Like the characters in the movie Silver Linings Playbook, it’s possible for leaders to change focus in life by maintaining an upbeat attitude.
In the movie, Bradley Cooper plays a man with bipolar disorder who takes on a personal motto, excelsior—Latin for “ever upward.” As he tells his therapist, “This is what I believe to be true: You have to do everything you can, and if you stay positive, you have a shot at a silver lining.”
This is probably not a surprise to anyone who already has the habit of looking on the bright side, but there is actually ample evidence to suggest that maintaining a positive outlook on life provides very real benefits. As leaders, however, it can be difficult to stay positive in this difficult economy. Nevertheless, our ability to succeed depends on our ability to cope with whatever life, and business, throws at us (click to tweet).
Here are 5 significant things to remember when assembling your silver linings playbook:
1) Optimists are not always positive thinkers. These are two very different breeds of animal and their motivation is what truly separates their thinking.
2) Positive thinkers are not necessarily happy or optimistic.
3) Optimists try to find ways around the misery, or choose to put a spin on things so they can anticipate the best outcome and be happy.
4) Positive thinkers, conversely, are blunt realists who look misery right in the eye and confront the most brutal facts of their day without losing hope.
5) Optimists leverage opportunities as a path toward happiness; positive thinkers leverage reality as a path toward hope.
Many leaders consider themselves optimists because they are always striving for greatness in their work. But in doing so, they set themselves up for failure because leadership requires the mental toughness to not lose hope while in the midst of adversity and overcoming obstacles. It is the hope that comes from faith, both in themselves and in something bigger, better, and bolder than themselves.
As a young agent, I worked on a child kidnapping case. I quickly learned that while the FBI would welcome opportunities or breaks in the case, we would (1) not wait for them, or (2) expect them. Instead, we sorted through the facts and analyzed each one to determine how or when the situation could get worse. Positive thinking is looking for how to achieve the best outcome in a very bad situation.
The FBI never gave up hope as we pursued the kidnapping case, and neither did the parents. Diligently pursuing leads in a large metropolitan area and canvassing neighborhoods by showing photos of the little boy, someone recognized him and provided a vague description to the sketch artist of the man who accompanied him. This might not seem like much, but the t-shirt the man was wearing was distinctive. It was the best lead we had—agents contacted every store in the city that sold the t-shirt and showed them the sketch.
We had several possible identifications, and each one was pursued. The little boy was found—only hours before being smuggled out of the country and sold to a prostitution ring in Asia.
Positive thinking is sifting through the rubbish to uncover whatever tidbit of good information is available (click to tweet). Sometimes it not much, but it’s always enough to help move forward. Positive thinkers make their luck when they have to, and more importantly, they never give up hope.
How would you differentiate between optimists and positive thinkers?
You can follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LaRaeQuy
Read my book ““Secrets of a Strong Mind,” available now on Amazon.
In the movie, Bradley Cooper plays a man with bipolar disorder who takes on a personal motto, excelsior—Latin for “ever upward.” As he tells his therapist, “This is what I believe to be true: You have to do everything you can, and if you stay positive, you have a shot at a silver lining.”
This is probably not a surprise to anyone who already has the habit of looking on the bright side, but there is actually ample evidence to suggest that maintaining a positive outlook on life provides very real benefits. As leaders, however, it can be difficult to stay positive in this difficult economy. Nevertheless, our ability to succeed depends on our ability to cope with whatever life, and business, throws at us (click to tweet).
Here are 5 significant things to remember when assembling your silver linings playbook:
1) Optimists are not always positive thinkers. These are two very different breeds of animal and their motivation is what truly separates their thinking.
2) Positive thinkers are not necessarily happy or optimistic.
3) Optimists try to find ways around the misery, or choose to put a spin on things so they can anticipate the best outcome and be happy.
4) Positive thinkers, conversely, are blunt realists who look misery right in the eye and confront the most brutal facts of their day without losing hope.
