Leaders Operate With Myths and Illusions Rather Than Reality

A disturbing fact worth remembering – leaders operate with myth and illusion more that with the realities of the world.

The financial meltdown is more evidence than we need for the validity of that assertion.

So an ongoing practice to surface the beliefs, and theories we have that are not valid is a must, especially given we have a bias to look for evidence to confirm that we are right, even when we are not.

It is worth asking, "What happens if some of our beliefs and theories about leadership, organization, management and work are just plain wrong – and how would we know?" Compare these assertions with your own beliefs:

1. Forecasting and planning are not reliable strategy development tools – especially if the intention is to be a market leader innovating market altering products and services
2. Command and control is out of date – if you are still getting away with it, it's because you have succeeded in suppressing the initiative and creativity of your people
3. You are not the smartest person in the organization, really – get over it
4. Change is part of the world you now live in, it is unlikely to be a predictable world ever again (if it ever really was)
5. You are dealing with autonomous intelligent people, not machine parts or boxes on an org chart – forget it and the price is paid in lost creativity, lost talent, and ultimately descent into irrelevance
6. Uncertainty and confusion is not evidence of something wrong – just an appropriate and natural response to an unfamiliar and complex, ever changing, world
7. Complex problems/dilemmas have single solutions
8. 360s and annual performance review processes are out of date and don't acknowledge the realities of real time, all the time, interconnectedness
9. Knowing is over-rated and not-knowing is hugely underexploited
10. Failure is an underexploited opportunity for new learning and for breakthroughs.

So the question becomes, "What practice will you initiate that will help you surface unexamined assumptions, out-of-date theories, limiting beliefs and constraining perspectives?"