Editor’s note:
This post is inspired by a discussion that happened on the Leader’s Cafe Foundation Forum in LinkedIn. The forum can be found here: Link To LinkedIn Forum. And the specific discussion can be found here: Specific Discussion.
Dear Managers and Leaders!
In my four previous posts, I listed 6 symptoms that leaders should take really seriously and analyzed the first three symptoms: "A team member does not produce what the leader was expecting", "Team members are not coming up with new ideas" and ""Team members are unwilling to push their boundaries". Today, we will continue our analysis and tackle the forth symptom: Team is operating from fear.
For your team to function at its full capacity, it needs to feel safe to take risks and work at its limits. It needs to operate through synergy and collaboration to go beyond what each individual can achieve. A team operating from fear will not have the right environment and confidence to push its limits, transcend its capacity, and deliver on their promises.
Detecting that a team is operating from fear is probably tougher than detecting the symptoms that we discussed in earlier posts because it involves feelings. We will try below to help you detect this situation with more accuracy and then we will discuss how to turn the situation around.
What type of fear?
I am not a psychologist so I cannot give you an authoritative list of fears that people can have in the workplace. However, here is a list of what I consider when I think about fear in the workplace:
- Fear of losing a job (the number one fear, especially in the current economic climate)
- Fear of losing a position
- Fear of being embarrassed in public
- Fear of being hurt emotionally
- Fear of impacting one’s family (if working too much or losing a salary for instance)
How to Detect Fear?
Here are a number of things to check when you are wondering whether your team is operating from fear.
- Lack of Sharing – When people on your team keep information to themselves or refuse to help each other, then there might be fear involved. It is possible that the people keeping information for themselves want to avoid being surpassed in skills by others which would mean a fear of losing one’s job, or at least losing the capacity to advance in one’s career. Information is power and sharing information could mean losing some power over the others in the minds of those protecting information.
- Yes Sir! mentality – When your team never questions your decisions, when you are alone at the top making all the calls and never encountering any criticisms, voiced opinions, or positive feedback, then it is possible that your people fear the consequences of speaking up.
- Finger pointing – When a problem occurs and people immediately try to find the culprit rather than focusing on solving the problems, then you most likely have a fear issue to deal with. It is necessary to find the root cause of a problem, but not in terms of finding the culprit. If your team is in that mode, then you should definitely look into this as a serious symptom that will generate more and more problems down the line.
- Protect-your-back mentality – This often goes hand-in-hand with the finger pointing. If your organization is caught up in a finger pointing match every time a problem occurs, obviously, people will do everything they can to protect their back so that fingers will point in other directions should problems occur. When team members have a protect-your-back mentality, they will not want to push their limits and operate at full capacity. They will also lose a lot of time just protecting their back instead of doing productive work!
- Risk avoidance – If people on your team avoid risks, it likely means that they do not feel safe in their environment as we already discussed in yesterday’s post.
- Mania to have everything in writing – When people ask that everything be captured in writing, it means that there is lack of trust and fear that things can turn bad. This is why people who do not know each other well will sign contracts to close their deals while family and friends might just talk about doing things together. The level of trust is higher. If people on your team constantly ask that things be written down, you should consider that a serious symptom that is likely related to fear or lack of trust.
What Should You Do?
So what should you do if you detect that your people are operating from fear? First, I’d say that you need to discover the root cause of their fear and eradicate it. If the fear is not grounded in reality, then you need to tell your team clearly that there are no reasons to be afraid. For instance, if people are afraid of losing their job because of the economic climate and you do not see any potential layoffs in the making, then you must reassure your team. On the other hand, if their fear is real, then you need to work differently and minimize the impact of their fear.
Second, as a general rule, you must create a safe working environment for your team. Your team needs to be a place where people don’t feel threatened to lose their job at the slightest mistake. It needs to be a place where people are not judged or found culprit but rather a place where they can learn and experience more and more things, where they can be recognized for the risks they are taking and praised for their ideas. Your team must be a cauldron where the magic potion of trust and coaching will drive your people to develop and produce more than the sum of what each team member would have done alone.
What about you dear leader, have you ever felt that your team was driven by fear? Have you ever found yourself protecting your back or finger pointing every time a problem occurs? Please help me complete the picture by adding your comments!
Until next time,
Remi Cote
PS: If you find these postings interesting and would like to learn more about what I can do for you and your team, then please visit www.innovachron.com or contact me directly at remi@innovachron.com.
