A client of mine recently asked me to help them produce a video to comment on the success of a change management initiative within their firm. They were looking for managers at all levels to describe their experiences in leading the company's systematic approach to creating a more respectful and inclusive culture and what supporting this type of change effort meant to them.
While I was generally pleased at the responses, I noticed a pattern that is all too common at many corporations. Instead of speaking in their own voice, many of the managers I interviewed tried to recite the corporate line. We all know what that sounds like – lots of jargon with very little content and no real emotional force behind it.
As I was interviewing the managers, whenever someone started in with the corporate rhetoric, I would begin asking more direct questions about why changing the corporate culture was so important to them. The more I pressed for personal examples, the more the flavor of their dialogue began to evolve. Then I started hearing people's real views on what it meant to them to be pioneers in reshaping their firm's internal fabric.
When someone asks you for your opinion or your comment on a situation at work, what type of response do you typically give? Are the answers you provide meant to please others, to generate acceptance or is something else going on?
Thoughts and opinions are among the few things that we own completely, yet we don't seem to value them, as we should. How many of us participate in meetings every day in which we're asked to give our input and instead of tactfully speaking our minds, we simply give the "politically correct"
response.
One of the saddest things you can do with your career is to live it out through a voice other than your own. To go along with what everyone thinks (or says they think) without developing and expressing your own conclusions is a tragic waste.
When you speak, you give others a sense of your inner world. Your voice carries your experiences from the past, your hopes and well as your thoughts about the future. Your true voice provides an emotional resonance for others. But if your voice has none of this, then it's muted and after a while, you become invisible.
The act of honest speech is an act of courage because whatever you say, you are revealed and people will see what you stand for. And yet many of us in organizations would rather not be found. "If the boss asks for my opinion and it's different from his, he'll think I'm unqualified to do my job. If I cause dissent on this team with my own thoughts, how will I make the mortgage payment in August?" These are the kinds of thoughts that travel through people's heads when asked, "what do you think?"
One of the main reasons why we fail to speak from our own voice is fear. As humans, we're hardwired to experience fear—we've been doing it for thousands of years. We fear rejection; we fear loss—of love, of money, and of our status. And all of these fears come into play at work when we are asked to express ourselves, so sometimes it's safer to align ourselves with the voice of the majority or the boss rather than call attention to our own unique views.
I know many people who will choose the security of direct deposit into their bank account every two weeks over the satisfaction of speaking freely – and being heard. These are often the same people who look back at retirement and wish they had been braver in their careers and lives, or they feel that the world has never truly known them. By then, little can be done.
I think it's important every so often to stop and consider whether you are speaking from your own true voice at work. If not, then you have to go deeper inside and ask yourself why you are not communicating your true thoughts. What is it that stops you from asserting your uniqueness when your employer asks for your input? Who are you protecting? What are you avoiding?
Where did this belief come from to never present your own views? Do you really think your employer wants to hear another recap of the corporate dogma?
If you manage others, you may also want to think about how you communicate with your team. Are you getting their honest opinions and thoughts when (and if) you ask them or are you hearing them merely mimic what they believe "management" wants to hear? Don't play it safe—assume that there are other voices to be heard in meetings and ask your team to present their real views.
When you begin to hear the string of buzzwords, as I did when I was conducting the interviews for the video, don't let it go, find a way to elicit their true opinions. Everything else is just the sound of people talking.
One of the best ways I found to get at the truth of an issue in a meeting was to say, "Okay, if you were in charge and money was no object and I just gave you a blank check to solve this problem what would you do?" The bounty of ideas that would follow always amazed me. When I asked, "What do you think?" I was usually greeted with a deafening silence.
All of us have our reasons for not speaking freely, but what a shame it would be to go through life without ever claiming our own voice. The good news is that it's not too late. Your voice is always there for you and it's always waiting to be heard. Take some time to understand what it means to lead from your own voice, and see what a lovely and powerful sound your own voice can truly be.
bio: Jim Jenkins is the founder and president of Creative Visions Consulting, a change management consulting firm that supports CEOs, mid-level managers, and front-line supervisors in developing their leadership potential. Jenkins has more than 20 years of experience in leading in the corporate world and managing high performing teams, including clients such as AT&T, Nortel Networks, NRTC, and Booz Allen Hamilton. J
Thanks to HR Directory
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