Execution - Erase "MAYBE" from your lexicon...

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

If you know anyone who has come out of the General Electric "machine", you will have undoubtedly heard of, and/or experienced a "Workout". The original workouts came into being as Jack Welsh, the CEO, was working to right General Electric; they went something like this*. A team (without the leader) would meet to review all the issues that needed to be answered to progress various projects, mandates or agendas forward. The leader would then join them and systematically answer their questions with "YES do it", or "NO don't do it", or "I will get back to you with a YES or NO answer in a week". This implemented action.

There is a "truism" regarding effective execution - All action is derived from either the word "YES" or the word "NO" -  any other word will lead to a vast array of inaction. As a quick illustration**, lets look at the manual outlining what to do if you see a strange "flying saucer like thing" in the air. I'm sure it doesn't read like this:

• "YES" push the red emergency button. (action)
• "NO" don't push the red emergency button. (action)
• "MAYBE" push the red emergency button. (what exactly do you do with this?) 

If you look at any process map or decision tree, there is never the option to choose "MAYBE"... it is very hard to know what action to dive next when you hear the word "MAYBE" (or any derivation of it). About now, someone may be saying, "Wait a second, sometimes you have to say "maybe" because of a lack of information, poor timing, lack of resources, etc". These reasons, really justifying saying "NO", with a perspective as to what action is needed next to stop what is being done, or to garner a YES decision. "YES" and "NO" drive the process forward... "MAYBE" keeps everything in a holding pattern - Spinning and spinning.

"YES" and "NO" are also great data points to measure execution effectiveness. The more you find "NO" being used as part of the decision making process, the greater chance you may have skill set issues, resource issues, time management issues, misalignment with goals, risk tolerance issues or a culture that struggles to drive action - If you hear "MAYBE", you can guarantee you have one or all of these.

There is also an ambivalence that comes with the word "MAYBE"... it will insidiously compromise decisiveness, which is so important in good leadership and will also feed the emotion of regret; the words "woulda, shoulda, coulda" will stick to you.

So throw the word "MAYBE" away! It will serve you well. Things will get done.

gpe

* I have not experienced the original "Workout" but have been involved in many of its "workout cousins" ... sometimes affectionately called a "deep dive".  I've also simplified this and taken a little artistic licence to stress the point. 

** This flying saucer sighting example struck me funny. Apologies if you didn't think so.

How airport Newsstands feed curiosity ...

I have flown my fair share, particularly for business; most within North America, but also across the "pond"... and mostly in economy. Standing, waiting, sitting, standing, more sitting and waiting... did she say "delayed again"? With all of that said, other than LAX, there has never been an airport I didn't like; yes I am aware of the issue of pricing, but that is just microeconomics at its finest. What I am really drawn to is the airport Newsstands and the books they offer. They have best sellers of course, but once you get past those, they seem to have an array of the most unexpected titles and topics. They feed my curiosity!

A little while back, I wrote a post called "Along came awareness" , offering a perspective as to how Awareness is an important component of effective problem solving and execution; I then suggest Awareness is born from Curiosity. So now you can see why I am so excited about the airport Newsstand. 

It isn't my intention to offer a book review of my most interesting airport newsstand books, but I did want to offer a sampling, as they have expanded my awareness in very interesting areas... so here goes:

"It's not how good you are, it's how good you want to be" by Paul Arden. Bold font and insights from a successful advertiser makes this an easy read. "Life's Creative Circle" offers great perspective.

• 0-1 yrs: Nothing
• 1-3 yrs: Minimalist
• 3-5 yrs:  Fantasy
• 5-10 yrs: The beginnings of copying
• 10-15 yrs: Art becomes grown up
• 15-20 yrs: A need to change the world
• 20-25yrs: Beginnings of political awareness
• 25-30 yrs: Maturity
• 30-40yrs: Hell bent on success
• 40-45 yrs: Repeating success
• 45-50 yrs: Trying to keep up with the 25 year olds
• 50 yrs: Watershed
• 50-60 yrs: Reinventing yourself
• 60-75 yrs: Gentle decline into senility
• 75-85 yrs: Youth regained
• 85 - 100 yrs: Inhibitions lost. Don't give a damn. Me,me,me

"Universe on a T-Shirt", by Dan Falk. A very readable and entertaining book about the great physicists of the ages and the ultimate search for the theory of everything that is so concise that it could be put on a "T-shirt.

• "The answer to the Great Question... of Life, the Universe and Everything ... is Forty-Two*

"Genghis Khan and the making of the Modern World" by Jack Weatherford. Offers great insight into the man who subjugated more lands in twenty-five years than the Roman Empire did in four hundred.

• At the age of almost sixty, after being provoked by a neighboring Sultan, Genghis Khan took part of his army across two thousand miles of steppes, mountains and the feared Red Desert; doing what no one thought could be done. He completely out flanked and surprising his foe, and as you might guess, it did not end well for the Sultan. 

"SWAY - The irresistible pull of irrational behavior" by Ori Brafman and Rom Brafman. This is a fascinating book as to why rational people will do irrational things... interesting insight into the human condition.

• The chapter, Anatomy of an Accident is a stunning account of the contradictory actions of a veteran pilot, and the attempt to understand why he did what he did, which in the end, resulted in the loss of 584 lives.

