How the Japanese Concept of Shoshin Helps Leaders Challenge the Status Quo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I played tennis for most of my life. During that time, I had many different coaches and I began to notice repeating patterns among them.

Coaches tend to come up through a certain system. New coaches will often land their first job as an assistant coach with their alma mater or a team they played with previously. After a few years, the young coach will move on to their own head coaching job where they tend to replicate the same drills, follow similar practice schedules, and even yell at their players in a similar fashion as the coaches they learned from. People tend to emulate their mentors.

This phenomenon—our tendency to repeat the behavior we are exposed to—extends to nearly everything we learn in life.

Your religious or political beliefs are mostly the result of the system you were raised in. People raised by Protestant families tend to be Protestant. People raised by Jewish families tend to be Jewish. Although you may not agree on every issue, your parents political attitudes tend to shape your political attitudes. The way we approach our day-to-day work and life is largely a result of the system we were trained in and the mentors we had along the way. At some point, we all learned to think from someone else. That’s how knowledge is passed down.

Here’s the hard question: Who is to say that the way you originally learned something is the best way? What if you simply learned one way of doing things, not the way of doing things?

Consider my tennis coaches. Did they actually consider all of the different ways of coaching a team? Or did they simply mimic the methods they had been exposed to? The same could be said of nearly any area in life. Who is to say that the way you originally learned a skill is the best way? Most people think they are experts in a field, but they are really just experts in a particular style.

In this way, we become a slave to our old beliefs without even realizing it. We adopt a philosophy or strategy based on what we have been exposed to without knowing if it’s the optimal way to do things. We end up unwittingly perpetuating the status quo and miss opportunities to innovate and improve.

Shoshin: The Beginner’s Mind

There is a concept in the Japanese philosophy of Zen known as shoshin, which means “beginner’s mind.” Shoshin refers to the idea of letting go of your preconceptions and having an attitude of openness when studying a subject.

When you are a true beginner, your mind is empty and open. You’re willing to learn and consider all pieces of information, like a child discovering something for the first time. As you develop knowledge and expertise, however, your mind naturally becomes more closed. You tend to think, “I already know how to do this” and you become less open to new information.

There is a danger that comes with expertise. We tend to block the information that disagrees with what we learned previously and yield to the information that confirms our current approach. We think we are learning, but in reality we are steamrolling through information and conversations, waiting until we hear something that matches up with our current philosophy or previous experience, and cherry-picking information to justify our current behaviors and beliefs. Most people don’t want new information, they want validating information.

The problem is that when you are an expert you actually need to pay more attention, not less. Why? Because when you are already familiar with 98 percent of the information on a topic, you need to listen very carefully to pick up on the remaining 2 percent.

As adults our prior knowledge blocks us from seeing things anew. To quote zen master Shunryo Suzuki, “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.”

How to Rediscover Your Beginner’s Mind

Here are a few practical ways to rediscover your beginner’s mind and embrace the concept of shoshin.

Let go of the need to add value. Many people, especially high achievers, have an overwhelming need to provide value to the people around them. On the surface, this sounds like a great thing. But in practice, it can handicap your success because you never have a conversation where you are quiet and listen. If you’re constantly adding value (“You should try this…” or “Let me tell you something that worked well for me…”) then you kill the ownership that other people feel about their ideas. At the same time, it’s impossible for you to listen to someone else when you’re talking. So, step one is to let go of the need to always contribute. Step back every now and then and just observe and listen. For more on this, read Marshall Goldsmith’s excellent book What Got You Here Won’t Get You There.

Let go of the need to win every argument. A few years ago, I read a smart post by Ben Casnocha about becoming less competitive as time goes on. In Ben’s words, “Others don’t need to lose for me to win.” This is a philosophy that fits well with the idea of shoshin. If you’re having a conversation and someone makes a statement that you disagree with, try releasing the urge to correct them. They don’t need to lose the argument for you to win. Letting go of the need to prove a point opens up the possibility for you to learn something new. Approach it from a place of curiosity (Curiosity is a superpower): Isn’t that interesting. They look at this in a totally different way. Even if you are right and they are wrong, it doesn’t matter. You can walk away satisfied even if you don’t have the last word in every conversation.

