From the desk of Caspar:
Way back in the day, someone once said that if everyone in a team agrees on something, then why do we need all those people on the team. It was a reminder that we need diverse thoughts, ideas and opinions in order to be able to arrive at the best decisions possible.
It is of course good advice and at the same time can be challenging - especially in a world where opinions are increasingly polarised and tensions are running high in no small part due to the feeling of uncertainty over what the future looks like.
I was reminded of this sentiment this week on reading Ray Dalio’s latest book, The Changing World Order which he is publishing chapter by chapter - Chapter 7 on US-China Relations and Wars was only just released last week (Sept 25th). {Sidenote - the whole thing is highly worth reading - link - https://www.principles.com/the-changing-world-order/#chapter7}.
Specifically, he talks to what he calls “thoughtful disagreement”. That is the ability to feel secure to seek out people whose opinions differ from yours and to listen and debate the areas of agreement and those where you disagree. Little in this world is black and white and pretty much all progress on what Dalio calls struggling well - to figure out a way forward between opinions that conflict.
I was also reminded of this by watching the documentary on Ruth Bader Ginsburg (RBG) {link - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7689964/} this week and how she formed a deep friendship with Anthonin Scalia - one of the other justices on the US Supreme Court with very different political views to that of RBG. The documentary painted the picture of someone who was able to have conversations without judging people and to respect their ideas in seeking the truth of a situation and the best forward.
This ability to not get emotionally embroiled, to see the difference between opinions and to thoughtfully disagree sits for me right at the very heart of what makes effective teamwork. With very few clear cut answers in our world, the best decisions I believe will come from each of us developing this skill set to thoughtfully and respectfully disagree.
Tip: Who do you need to challenge your thinking? Where can you seek out thoughtful disagreement to move your ideas along in order to make better decisions as a team?
Creative with Chocolate
I saw this in the past week and it made me smile - a little creativity can go a long way in making other people a little bit better.
(Note it wasn’t for me - that birthday milestone still a few years away!)
Minter Dial
Minter always asks deep insightful questions and himself has a fascinating history - he used to run Redken Worldwide for L’Oreal and has authored some very insightful books - most recently on the power of empathy).
The Road Ahead
The road ahead has rarely been more uncertain. Reflecting on how I’ve prepared for many storms at sea and plenty of challenging times at work is by creating my own inner certainty and going back to first principles. Thorough preparation of body and mind - getting yourself in the best place possible is top of the list - sleep, hydration and exercise right up there. Three sets of morning hill sprints a week to get in the zone is one of my personal habits. Choose your own to suit you - whatever it takes to get in the right zone.
Big Bold Bites
How do you face down Impossible and swerve overwhelm? Here’s my Big Bold Bite on how I approach this:
Thought for the Day
In my experience, the single most meaningful aspect of any team is the people you work with - the relationships you build along the way. The results and day to day are often forgotten - the relationships that endure are as important as anything.
Put people first and the results will follow.
“It was my great pleasure as Country Leader for Protiviti UK to host Caspar on our Inspiring Speakers Summer Series last week. Caspar kept our virtual audience of around 150 leaders from across UK plc captivated by his talk on how to build and lead high-performance teams in order to achieve ‘Big Bold Goals’ through effective teamwork. The talk was full of highly relevant tips, insights, tools and techniques and examples, and was colourfully illustrated throughout with stories from business and from his fascinating experiences in sailing around the world with his family. The feedback from our audience was phenomenal. I am sure all felt as truly inspired as I did. Thank you Caspar!”