5) Optimists leverage opportunities as a path toward happiness; positive thinkers leverage reality as a path toward hope.
Many leaders consider themselves optimists because they are always striving for greatness in their work. But in doing so, they set themselves up for failure because leadership requires the mental toughness to not lose hope while in the midst of adversity and overcoming obstacles. It is the hope that comes from faith, both in themselves and in something bigger, better, and bolder than themselves.
As a young agent, I worked on a child kidnapping case. I quickly learned that while the FBI would welcome opportunities or breaks in the case, we would (1) not wait for them, or (2) expect them. Instead, we sorted through the facts and analyzed each one to determine how or when the situation could get worse. Positive thinking is looking for how to achieve the best outcome in a very bad situation.
The FBI never gave up hope as we pursued the kidnapping case, and neither did the parents. Diligently pursuing leads in a large metropolitan area and canvassing neighborhoods by showing photos of the little boy, someone recognized him and provided a vague description to the sketch artist of the man who accompanied him. This might not seem like much, but the t-shirt the man was wearing was distinctive. It was the best lead we had—agents contacted every store in the city that sold the t-shirt and showed them the sketch.
We had several possible identifications, and each one was pursued. The little boy was found—only hours before being smuggled out of the country and sold to a prostitution ring in Asia.
Positive thinking is sifting through the rubbish to uncover whatever tidbit of good information is available (click to tweet). Sometimes it not much, but it’s always enough to help move forward. Positive thinkers make their luck when they have to, and more importantly, they never give up hope.
How would you differentiate between optimists and positive thinkers?
You can follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LaRaeQuy
Read my book ““Secrets of a Strong Mind,” available now on Amazon.4 Ways Leaders Can Focus on the Opportunity, Not the Obstacle
Monday, April 29th, 2013
This article first appeared in Consulting Business Buzz on January 14, 2013.
I
grew up on a cattle ranch in a remote part of Wyoming and Dad made sure
I learned how to ride a horse by the time I was six-years-old. So no
one was more surprised than me when Dad brought home a couple of
four-wheel ATVs a few years ago and used them, instead of horses, to
check on the cattle.
The ATV looked much easier to ride than a horse when I first saw it and I was anxious to try it out! Dad took off first and I followed. The terrain on our ranch is mountainous, however, so I soon found myself sideways on a steep hill and in danger of tipping over. Suddenly, this huge motorcycle on four wheels looked more dangerous than any horse I’d ever ridden.
To go headfirst down the steep hill and over the cliff appeared even more dangerous, so I continued to inch my way down sideways—it seemed the safer router. By now, Dad had stopped his ATV and was running toward me.
“Turn your wheels straight downhill,” he shouted. “Only by facing it head-on can you get safely down the cliff,” he said. Slowly, I turned the wheels straight down the steep embankment ahead of me, and the ATV started to move forward. I made it safely to the bottom.
Turns out that moving toward the threat was good advice from my Dad. While in new agent’s class at the FBI Academy, our instructors continually placed us in training situations where we were confronted with obstacles. For many of us, our first reaction was to either pull back or take circuitous routes around the obstacle. But the message by our instructors was this: Only by falling into the unknown are we be able to explore it (click to tweet).
A great deal of my FBI training was learning how to move toward the threat and focus on the opportunities presented by obstacles. Leaders can also learn to keep a mind strong when confronted with the unknown.
Here are four ways:
1. DEVELOP HABITS – When you are in the middle of a crisis, it is not the time to learn how to deal with obstacles. Go into training so that before obstacles present themselves you have cultivated courage, confidence, and discipline. When you make yourself aware of certain difficulties that are inevitable, you can prepare yourself mentally for confronting them head-on. Soldiers, warriors, and athletes appreciate the preparation it takes to mentally and physically meet the challenges ahead of them. They know it can be ugly, daunting, and grueling, but they are equipped.