Tell me more about that. I have a tendency to talk a lot--just ask my wife 😅(see “Providing Too Much Value” above). Every now and then, I’ll challenge myself to stay quiet and pour all of my energy into listening to someone else. My favorite strategy is to ask someone to, “Tell me more about that.” It doesn’t matter what the topic is, I’m simply trying to figure out how things work and open my mind to hearing about the world through someone else’s perspective.

Assume that, like me, you are an idiot. In his fantastic book, Fooled by Randomness, Nassim Taleb writes, “I try to remind my group each week that we are all idiots and know nothing, but we have the good fortune of knowing it.” The flaws discussed in this article are simply a product of being human. We all have to learn information from someone and somewhere, so we all have a mentor or a system that guides our thoughts. The key is to realize this influence.

In a sense we are all idiots, but if you have the privilege of knowing that, then you can start to let go of your preconceptions and approach life with a beginner’s mind. A mind that will help us challenge the status quo to create personal, team and organizational breakthroughs. 

"A breakthrough is often a break with." --Stephen Covey

 Check out a post about another powerful Japanese concept based on an American idea: Kaizen: Gaining the Full Benefits of Continuous Improvement

To your greater success and fulfillment,

Peter Mclees, Leadership Coach, Trainer and Performance Consultant
SMART DEVELOPMENT

 

Take the Next Step...
Interested in learning how to develop your organization's leadership capability, culture, and employee engagement? We begin with a collaborative discovery process identifying your unique needs and business issues. To request an interview with Peter Mclees please 

contact: Email: petercmclees@gmail.com  or  Mobile: 323-854-1713

Smart Development has an exceptional track record helping service providers, ports, sales teams, restaurants, stores, distribution centers, food production facilities, wealth management services, third-party maintenance providers, real estate services, nonprofits, government agencies and other businesses create a strong culture, leadership bench strength, coaching skills and the teamwork necessary for growth.

Having worked with several companies throughout their growth cycle, we have valuable insights and strategies that would help any late stage startup, small or medium sized company achieve sustained growth and prosperity.

 

How to Address Defensiveness When Giving Critical Feedback

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s hard to give critical feedback in the best of circumstances. So, when somebody gets defensive, it’s tempting to give up. But it’s the leader’s job to the provide the necessary feedback even if the person gets defensive.

Why People Get Defensive

People rarely become defensive because of what you say; they become defensive because of why they think you are saying it.

The topic being discussed is usually not the issue, it’s a person’s perception of your intent that drives their response. Their perception hinges on two axes: do they believe you care about what they care about, and do they believe you care about (or respect) them. These are what I like to call the “ingredients” to psychological safety. Unfortunately, if a person has been surrounded for years by others who don’t respect them or their viewpoints, they may seem to “be on the defensive” all the time.

At the outset of an accountability conversation the other person is assessing whether you mean them harm and whether are you capable of carrying out that harm. If you don’t make it clear that you respect them and have good motives, they will likely assume the worst—they will perceive you as a threat.

When people feel psychologically unsafe and threatened, they resort to silence or verbal violence. Their fight-or-flight response kicks in and the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for rational and deliberate thinking, takes a back seat to the amygdala, the instinctive part of the brain concerned with survival.

We’ve all experienced this: we feel attacked, and then we act like a complete moron in an important moment, though we feel like we’re acting brilliantly. When we look back on the moment after having calmed down, we often wonder, “What in the world was I thinking?” The truth is this: you weren’t thinking very hard, you were just trying to protect yourself.

When people feel unsafe, they focus on the threat and their motives become short-term. They are likely to get defensive, and this can make them appear short-sighted and selfish, which can evoke more defensiveness (or attacking) and an escalated response.

There are some mental disorders that can contribute to defensiveness too, but I’m not an expert in that area.

Do’s and Don’ts

Here are some do’s and don’ts to help you provide criticism in a way that will reduce defensiveness.

Don’t Forget to Praise

Make sure to mention the things this person is doing right. Offer both praise and criticism so that the person hears both. Separate is often more clear than the “feedback sandwich.”

