"Will someone please make a decision" (add exclamation marks as needed)

The following is the original and the rewrite can be found by clicking here.

When I say "Will someone please make a decision", I am by no means suggesting that you should defer your destiny to someone else, diminish the need to take "the bull by the horns", not take ownership for your life, or any other pithy saying that reminds us it's our life - Our responsibility to grab on tightly and enjoy with gusto!

It's more directed to that somewhat important saying that reminds us that, "To know how to be a good leader, you need to know how to be a good follower". 

As someone who has been on both sides of this fence, I want to take a moment and offer a thought or two from the perspective of the follower... you know, the one asked to make it happen or follow the grand plan; the one who is looking to their leader to set a direction that can be executed on. And this brings us back to that simple request, "Will someone please make a decision"; admittedly sometimes also taking the form of a frazzled request, a statement, an urgent statement, a strongly worded statement or a wild eyed demand.

Where does this request come from? The simple answer is, "Nothing can get done without a decision being made"

For a follower (a doer, an executor, the fix it guy), this makes "needing a decision" very high on the list for getting things done; arguably its number one. There is an understanding that a process is required for decision making, that not all decisions are easy ones, and some decisions require time to make. However, this is not the reason you hear the words "will someone please make a decision" uttered. (With the appropriate number of exclamation marks added.)

In my experience, the reason for uttering these famous words is more often than not a result of (or combination of) the following:

• There is no defined owner for the decision.
• The decision making process has become more important than the actual decision.
• The request for more information is never ending.
• "Decision making" is viewed in absolute terms of right or wrong and not one of "degrees".
• The culture does not encourage risk, empowerment or ownership.
• There just seems to be too many people involved.
• Lack of communication and transparency regarding what is happening.
• There is a belief of "being safe", as you can't be wrong if you do not make a decision.

All these points made from the perspective of a "follower".

And this weaves us back to the saying, "To know how to be a good leader, you need to know how to be a good follower".  As a leader, appreciating the perspective of the follower, you can work to remove those barriers that are impacting your team's ability to get things done.

So with that said, every so often take a trip down memory lane and remember those times you found yourself uttering the words "will someone please make a decision" with flair... then ask yourself, "Is there someone on my team who may be saying the same thing?" If so, remember you can make some changes regarding that... after all you are the leader.

And if you are a follower... soon enough you may find yourself as the leader, so make sure you are taking good notes.

iamgpe

The conviction of quality... an aspect of character.

Recently, I was reminded of the conviction of quality as I worked on a somewhat involved presentation that brought audio, video and graphics together... it was not a difficult exercise but it was laborious and at times a little "mind numbing."  

The presentation was spot on and was looking good until it was pointed out that one of the graphics had an indentation error; an error I might add that had escaped notice in earlier iterations. An error not easily fixed, that would involve three hours of deconstruction, and offer up mind numbing re-editing - An error that no one would notice, and even if they did, at no level did it impacted the message.

And so entered my veiled rationalizations. 

Qual·i·ty  (ˈkwä-lə-tē) is one of those words that offers two meanings where one is reflective and entwined with the other: a characteristic or feature that someone or something has and a high level of value or excellence - Inevitably leading you to ask the question, "Is my character one of excellence?" 

As I worked through my small presentation issue, a number of aspects with quality came to the forefront for me - 

• Excellence is something you are forever striving for and there is an understanding that you will become better with time, experience, and continued input.
• Mistakes will be made, and we inherently know that something can always be done better; if however you can look yourself in the mirror with the knowledge you did your best, then improvement is for another day.
•  If you find a mistake you need to fix it as quickly as you can; a knowable mistake is not reflective of quality.
• Mistakes lead to improvement, so learn from them, don't make them again, and move on.

In the end, I grumbled a little bit and then spent three hours of deconstruction and mind numbing re-editing to fix the indentation error. For me, it reinforced my conviction of quality, and as you may suspect, it made for an even better presentation. 

In the end, the small indentation error did matter, and I am better for it.

iamgpe

Sometimes "solutions" can be just as "problematic"...

The following is the original and the rewrite can be found by clicking here.

If you want to evoke a response just mention a "problem"... "I'm glad it's not my problem". "I wouldn't want to be you". "Oh, that's a tough situation". "That's really unfortunate, I hope you can work through it". The bigger the problem, the more exclamation marks you will find involved.

Whereas, if you happen to mention you have a "solution", you will elicit a far more upbeat response... "Way to go". "You saved the day". "You are a goddess and have saved the company". The bigger the solution, the more exclamation marks you will find involved.

Intuitively, leaning towards the "solution" side of the equation makes for a better day; although having said this, the Contrarian off in the back corner just looked up and wants to offer a thought or two. He has no debate with the fact that "solutions" are better than "problems" and he also wants to scream out, "You are a goddess and have saved the company!!!" He does however suggest that you shouldn't be so quick to perceive a solution as all rainbows and unicorns, as they can be problematic unto themselves (no pun intended; well maybe a little).

Solutions are defined by the problems they "solve for", so as a quick litmus test you need to ask your self:

• "Do I have a solution for a recognized problem?"
• "Do I have a solution looking for a problem?"
• "Do I have something really cool, but not sure what to do with it?"

Other questions may come to mind, but the point is a solution needs to have a problem to solve for - Anything else is problematic as it becomes distracting, wastes time, and detracts from finding a real solution. And even with an aligned problem and solution, it doesn't mean you are free and clear to receive all of those accolades because there is still that whole matter of "line of sight".

Now that you have a problem that has found a solution, the question becomes how are you going to get there. People will want to understand how you are going to actually get to the solution - Do you have "line of sight" to how you will make your solution a real one... what is your pathway to success?

The concept of "line of sight" is beneficial in three regards:

1. "Line of sight" forces the development of the plan making the solution a reality; it forces the execution steps for success to be developed.
2. "Line of sight" reminds you to develop tight and concise language to articulate the problem, solution, and the pathway to success. More often than not, you will need leaders, partners or investors to "see what you see" to get support.
3. "Line of sight" will help you determine if the solution is workable in the first place.

It looks like the Contrarian is finished and has gone back to whatever he was doing... although he did mention something about "you saving the company".

iamgpe