Listen...
ReplyDeleteAgree listen and flush out the FEAR by using this acronym
ReplyDeleteFalse
Evidence
Appearing
Real
What may also need to happen is to have an outside facilitator because part of the fear may be of management.
As ANDREYA says: Listen...
ReplyDeleteand,
As LEANNE says: Listen...
All I can add is:
WRITE DOWN on a piece of paper EVERYTHING your listening activity is getting;
SEE which statements are more frequent;
JOIN all your TEAM members to show them the results (your findings);
OPEN a discussion upon 'How can we, as a TEAM, get over this moment, now that we know the roots for it to be 'installed'?';
If you use the same method again (to write, instead of to talk), you and your TEAM will find, collectively, in a collaboration environment, the answers that will lead your future actions to solve it.
It will be, I'm sure, a very good first step to vanish the sense of fear from your TEAM!
Any questions? I'm listening...
As a practising leader of 15 years (rather than a facilitator) ... I have always believed in those that I worked with.
ReplyDelete[1] Not just in their skills
[2] Not just in their talent
[3] Not just in their experience
[4] Not just in their effort
[5] Not just in their loyalty
[6] Not just in their intention
[7] Not just in their feelings
[8] Not just in their thoughts
[9] Not just in their actions
I also believe in the goals and dreams that they harbour ... often buried deep.
BUT DO THEY .... believe in their dreams and goals?
The biggest fear that I work with time and again is people's fear of pursuing their purpose/passion/dreams/goals.
It's the fear of evolving one's career so that one's work becomes an expression of themselves - their values, their beliefs and what they stand for.
For that to happen .... we have to make some tough calls and overcome the fears that come from years of conditioning; and the fear of our ego being bruised in the process.
fear, in my opinion, is often an issue of power. To relate this directly to the examples provided in Remi's blog,
ReplyDelete1) "Fear of losing a job (the number one fear, especially in the current economic climate)" -> loss of social power (social status -> prestige/power; money with which to project power; ect)
2) Fear of being embarrassed in public (Power of self-control; status among peer group, ect)
3) Fear of impacting one’s family (if working too much or losing a salary for instance) -> again respect (power/authority --> You moved us all the way out to the sticks, we hate it here..ect-> within the family unit; the confidence that comes with respect).
In many instances, the fear is a lack of control, perceived lack of control, perceived/real loss of power (power can be defined in many ways: brute force, influence, prestige, high status, ability to have final say/decision, more/less budget/funding; dominance in other ways, organisational rearranging means a loss of authority within the structure/a loss of power/influence in the pecking order, and so on). So often, the reaction is to grip tighter onto what can be controlled even if that sphere of control is actually shrinking; to dominate what can be dominated under the circumstances, to use force where force is not considered legitimate or appropriate [workplace bullies as one example of an inappropriate use of force].
Regards,
Renée
Some really thought provoking stuff here. To be in a fear dominated environment is an awful situation and there can be so many causes as other contributors have pointed out.
ReplyDeleteI fully agree with the listening and watching. Often people will not talk about their fear or the cause of it and you need to work it out for yourself.
Where I've come across this issue in the workplace it has mostly been because of a bully amongst senior management, and their influence has struck fear all down the management chain so that they all work that way. The second area has been weak management who are ingoring a bully somewhere in the team. My first action in either case is to break that chain and isolate the bully. If necessary to become a barrier to those above me and to hell with the consequences (career inhibiting behaviour as one such boss told me - he left the company before me though).
Once you have the cause isolated or removed you can work on your team. Show them that you believe in them, get them the tools and resources to do their jobs or whatever else needs doing to give people confidence and banish their fear. Most of all, for me, this is about setting the standard in behaviour. No shouting, no tantrums, just a calm presence that sets the tone for overcoming problems and things that go wrong: Fix the problem without blame and recrimination.
Of course fear may now be a worplace issue. Spmeone may be unable to perform at work because of fear generation elsewhere. We may be less able to help directly, but you can idenitify these things and provide support as best as you are able.
Thanks for raising this topic. It is an unpleasant one, but one that we have to face and deal with. If we can do one positive thing, let's all challenge unacceptable behaviour wherever we find it.
PS: I love the FEAR acronym.
I think LeAnne is onto the fundamental core of the problem. People fear management by external control - even managers fear that and are made beholden to that so they have lost their spontaneous inclination to lead.