2. CREATE THE RIGHT ATTITUDE –Most barriers are internal, not external. Internal lack of confidence can
create the external challenges (click to tweet). The U.S. Army is using research
that has shown most people, when confronted with adversity and the need
to survive in fast-moving and challenging environments, will experience
initial feelings of fear, frustration, and paralysis. Given sufficient
amounts of time, however, they recover and continue to perform at the
same level they were performing before the adversity.
At one end of the continuum there are a small percentage of people who do not bounce back and remain unable to cope with their circumstances without assistance. They often need counseling and can experience breakdowns.
On the other end of the continuum, however, are those with strong minds who not only survive adverse and traumatic situations, but also thrive and grow. They key is having the right attitude. People who have affirming thoughts about themselves and their abilities are more likely to survive the intense pressure of obstacles and adversity.
3. BUILD A SUPPORT SYSTEM – When the going gets tough, we all benefit from feeling connected with others. Sometimes just talking things through with someone who has had a similar experience can help guide you through a difficult time.
At the FBI Academy in Quantico, we were not allowed to leave the Marine Corps base for the first six weeks of our training. We were to use this time to bond and build relationships with other members of our new agent’s class. Humans are social creatures and we need emotional support from friends and family members. When confronting obstacles, having people you can trust by your side can make all the difference.
4. THINK SMALL
– A truly daunting task can produce discouragement in the toughest. The
trick is to focus on the little piece that is right in front of you. If
you are bogged down with a huge task, break it down into small enough
pieces so that you can set goals or markers of achievement for yourself.
Then focus on your attention on that.
When confronted with changing environments and fierce challenges, you may need to leave your place of safety and press forward with the willpower of a strong mind. Nothing is impossible. It’s up to you to find a way. Even the most prepared and effective people can find themselves facing adversity and will need to find ways of turning obstacles into opportunities for growth.
How have you turned adversity into an opportunity?
You can follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LaRaeQuy
Read my book ““Secrets of a Strong Mind,” available now on Amazon.
I
grew up on a cattle ranch in a remote part of Wyoming and Dad made sure
I learned how to ride a horse by the time I was six-years-old. So no
one was more surprised than me when Dad brought home a couple of
four-wheel ATVs a few years ago and used them, instead of horses, to
check on the cattle.The ATV looked much easier to ride than a horse when I first saw it and I was anxious to try it out! Dad took off first and I followed. The terrain on our ranch is mountainous, however, so I soon found myself sideways on a steep hill and in danger of tipping over. Suddenly, this huge motorcycle on four wheels looked more dangerous than any horse I’d ever ridden.
To go headfirst down the steep hill and over the cliff appeared even more dangerous, so I continued to inch my way down sideways—it seemed the safer router. By now, Dad had stopped his ATV and was running toward me.
“Turn your wheels straight downhill,” he shouted. “Only by facing it head-on can you get safely down the cliff,” he said. Slowly, I turned the wheels straight down the steep embankment ahead of me, and the ATV started to move forward. I made it safely to the bottom.
Turns out that moving toward the threat was good advice from my Dad. While in new agent’s class at the FBI Academy, our instructors continually placed us in training situations where we were confronted with obstacles. For many of us, our first reaction was to either pull back or take circuitous routes around the obstacle. But the message by our instructors was this: Only by falling into the unknown are we be able to explore it (click to tweet).
To increase safety, move toward the unknown.The closer we get to the unknown, the more we can educate ourselves about it. The steps to follow and actions to take may not reveal themselves to us until leaders have moved closer to the situation. Mountain climbers understand that it’s impossible to know where to place fingers and feet by looking at a mountain from the bottom. Only by getting close enough to explore the cracks and crevices can they find places of safety.
To increase chances for success, move toward the challenge.
A great deal of my FBI training was learning how to move toward the threat and focus on the opportunities presented by obstacles. Leaders can also learn to keep a mind strong when confronted with the unknown.
