When was the last time you changed your mind?

 

I have seen the above image in many leadership development engagements and there are many videos used to buttress the fact that people can see different things, take different positions, and yet still be both right and wrong.

 

Depending on where you stand and how you think, what is seen above can be the number six or nine; it can also be the small letter bee or gee.

 

“Seek first to understand, then to be understood.” - Stephen Covey

 

In the above quote lies one of the most difficult responsibilities of humankind.

 

To truly understand, you must first realise that it is possible that you are wrong. This is the central theme of science, it is a structured way of confirming doubts, not beliefs. At its core, it seeks first to understand all that is, questions inconsistencies, raises doubts, confirms doubts and then starts the cycle again.

 

How many times have we argued a position with extreme conviction and later found out that we were wrong? For me, many times, and interestingly, it has not reduced my conviction in future arguments.

Why then are we critical of another that displays such conviction when they are obviously wrong? Because we have a brain that has mastered the art of self-preservation by toning down memories of poor judgment by self and tuning up memories of poor judgment by others.

 

In the same light, we more easily remember the hurt that was done to us, than the hurt we do to others.

 

There is a question one of my favorite uncles always asks – “When was the last time you changed your mind?” It is a question that ensures you stay open to being wrong, more often than you’re inclined to being right. The inclination to being right is the root of confirmation bias. We all seem to have figured out life in hindsight.

 

A lot can be made easier in living, when we consciously stop ourselves from getting sucked in to the stories that constantly fill our heads and just listen to the stories of others. Only then can we truly change our mind.

 

An ability to change your mind is directly proportional to growth.

- Osasu Oviawe

 

Walk Plan

The first time one of my coaches asked me if I had a Walk plan, I quickly answered “Yes”, assuming what he asked was Work plan. He repeated the question, this time clarifying that he did not mean a Work plan but a Walk plan. I was taken off guard. It was basically the first time in a long while that I was jolted into consciously thinking about how I walk around my work area.

Most of what is required in shop floor excellence is shop floor presence. A walk plan has helped in no small way in ensuring there is a conscious decision on where I want to go, why I want to be there, who I want to talk to, what I want to check, when I plan on being there and how I assess impact.

Like most planning, designing a walk plan sounded pretty easy, until I actually started. I realized that even though I have never been distant from the shop floor, putting a plan for being there on paper was quite a bore.

It starts with mapping out the mandatory meetings you must be in. Plug them into your calendar, with the maximum time you are typically in such meetings, while maintaining sanity. (In another article, I will write about tips to effectively manage long meetings you are not in control of, but for now, note that if you hate how long a meeting takes, volunteer to take the minutes. You can control a lot by taking the minutes of meetings. Like I said, let us talk about this another day).

Next, block lunch time. Never pass up on an opportunity to refuel, while hearing the gist of your workplace.

Then block the times you choose to reply all the important people that always require urgent replies. Side note: If something is really urgent, they will call. However, there are important people that expect you to be waiting on your email for notifications and automaton replies. The number of important people reduce as you grow. Focus on growing, do not complain.

I typically set 3 time slots for emails – the unproductive hours of the morning, after lunch and at the end of my day. Other times, I treat emails as the distraction that they are and I am conscious of how they can steal your day and sometimes, your joy.

Finally, every other time on your schedule is available for your shop floor dance. Fill in all areas you will like to be and set aside time to reflect on your observations after each visit. At the start, time will be your biggest constraint, but as you progress with execution, time will seem to expand.

In your walk, pay close attention to -

1. The people you meet: Smile, shake their hands (especially the dirty hands), look into their eyes, ask “how are you?”, do not take “fine” as an answer, ask “what is better about today that makes them fine?”, probe. At the end of your checks, thank them, shake hands again, and never forget to smile. Remember, you are there to help, not to blame. The people in any area are actually your best measure of the impact of your walk, not improved housekeeping.
2. Less traffic areas: If fewer people go there, the chances are, there is a lot more to improve there and the people in those areas will appreciate it.
3. Waste areas: You will learn more about the excellence in your operations from your scrap yard, waste bins and waste areas, than from your actual operation areas. Get dirty.
4. Sight, sound and smell: You have to be present. The walk is not a time to check emails, Whatsapp messages, whose birthday it is on Facebook or what is trending on Twitter. Changes in sight, sound and smell are usually slight and often dismissible. Get uncomfortable with slight changes and make those around you take a second look.
5. Above and below eye level: Look up, bend down. There are always surprises outside eye level.

A walk plan has helped me on my journey, it might help you, but you will never know if you do not try it.

- Osasu Oviawe

Random thoughts on random days in a random house

Perspective
There is a difference between “Dear Osasu” and “Osasu dear”.
Both phrases mean the same thing, but one is a greater signal of care. 
This is why I think one little change we can make around discussions on work-life balance is to flip the arrangement and start discussing life-work balance. After all, which comes first? 

Talk
The safest means of transportation has a lot more safety talk than others. 
What is the prevalent talk in your Organisation? 
What is the prevalent coffee/tea room, cafeteria, whatsapp and pre-meeting talk? 
To understand the underlying culture of an Organisation, listen to the prevailing talk.

Self sufficiency
In the bible, none of the people raised from the dead had a story worth telling in later chapters.
It has made me continually ask, what was the point in the second chance? The only answer I see, is improved credibility of the prophet involved.
However, there is a lesson in greatness with The One who raised Himself from the dead. His story has and continues to change the world in significant ways.
To truly make an impact, you cannot hinge your motivation and inspiration on external stimuli. It is an inside job. Raise yourself.

