July 2015
Situational Awareness
July 03, 2015
-Karthik Gurumurthy
I was reading the book Resilience by Eric Greitens. One of the things that caught my attention was this super impressive Navy seal named Will Guild who shared about Situational Awareness - picture a 6'4", 250-pound guy who did literally everything in the Navy and then went on to study Shakespeare and teach philosophy at the Naval Academy. Pretty cool mix, right?
He came up with this really simple but brilliant way to understand what's going on around you using four questions:
1. "Why am I here?" (Like, what's your actual purpose in this situation?)
2. "What's going on around me?" (The real deal, no sugar-coating)
3. "What am I going to do about it?" (Your game plan)
4. "How will my actions affect others?" (Because everything you do creates ripples)
He explains it using two totally different scenarios:
- A military mission (like watching a suspicious car pull up)
- A personal situation (like making up after snapping at your spouse when you're tired)
The cool thing is these questions work for pretty much ANY situation, but here's the catch - you've got to answer them in order. It's like building a house - you need the foundation before the walls, right?
Will's big point is that being resilient means seeing things as they really are - not how you wish they were or fear they might be. When you practice this enough, it becomes automatic, like how pro baseball players can somehow "see" what pitch is coming, or how boxers can predict where a punch will land.
Bottom line? Just like you can't get wise from reading someone else's wisdom (looking at you, Buddha and Montaigne), you've got to practice this stuff yourself. The more you do it, the better you get at reading situations and handling whatever life throws at you.
Keep in mind though - no one can master everything. That's why it's smart to have friends who can see things you might miss!
Why do great people leave/quit an organization?
July 02, 2015
-Karthik Gurumurthy
Quitting is portrayed a bad thing usually. People who leave an organization after being there for long haul are usually portrayed as someone who is not paying the price, losing the dream. But we do witness great wonderful people leaving quit organizations from time to time. Why is that?
People don't quit organizations, they quit leaders. It’s a sad but true commentary on the lack of leadership skills that are so desperately needed to thrive.
There are consequences to poor leadership and where it’s not present, people will leave to find it. Inevitably it’s the good hardworking loyal workers who leave. Left behind is a weakened and demoralized team forced to pick up the pieces.
But why do the good ones leave? What is the tipping point? The specifics vary, of course, but typically the good people leave for the following reasons.
No Backbone
This type of leader plays to the crowd and will say whatever he or she thinks you want to hear. The good ones had rather hear the uncomfortable truth than the pleasant sounds of a diplomat. The good ones want a leader who is not afraid to make the difficult decisions.
No Vision
The good ones long for and thrive in an environment where the leader has a vision for the future, can articulate it, and sets a course of action that will take them there. The good ones understand that without a clear vision for the future there is no future to be had by just merely staying.
Cheap talk Manager
It will be hard to command the respect of your people if you have no skin in the game as it relates to your organization and its mission. You can’t expect a buy-in from your people if you are not fully invested yourself. The good ones seek to be with leaders who are as passionately invested as they are.
Not Adding value
If the so called leader does not move forward or makes effort in moving forward, the good ones will not sit idly by while the leader plays politics or favorites and be denied the opportunity to advance professionally.The good ones will thrive in a culture of excellence where their hard work and talents are put to best use.
No accountability
The loyal great leaders fundamentally understand that accountability and transparency are the cornerstones of success. When a leader no longer feels the need to be transparent or be accountable for his or her actions, then the good ones will not stay. Trust is like glue for the leader, is there is none, people won’t stick.
Low standards
Ultimately, the leader is responsible for the culture of the organization. If proper boundaries are not being observed and inappropriate behaviors are being tolerated, then the good ones will not stay in that environment.
No Integrity
At the end of the day it all comes down to the integrity of the leader. The good ones want their leader to be a person of integrity and one they can trust. If integrity is lacking in the leader then integrity will be lacking in the culture. The good ones will leave to avoid the connection.
Many personal factors contribute to the reasons why the good ones tend to leave and move on. I have discovered that it’s not always for the money or a promotion or not willing to work hard. The good ones understand the wisdom of the words of John Maxwell who once said, “Everything rises and falls on leadership.” That’s why the good ones leave- to be with good leaders.