Here are four ways:
1. DEVELOP HABITS – When you are in the middle of a crisis, it is not the time to learn how to deal with obstacles. Go into training so that before obstacles present themselves you have cultivated courage, confidence, and discipline. When you make yourself aware of certain difficulties that are inevitable, you can prepare yourself mentally for confronting them head-on. Soldiers, warriors, and athletes appreciate the preparation it takes to mentally and physically meet the challenges ahead of them. They know it can be ugly, daunting, and grueling, but they are equipped.
2. CREATE THE RIGHT ATTITUDE –Most barriers are internal, not external. Internal lack of confidence can
create the external challenges (click to tweet). The U.S. Army is using research
that has shown most people, when confronted with adversity and the need
to survive in fast-moving and challenging environments, will experience
initial feelings of fear, frustration, and paralysis. Given sufficient
amounts of time, however, they recover and continue to perform at the
same level they were performing before the adversity.At one end of the continuum there are a small percentage of people who do not bounce back and remain unable to cope with their circumstances without assistance. They often need counseling and can experience breakdowns.
On the other end of the continuum, however, are those with strong minds who not only survive adverse and traumatic situations, but also thrive and grow. They key is having the right attitude. People who have affirming thoughts about themselves and their abilities are more likely to survive the intense pressure of obstacles and adversity.
3. BUILD A SUPPORT SYSTEM – When the going gets tough, we all benefit from feeling connected with others. Sometimes just talking things through with someone who has had a similar experience can help guide you through a difficult time.
At the FBI Academy in Quantico, we were not allowed to leave the Marine Corps base for the first six weeks of our training. We were to use this time to bond and build relationships with other members of our new agent’s class. Humans are social creatures and we need emotional support from friends and family members. When confronting obstacles, having people you can trust by your side can make all the difference.
4. THINK SMALL
– A truly daunting task can produce discouragement in the toughest. The
trick is to focus on the little piece that is right in front of you. If
you are bogged down with a huge task, break it down into small enough
pieces so that you can set goals or markers of achievement for yourself.
Then focus on your attention on that.When confronted with changing environments and fierce challenges, you may need to leave your place of safety and press forward with the willpower of a strong mind. Nothing is impossible. It’s up to you to find a way. Even the most prepared and effective people can find themselves facing adversity and will need to find ways of turning obstacles into opportunities for growth.
How have you turned adversity into an opportunity?
You can follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LaRaeQuy
Read my book ““Secrets of a Strong Mind,” available now on Amazon.4 Steps for Strong-Minded Leadership
Monday, April 15th, 2013
She was twenty-two years old when her mother was
assassinated. At the time, her father was onstage speaking in a crowded
theater. Upon learning his wife had been shot, he turned back to his
audience and resumed his speech.
Five years after her mother was killed, her father was similarly assassinated by his disgruntled spy chief. When hearing of his death, her first concern was whether North Korea was planning to invade. Later, her first question after awakening from an operation after a razor attack in 2006, which left a scar across her jaw, was how her party’s campaign was doing.
Park Geun-Hye is the daughter of South Korea’s former dictator, Park Chung-hee. And she is now South Korea’s first female President. Few would dispute that Ms. Park’s upbringing has made her a steely and strong minded leader. She is so tough-minded that even in South Korea, still one of Asia’s most patriarchal societies, she has dispelled whatever doubt may have existed by her strong stance against North Korea.
As
a legislator, Ms. Park was never known for a feminist agenda, and her
male rival in the presidential election won the backing of many women’s
groups. She is described (1) a strong-minded leader, who is (2) a
female.
The secret to Ms. Park’s success as a leader in a male dominated society is that she simply sees the the fact that she is a woman as nothing more than one more adversity to be overcome. Her gender has remained a non-issue because she has refused to allow it to become one.
