October 2011
In
a recent poll that asked "What is the single most important question
you have about leadership", "How can I improve my communication?"
received 34% of the votes. (The runner-up received 20%.)
So,
we've been discussing communication and how to improve our skills in
this area. One area where many fall short is in engaging others BEFORE
they try to inform. Most meetings start off with the obligatory and
brief niceties. Then, they proceed right into the data dump... metrics
for this, numbers for that, status for this, issues with that... blah,
blah, blah. A whole lot of information... but who really cares?
Telling facts touches MINDS (informs).
Telling purposeful stories touches HEARTS (engages).
The greatest value and motivation comes from touching hearts!
In axiology I often talk about the hierarchy of value.
| Value | Dimension | Metaphors | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highest | Intrinsic | Spirit | Heart | People | Be |
| Mid | Extrinsic | Body | Hands | Products | Do |
| Lowest | Systemic | Mind | Head | Policy | Have |
Often
we are so focused on the Mid and Lowest classes of value that we
neglect the most valuable one. Many times, in fact, we devalue the
highest class of value.
As
I speak to audiences of leaders, I talk about the intrinsic, the people
part of leadership. They understand that leadership involves people but
often they just want the 'people' to be human doings instead of human beings.
I
talk about taking the time to get to know the human being. In this
newsletter, I'll discuss telling stories and many of you will hear a
thought like this in your head: "I don't have time for that." "They
should just do their jobs." "I shouldn't have to motivate them."
"They're getting a paycheck."
If human beings were just heads and hands without hearts, those statements above might work for you. As you know, human beings are much more than that.