"The Procrastinator's Handbook - Mastering the Art of Doing it Now" by Rita Emmett. I really should get around to reading this book. (Feel free to roll your eyes)

"The logic of Failure - Recognizing and Avoiding Error in Complex Situations" by Dietrich Dorner. This is a heavy book to get through, but it does a great job of illustrating the relationship between things and the ripple effect that changes can have.

"American Prometheus - The Triumph and Tragedy of J Robert Oppenheimer" by Kai Bird and Martin J Sherwin - The complex story of the man, the Manhattan Project and ushering in the Atomic age.

• Prometheus stole fire and gave it to men. But when Zeus learned of it, he ordered Hephaestus to nail his body to Mount Caucasus. On it Prometheus was nailed and kept bound for many years. Every day an eagle swooped on him and devoured the lobes of his liver, which grew by night.**

"Resilience - Why Things Bounce Back" by Andrew Zolli and Ann Marie Healy. This offers an interesting perspective on systems, behaviors and their relationships which allow for resiliency through adverse situations, be it in nature, communities or as individuals. 

• There is some interesting commentary on "gaming theory" and what you need to win. If you are playing a computer it's a "tit for tat" strategy. But if you are playing a person, it's a "tit, tit for tat" strategy, as people sometimes do things not appreciating what they have done - It's all about the benefit of the doubt when it comes to people it seems.***

This is a great age to satisfy your curiosity as everything is a "click" away on our smartphone, but I think there is a depth that comes from reading a book which feeds awareness a little bit better. No matter how you satisfy your curiosity, the awareness that is born will help with your creative problem solving.

As I flip through these books, I still find an old boarding pass or two that I used as a marker. 

gpe

* From the "Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy" and 42 fits easily on a T-shirt.

** By Apollodorus, The Library, book 1:7, second century B.C.

*** Page 160-162. Tit for tat is an English saying meaning "equivalent retaliation". It is also a highly effective strategy in game theory for the iterated prisoner's dilemma. Anatol Rapoport first introduced this strategy in Robert Axelrod's two tournaments, held around 1980. Notably, it was (on both occasions) both the simplest strategy and the most successful in direct competition. (Wikapedia)

It's all really just a game...

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

There is a book entitled "A History of The World in 10 1/2 Chapters"* which is a collection of short stories loosely connected; there is one story called The Dream, in which the main character finds himself in heaven and in part, wants feedback and a judgment - "I wanted, oh, some kind of summing-up, I wanted my life looked at". In the great halls of heaven he was told, "You're OK"..."No, really, you're OK". He confessed later that he was a "bit disappointed", and was told, "most people are, but not to take it as any reflection of himself".

This would be an easy segue into people leadership, regarding timely and constructive feedback for individuals and teams. However, when I first read this, I immediately thought of the metaphor, "Life is a Game" and with all games, when it's over, you want to know how you did...  a segue to gamesmanship it is! 

Technically speaking, gamesmanship is the practice of winning a game or contest by doing things that seem unfair but that are not actually against the rules... but I also want to  look at games in a broader sense - Particularly with "winning", or at least having great fun. We should remember, life is one of those games we all must play and sometimes the situations can be very, very hard, with literal life and death stakes. For the sake of these prose, let's assume we are dealing with a safe and sound version of life.

There are a couple of things that instantaneously come to mind about playing games and gamesmanship:  

1. What game(s) can you play at?
2. What are your skills, aptitude, and emotional ability?
3. Do you know the rules?
4. Do you know when you are winning, stalemated or losing?
5. Does the game feed your soul?

I will say up front - DREAM BIG!

But with that said, understand your strengths, and play to them as you will not be able to play every game. Partially, this is a simple matter of "time and space" as you just physically can't do it all, but mostly, the reality is your talents and skills may not lend themselves to you being an astronaut, a singer or a neurosurgeon; there are some games you just can't play - It is just the way it is. When your mother said, "you can be whatever you want to be"... just remember she loves you. For most of us, our skills and abilities will allow us to play many games, keeping us busy and fulfilled. 

Winning, and we might as well get it out there, is defined as gaining, resulting in, or relating to victory in a contest or competition**, and as you know, it can be objective or subjective (look at figure skating), but it is always relative to something. My recommendation is winning should be relative to your personal objectives. In many cases your personal objectives may align with someone else's expectations, but ultimately, how successful you are comes from within. It will make you happier this way.

Knowing the rules of the game is key in my mind. It is in knowing these rules, aligned with leveraging your abilities, that will determine how well you play.... put another way, "the better you understand how something is done, the better you will be at it". And this is where the true definition of gamesmanship comes in - Knowing how to play the game so well, you can leverage this knowledge to your advantage. There was a professional hockey coach named Roger Neilson (1934-2003), who understood the game of hockey and its rules so well, he consistently took advantage of loopholes for tactical advantage or to implement innovative thinking with his coaching. Many rules of the game were subsequently changed because of him and he is honoured in the NHL Hockey Hall of Fame, in the Builder Category. If you want to win, know the rules better than most and align your skills to them.

But how do you know you are winning? Easy, just measure yourself against your objectives and determine what you need to do better or if you are satisfied with the results.

One last thing, do it for the "For the Love of the Game". It will help you through those times when the dice just keeps coming up "snake eyes".***

gpe

* Julian Barnes wrote A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters.  

** Winning as defined by BING on the Internet.

*** The odds of rolling snake eyes on two six-sided dice are 1-in-36. In some board games, this roll earns the player a bonus due to it being rare and otherwise disadvantageous.