ReplyDeleteAnytime a system of governance places people in control over other people they do so mostly by fear. The carrot and the stick are the operant motivators and though they may seem different, the carrot is as punitive as the stick in that it can be withheld or withdrawn at the pleasure of managers who are expected by the system to wield position power in determining who gets the "scarce" resources of the organization.
Leadership can never really thrive in a culture that is dominated by management by external control - it is antithetical to leadership. we can accomplish some progress of local leadership, but there will always be the fear that the hierarchy of management by external control will mercurially change its mind and assume control again where too much control has been ceded to the workers. Trust is often low in managed organizations and what local managers who try to lead are saying to their people can be nullified by rational and insensitive upper management, thus reducing trust in the local leader and in the system overall.
The values of management by external control are founded in achieving consistency and the bottom-line. Leadership cultures value the people and their energy to achieve a shared vision through ownership and empowerment. These things cannot go together even though scores of management gurus have asserted that they can.
The only way a culture can thrive in leadership is when the executive makes the transformation (mentally, spiritually, morally and operationally) to embracing leadership as the culture for the organization. The credo underscoring this statement is that: "we must do away with management by external control".
This does not mean that management skills and abilities are moot in a leadership culture. They are essential to the integration of the organization under an outpouring of differentiated energy from turned-on associates. The key to making this work is that the locus of control should be expected to shift away from the hierarchy to the performers at all levels of work. Each performer must become accountable for being disciplined and integrated and under leadership there should be an exchange of expectations and a building of trust to accomplish that.
Leadership cultures are no longer integrated by policies and procedures and by regulations. Instead leadership cultures thrive in an environment of mutually owned principles and guidelines that are expressed and fleshed out at every level of work appropriate to that level of work and by those doing the work so they own them.
With the transformation of managers into leaders (not just by name and fiat, but in truth and in "being") all the good things mentioned above in this discussion will start to happen for the most part. It is critical though to keep track of those managers who cannot make the transformation. They cannot be allowed to poison the process by subtle fear mongering and power plays. If they cannot embrace the new culture they should be placed in roles where they do not have direct influence over people or be given the opportunity to find a place where they can manage somewhere else.
Fear will never go away without making this shift to a leadership culture
Fear exists when your followers have some reason to not trust your knowledge and direction, your reliability and/or your ability to keep your followers in line. More is available on this lack of trust at http://garybclayton.com/leadership/2009/03/leadership-trust/
ReplyDeleteThere is much to learn on this thread and much that I agree with, but could it be that we discount the value of fear as a motivator. I've often shared this quote by Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.com:
ReplyDelete“We need to be afraid of our customers, because those are the folks who give us money. I remind people every morning we should wake up afraid and use the terror as a motivator. The customers are the folks that at the end of the day are really in control.... Customers have a bigger voice online. If we make a customer unhappy, they can tell thousands of people. Likewise, if you make a customer happy, they can also tell thousands of people. With that kind of a megaphone in the hands of every individual customer, you had better be a customer-centric company."
Too many companies avoid talking about legitimate fears. They wait until little problems become big problems...the ones that get on CNN or 60 Minutes. The trick is to get groups to focus on problems early to avoid overwhelming crises.
Good leaders don't manufacture unnecessary fear or fail to focus on the opportunity beyond the fear. But fear should not be avoided when it is real and constructive action can result in positive change.
Sometimes terrible things are gaining on you!
Terry
Terry,
ReplyDeletethis is an interesting point of view. I agree that leaders must be wide open with their teams and show them as clear a picture from reality as possible. They must not over-protect them. I think it is really important and as you are saying, could become a great source of motivation for the groups.
As you are saying, fear must not be fabricated. It must come from reality. I think fear can drive performance, but it should not try to impose performance! I believe this is the delineation...
Trust is critical here. One cannot manufacture fears, but honestly communicate the obstacles people face. The trick is translating that awareness into constructive action and strategic focus instead of paralysis.
ReplyDeleteOptimism is not based on motivational hype but on a track record of overcoming obstacles. When teams have been able to overcome obstacles and their fears in the past, they are more likely to do it again. Optimists, from the research, are realists. Why? They want to know what they face because they actually believe they can do something about it.
This is why leadership is so important. People look to them to remind them of the story of how they have been successful in the past and will be in the future. Do we pull back and wait for the world to do it to us...or do we get busy shaping our own destiny again.
The world is getting an economic wakeup call. Leaders keep people focused on making a difference where they are to invent their own future.