Do Emphasize Your Intention to Be Helpful

Your goal is to demonstrate that you are on this person’s side. Try saying something like, “I want to help you improve,” or share a story about a time when you made a similar mistake and somebody’s feedback helped you fix the problem. Choose wording that feels authentic, and make sure your mindset going into the conversation really is focused on being helpful. There’s nothing worse than an insincere lead-in followed by a kick in the shins.

Don’t Criticize Reactions

Telling somebody not to be defensive is a waste of your breath—this person probably already knows that’s not the best reaction.

Do React With Understanding and Compassion

If this person does react defensively, try saying something like, “I can see that you’re frustrated. I’m sorry. Is there a way I can say this better? I’m trying to be helpful.”

Don’t Escalate the Situation

Reacting to your employee’s defensiveness with frustration will only make things worse. This person is having a hard time hearing what you’re saying. Saying it even louder or more clearly won’t help. But don’t backtrack either. There’s a world of difference between saying, “I’m sorry you’re upset,” and “I’m sorry I said that.”

Do Be Open to a Conversation

Perhaps this person legitimately disagrees with what you’re saying. Remember, feedback’s a gift in one of two ways: Either it helps the person fix the problem or it helps to fix your misperception of the problem. Don’t forget to ask, “What do you think?”

Don’t Criticize in Public

When you do that, you’re much more likely to trigger a defensive reaction.

Do Pay Attention to Time and Place

In general, I recommend giving feedback immediately (you help the person fix the problem faster!), but it doesn’t help to give criticism when emotions are high. Also, give difficult feedback in person (Physically or virtually) so that you can pay attention to body language and avoid potential miscommunications.

Don’t Criticize Personality

Avoid saying things like, “You are negative” or, “Everybody hates working with you.” The purpose of criticism is to help somebody change and improve, not to bring him or her down.

Do Use the Situation-Behavior-Impact Model

Instead of saying, “You are negative,” say, “In the meeting (situation) when you described how difficult the problem we are trying to solve is (behavior), everyone felt discouraged instead of inspired (impact).”

Giving feedback to someone who’s defensive is hard, and unfortunately, I can’t change that. Criticism often stings in the moment, and there’s simply no way around that.

Even so, it’s the leader's job to say these things. Fortunately, if you react to the hurt with compassion, you can help the person improve while also also deepening your relationship.

 If you know someone who is prone to defensiveness, share this post with them: How to Learn and Grow from Feedback, Especially if It's Constructive (5 min)

To your greater success and fulfillment,

Peter Mclees, Leadership Coach, Trainer and Performance Consultant
SMART DEVELOPMENT

 

Take the Next Step...
Interested in learning how to develop your organization's leadership capability, culture, and employee engagement? We begin with a collaborative discovery process identifying your unique needs and business issues. To request an interview with Peter Mclees please 

contact: Email: petercmclees@gmail.com  or  Mobile: 323-854-1713

Smart Development has an exceptional track record helping service providers, ports, sales teams, restaurants, stores, distribution centers, food production facilities, wealth management services, third-party maintenance providers, real estate services, nonprofits, government agencies and other businesses create a strong culture, leadership bench strength, coaching skills and the teamwork necessary for growth.

Having worked with several companies throughout their growth cycle, we have valuable insights and strategies that would help any late stage startup, small or medium sized company achieve sustained growth and prosperity.

 

Adaptability Is Essential for Leading in a VUCA World (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambigious)

 

 

 "It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change." --Charles Darwin

Adaptability Defined  

Adaptability is essential for leading in a VUCA world — that is, one characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. Adaptability is the ability to read and respond to change with a wide repertoire of complementary skills and behaviors.  For instance, some circumstances call for leaders to take charge, force difficult issues, and make tough decisions, while others require leaders to enable, support, and include people. 

Similarly, organizations sometimes need leaders to focus on their future strategic direction and at other times to focus on day-to-day operations and execution.

Note that when paired, these leadership behaviors, like the Taoist concept of Yin and Yang, are opposing and yet complementary: Forceful and enabling provide a balanced blend of interpersonal behaviors for influencing others, while strategic and operational provide the range needed to address a host of organizational issues. One approach without its complementary approach is incomplete.