Self-Preservation
Preservatives are used to slow down deterioration and decay. They help to limit the decay, not stop the decay.
Decay is shadowed by swelling, which can be mistaken for growth. Closer inspection reveals the difference.
When an Organisation or individual goes on self-preservation mode, decay has already started.
What follows is a cocktail of arrogant, risk averse, blame throwing, responsibility avoiding, victim channeling, past looking, present boasting, future brooding, forgettable, time wasting, envious, snitching, and wry smiling cowardice.
You do not need preservatives if your rate of growth is higher than your rate of decline. 
Depending on what you invest in the present, time can either be a growth ally or a preservative promoter.

What works for you?
All nations work - either for its people or against its people.
All people work - either for themselves or against themselves.
All approaches work - either for desired results or against desired results.
Do not just work with what works, because everything works. Work with what works for you.

What are you feeding on?
You have to eat from what the world offers, digest it, absorb what is useful and throw out the rest. Just as it is important that we pay attention to what we ingest, if we plan on having a healthy life, it is also important that we are in control of what we expose our senses to. Even the best digestive system cannot take out all the junk in junk food. Your mind deserves even better attention. What you ignore is just as important as what you pay attention to.

Dense individuals
Dense individuals have less space for new learning and speak too early, because sound travels faster in denser mediums. To be enlightened, we must unburden self by challenging our biases, experience reality wholly and consciously interpret it by paying attention to how it molds our choices.

Can I ask you a question?
How many times have you met a confident individual speak with so much authority, but you can tell he is actually fronting. If you listen closely enough, all men reveal who they truly are and what they represent. Can I ask you a question? Why are you so sure of your perspective?
Flee from what or who cannot be questioned.

You are your business
Whether you are running a business or working for a business, you must realise that you are your business. Just as businesses need a balance sheet, a profit and loss assessment and cash flow statement, you need to pay attention to yours. You must plan to do better than last year, in spite of the myriad of circumstances outside your control. You must understand your customers and their incentives for choosing you. You must understand and use the levers of law, finance, security and government. You must understand your niche and build a moat of deep learning around it. You have to assess the people you let in, promote those that put more value in than they take out and let go off those that flip the script. You need to manage your external environment proactively and undertake social responsibilities that sell the image you want to project. You need to reduce inventory and free up cash for important investment decisions. You need to diversify in downturns and fully maximize upswings. You must understand sunk cost and stop the bleed. You have to outsource all distractions and focus on your core business. You are your business, you cannot outsource your core business to another business. Every business takes care of itself, first.

Great heights run deep
"No tree, it is said, can grow to heaven unless its roots reach down to hell." - Carl Jung

- Osasu Oviawe

A little learning

“A little learning is a dangerous thing; drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring: there shallow draughts intoxicate the brain, and drinking largely sobers us again.” - Alexander Pope

Sound travels faster in denser mediums. If you attend enough meetings, you will gain enough knowledge to “sound” intelligent. You will lack originality and continue to regurgitate only what you have heard, without any understanding of your own. It is easy to tell such people apart. They hate to be asked “Why?”, because they lack the required experience, sensitivity and understanding to clearly articulate their point of view. Just as they swallowed what they heard hook, line and sinker, they expect same from all. They assume their approach is smart, so fellow smart people should not ask any questions from them. They should just get it. Um, No, actually, as you learn, more questions arise, fewer answers are absolute and as the reality of how much you do not know and still need to seek hits you, humility sets in.

Just as you cannot learn how to drive by watching Formula One, or how to play football by watching La Liga Santander, or how to cook by watching Master Chef; you cannot learn how to be without doing.

Confidence is stimulating, but as you grow, you come to understand more, what Charles Darwin meant when he said, “Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge: it is those who know little, and not those who know much, who so positively assert that this or that problem will never be solved by science.” I have come to test my confidence not by how I sound or how I look, but by how I act, especially in unrehearsed conditions. Questions are the most common unrehearsed condition.

Be worried when all your interpretation of the world is from the news, social media, books, people and other external stimuli. They help, but there is value in doing and reflecting. The experiences of life are supposed to help you pay attention, but if those experiences were never had, but only heard or read, how can you build your sensitivity. Your appreciation of reality will be remote, always requiring an external prompt.

"A man will be imprisoned in a room with a door that's unlocked and opens inwards; as long as it does not occur to him to pull rather than push." - Ludwig Wittgenstein

- Osasu Oviawe

Gratitude

I go through a unique kind of pain when I remember the passing of my loved ones, but the pain reminds me of the reasons I miss them so much. They loved me without pre-conditions. They believed so much in me, I had no choice but to rise up to their expectations and in the process, pleasantly surprise myself. They kept their eyes on me and their ears ever willing to listen, even when they obviously had their hands full. When I remember them, I realize there’s so much more to give to those in my care. For what I have been freely given can only grow, by sharing. 

I am sometimes unhappy at work. Yes, it is not always exciting. Sometimes, you have to be less self to stay sane. In those times, I think of my journey, the people that have shaped me and those I have shaped. It is really interesting that when one looks back on a career, it is the quality of our connections that matter, not performance indicators. I put a call through to a former associate in a distant land and the joy that call brings to him is contagious. Maybe what I do matters after all.

I get a reward for a completed task and just when I think, “Wow, I must be doing something right”, I get a call from a colleague that is uncommon in thought and surgical in execution, yet bewilderingly unrewarded.

I realize that there’s actually a lot of luck in my story, no less illustrated than in the gifts of my joyful wife, kind siblings, patient friends, loving parents and the chief developer of my compass - Mama (my maternal grandmother).

- Osasu Oviawe