Terry,
ReplyDeletethe whole notion of fear is one that is used variably as Remi indicates. By management as a contrived "burning platform" which is akin to crying "Wolf", while leaders, looking from the balcony (read Heifetz and Laurie's article "The work of Leadership"), identify the adaptive challenge and then inspire a state of disciplined focus and positive expectations and a sense of accountability with their constituents to capitalize on the changing conditions to still realize, and perhaps exceed, the shared vision of the enterprise.
The former adrenalizes short term and then paralyzes because no means and no examples are set - just pressure is passed on from above to the minions below, while the latter galvanizes, empowers and engages the creative genius of all the members of the organization in tight orchestration to make precious lemonade out of lemons.
As Andreya indicates, this will lead to greater confidence, capacity and eagerness to take on ever more challenging situations.
When we have a solid emotional bank-account with our customers we do not need to fear, but will be continuously vigilant to maintain productive relationships and see our strategy for serving them through their eyes. At times we may see things in their industry that they have not yet seen, and so we can become valued partners around their strategy table.
That is leadership. We can only lead our industry when we are indispensable partners of our customers to help them lead in their industry.
Truly enjoy this ongoing highly insightful discussion. One thought is when people start using the word leadership, I believe what many are really saying is self-leadership.
ReplyDeleteI believe no one can lead another until he or she knows how to lead himself or herself. Many leaders lack what Keevs call an emotional bank account because time has not been invested within the individual. It is far easier to focus on the externals of the outside world than the internals of myself, my feelings. How do I now this to be true is because from my experiences 90% of all individuals are playing Captain Wing It, spraying and praying their actions without a plan. Also one of the normed assessments I use confirms this as well.
This lack of planning creates fear both for internal and external customers not to mention a lot of distrust resulting in the demonstration of negative behaviors. Just some additional thoughts as I re-read this great discussion.
Right-on Leanne, there is no substitute for "investing" yourself in your people - making genuine deposits in their emotional bank-accounts. (can you see the parallel with financial investing?) Getting overdrawn - stretching the trust between people - is a dangerous practice and it dries up the energy and destroys trust.
ReplyDeleteMost people think that it is difficult to build an emotional investment in others. This is not true though. It takes small everyday tokens of respect, caring, sensitivity, encouragement and coming through, that are natural between people who are close friends. If you expand them to the people on your team(s) you will find that the response is just as natural and spontaneous with them as it is with your friends.
For people who like "Spock" operate completely and exclusively in the objective or cognitive domain - as they imagine themselves -, this would be a problem though. However, there is no perfectly objective person because we are all primarily subjective beings. All people who prefer a "thinking" attitude are able to also recognize the logic of the feelings as important drivers in human interactions. From this logic they can then make steps to cultivate their relationship skills and experience them as true extensions of themselves. When this path is opened, most cognitive people find the transformation liberating and exhilarating. It may take some coaching though.
I'm reading this book from Katzenbach and Smith: "The Wisdom of Teams". So far, it is really good. The authors are talking about the importance of establishing specific performance goals when creating a team to reinforce the sense of purpose. And they say:
ReplyDelete"...performance goals are compelling. They challenge the people on the team to commit themselves, as a team, to make a difference. Drama, urgency, and a healthy fear of failure combine to drive teams who have their collective eye on an attainable goal."
I thought I would share this as reinforcement that fear can also be positive when it is real.
Thought you'd be interested...
Remi
Good train of thought...leadership, self management, honest or healthy fear, trust, never cry wolf, etc.
ReplyDeleteI think that the biggest danger for companies today is that they can be blindsided by new technology, global competition, exchange rate challenges, you name it. Not all can be planned for.
It's easy to initiate change when people realize that change is necessary. Good companies make it part of their culture to embrace it forever. No company is a movie...it's a soap opera. Inertia is hard to break in successful companies. Healthy fear can create the need that leaders can use to create healthy urgency and focus.
I think too many companies try to orient people to their culture instead of using them as sources of fresh eyes. I remember working with Sandia who handle our nuclear weapon security etc. When they hire a new brilliant scientist they give no orientation. There first task is to see if they can break security codes.
When a good leader reads about a company that failed to be alert and listen and look anew, they can use that to build healthy fear. When you share copies with executives about the blind-sided company, executives on the team will say, "That could be us." Bingo! Our job is to make sure it never is by outinventing ourselves.
Major in the positive, believe in your people but don't be afraid to build honest apprehension that creates the need to overcome relevant obstacles before they become a problem.
Terry