Red Lights vs. Green Lights
Work for a Dream Leader? Or a Delusional Leader?
I once worked with a guy who was a master visualizer but a minor speculator. That was a major problem. Our team was constantly sent out to achieve unrealistic goals, and everyone on the team knew it but the leader himself. This was a serious waste of time and money. Worst of all? The delusions of this leader lost the trust of the team. Visualization with no speculation is a DREAM.
I also once worked with a leader who was the opposite of the above. Everything was a red light. This leader was living in the anxious space of ALL speculation and NO visualization. Everyone had to justify every risk they aspired to take. This exhausted a talented, talkative leadership team; and over time, that bold team got quieter and stopped sharing its ideas. Speculation with no visualization is a NIGHTMARE.
So how can we inspire curiosity and experimentation but do so with a few embedded speed bumps? How can leaders go about realizing a guiding path for a realistic future?
If…
VISUALIZATION w/ NO SPECULATION = DREAM
And…
SPECULATION w/ NO VISUALIZATION = NIGHTMARE
Then…
VISUALIZATION + SPECULATION = REALIZATION
The path to realization starts with trust in your fellow teammates. I call this your Believership.
Here’s 5 questions to bring to your next Believership meeting to combat Dream’s & Nightmare’s:
- Can we truly speak freely in these meetings?
- Who in our Believership can play the role of “Visualizer”? Who can play the role of “Speculator”?
- Where do we aspire to be 1000 days from now?
- What road blocks might be in our way?
- What budget are we willing to put aside to experiment our way to success?
VISUALIZATION w/ NO SPECULATION = DREAM
SPECULATION w/ NO VISUALIZATION = NIGHTMARE
VISUALIZATION + SPECULATION = REALIZATION