Adaptable leaders deftly toggle between opposing behaviors. They can step up and make a call just as easily as they can bring people together to make group decisions. They can read the room and adjust their behavior accordingly, from asking questions and listening with an open mind to pushing an unpopular view one more time. 

They can also zoom out and envision change in big-picture terms and zoom in on the tactical details of implementing change.

Adaptability Is a Meta-Skill  

This leads me to the conclusion that adaptability is not just another leadership skill but rather a meta-skill. That is, it reflects a balanced and well-rounded pattern of skills that suggests an underlying capacity to master specific skills and behaviors and enable the continual learning of new ones. 

I see it as a higher-order capability that emerges when leaders develop competence with a wide array of specific skills and behaviors, learn how to appropriately balance the opposing and complementary ones, and cultivate the wisdom and situational judgment to know when to use which behavior — and to what degree.

As leaders develop adaptability, it facilitates the acquisition of new skills in a virtuous cycle. As they expand their perspectives and repertoires, it becomes easier to continue expanding them. On the other hand, leaders who build their careers around their innate talents and playing to strengths have a narrower range and limited ability to expand it. 

When the game changes, in the words of Eric Hoffer, "they are at risk of finding themselves fit for a world that no longer exists."

Developing Adaptability

There are different routes to adaptability for different kinds of leaders, but three principles apply to all. First, adaptability requires understanding your tendencies — which behaviors come naturally and which ones do not — and this understanding can be gained with a personality assessment like the Predictive Index. 

It also helps to get feedback from coworkers regarding your behavior and its impact. This is useful for calibrating what you are doing effectively and what you could do to be more effective by adding new skills and behaviors as well as being more selective with those on which you may over-rely.

With self-awareness becoming more adaptable involves learning how to do what does not come naturally and learning how to prevent strengths from becoming weaknesses through overuse. The best way to learn these lessons is through a variety of challenging work experiences — especially those that stretch you out of your comfort zone. 

There is little learning in the comfort zone and little comfort in the learning zone. And it is not enough to go through the experience; the experience has to go through you. Reflective, humble, and nimble learners seem best able to absorb the lessons of experience.

Finally, becoming more adaptable also involves an evolution in your self-concept or identity, the story you tell yourself about who you are. Leaders who lack adaptability tend to define themselves in a polarized way — for example, “I am a hard charger, not a soft pushover” or “I believe in power through people, not power over people.” 

They over-idealize the virtue in the way of leading that they identify with while simultaneously distancing themselves from the complementary side, which they often portray in extreme, caricatured terms. The side they turn away from becomes their blind side.

In contrast, those who develop adaptability come to see themselves in a more nuanced, differentiated and yet integrated way: “I am a hard charger who believes in power through people.” They grasp the necessary interdependence of opposing ways of leading and can imagine doing both in a way that feels authentic and genuine, something they can feel good about. This mindset shift allows them to become a better, more expanded, and capable version of themselves.

No one knows what our disruptive world will throw at leaders next. They don’t know, either. 

I do know, however, that those who possess a wide and balanced repertoire of complementary competencies, skills, and behaviors — and the wisdom to know which one to use in a given situation — are likely to be most effective at leading their people, teams, and organizations through the turbulence. And we know that this meta-skill — adaptability — can be learned, coached, and developed.

To your greater success and fulfillment,

Peter Mclees, Leadership Coach, Trainer and Performance Consultant
SMART DEVELOPMENT

 

Take the Next Step...
Interested in learning how to develop your organization's leadership capability, culture, and employee engagement? We begin with a collaborative discovery process identifying your unique needs and business issues. To request an interview with Peter Mclees please 

contact: Email: petercmclees@gmail.com  or  Mobile: 323-854-1713

Smart Development has an exceptional track record helping service providers, ports, sales teams, restaurants, stores, distribution centers, food production facilities, wealth management services, third-party maintenance providers, real estate services, nonprofits, government agencies and other businesses create a strong culture, leadership bench strength, coaching skills and the teamwork necessary for growth.

Having worked with several companies throughout their growth cycle, we have valuable insights and strategies that would help any late stage startup, small or medium sized company achieve sustained growth and prosperity.