymize” the results

I’ve had great success with both the Clark-Wilson types of surveys and most recently with the Telios Leadership Institute in Philadelphia, for which the managing director is Annie McKee, co-author of Resonant Leadership. But a word of caution is in order: the first time you see your processed 360 results, you may have a negatively defensive reaction. We tend to be unaware of many of our developmental opportunities (a term I much prefer to “weaknesses”), at least consciously. But, working with an experienced coach who can help build and monitor a personalized development plan is a huge step toward leadership greatness.

E-Mail and Its Pejorative Influence on Inner Peace

Why is it that many of us feel so exhausted from email overload? I’m certain the theory I’m about to expound will have little impact on the betterment of mankind, but perhaps it will spur additional thought into how to address this growing anathema.

I receive about 150 email messages per day to my various email accounts, and of course, if I don’t “process” all of those within one day, the backlog grows somewhat linearly and quickly to well over a thousand messages (not to mention the times when I am not in work: travel, client visits, seminars, etc. and the growth is more exponential). But, I don’t believe it is the mere backlog that leads to such antipathy. I contend it is the content.

Very few emails I receive say something like, “Hey Anthony, I just wanted to send you a note to let you know how well things are going. Thanks, and keep up the good work.” As a matter of fact, I can’t remember the last time I’ve received such a note. Rather, most emails raise issues that need to be elevated, actions that have yet to be completed, frustrations that others are compelled to vent, and of course, bizarre sexual enhancement products that must be purchased or hot stock tips that mustn’t be missed. As a result, one develops a somewhat Pavlovian response of something like: “Read mail, feel like crap. Repeat 150 times per day.”

No child ever complained about too many holiday or birthday presents. The quantity is only an issue when the content is negative. And, in the case of email, it seems that this form of communication has evolved (devolved?) into more insensitive mechanisms for passing around the buck. So a backlog of messages that have yet to be read represent a potentially large pile of something in which you don’t want to step but yet can’t ignore.

B-Sides and Their Beginnings

Rather than corrupt the purities of open source discourses with the creative musings (trivialities?) that also seek their outward expression, this B-Side was developed to allow such a proper segmentation. [NB: Wikipedia has a nice description of the history of “B-Sides” for those for whom the term is unknown.] Therefore, I’ll maintain Anthony’s Blog as an executive focus on open source and utilize this home for “everything else”, which usually means the stuff less interesting. You be the judge. I welcome your feedback and discussion on all threads and promise to read and respond to every comment. Thank you for indulging my chaotic ramblings.