She’s tough-minded, but not any more so than her male contemporaries. Like many people who work in male-dominated environments, Ms. Park has learned to appreciate the opportunities that adversity presents to forge her steely and strong mind. Read Secrets of A Strong Mind.
Here are 4 steps to help you become a strong-minded leader:
instead, it looks more like an old-fashioned fusebox full of tangled
wires that need to be carefully teased out to determine where each
leads. Career paths can take many different paths, sideways and even
downward on their way up. Sheryl Sandberg
has it right when she describes the path to overcoming obstacles and
breaking through barriers as “a jungle gym, not a ladder.” Sometimes the
answer is as simple as having the perseverance to keep moving, however
small the step or the number of detours it takes to get there.
Ms. Park never intended to go into politics. When her mother was assassinated, she was going to school in Paris and planned to pursue her dream of becoming a professor. She gave that up and returned to South Korea as the de facto first lady. Nearly 40 years later she has re-entered the presidential Blue-House, this time as the President herself.
A key component of inspiration is being able to envision ourselves achieving success (click to tweet).
Soldiers, surgeons, and athletes mentally prepare for the challenge
before them. By mental preparation I don’t mean getting “psyched up” to
get into the right frame of mind. I mean mentally running through the
mental and physical requirements required to accomplish the job. Studies
have shown that mentally rehearsing works for both physical and
cognitive elements. Rehearsal can be useful for a job interview or
important meeting, not just in what you say’ll but how you’ll talk,
carry yourself, and interact with others. It’s not about visualizing
success; it’s about visualizing the process.
When Park Chung-hee was assassinated, it was widely believed that although his wife was killed, he was the real target and the North Koreans were behind it. Ms. Park decided to meet with Kim Jong-il, the North Korean leader, during a visit to the North’s capital in 2002. Ms. Park was prepared to meet the son of the man who may have ordered the assassination attempt that killed her mother. Her performance was rehearsed and seamless, and it helped bolster her political standing.
I was born on a cattle ranch in Wyoming. Wyoming is a tough place to grow up: fast food is hitting a deer at 60 miles an hour. My parents did not break my barriers for me when I was confronted with a challenge. The same lessons I learned about working my way through adversity in my childhood would prepare me for life. The reason is that the patterns of thinking I developed as a kid out there on our cattle ranch trained my mind to embrace the adversity and challenges I would meet in life as an FBI agent.
Ms. Park had similar advantages because she was required to overcome obstacles and adversity early in her life.
emotional limbic brain system take over and hijack the logical cerebral
brain. Instead, engage both brains for problem solving. Even the simple
task of naming the emotion that we are feeling activates the thinking
cerebral brain so the two brains can work together. The more we can
switch back and forth, the easier brain community is formed. This is why
writing our feelings in a journal is so productive: it actually engages
both brains at once.
Ms. Park was using brain community when she was told of her father’s assassination at the behest of North Korea. Immediately, she switched off the emotional limbic brain system and inquired whether South Korea was being invaded. That resolved, she was then able to focus on the sadness of losing her father.
Ms. Park has shown that she is a leader who also happens to be a woman. The most important characteristic that has endeared her to the general population and silenced critics is that she is resolved to be strong-minded.
How do you look at the adversity you faced in your early years as an advantage to you now as a leader? How are parents harming their children by protecting them from adversity and obstacles?
You can follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LaRaeQuy
Read my book ““Secrets of a Strong Mind,” available now on Amazon.
Five years after her mother was killed, her father was similarly assassinated by his disgruntled spy chief. When hearing of his death, her first concern was whether North Korea was planning to invade. Later, her first question after awakening from an operation after a razor attack in 2006, which left a scar across her jaw, was how her party’s campaign was doing.
Park Geun-Hye is the daughter of South Korea’s former dictator, Park Chung-hee. And she is now South Korea’s first female President. Few would dispute that Ms. Park’s upbringing has made her a steely and strong minded leader. She is so tough-minded that even in South Korea, still one of Asia’s most patriarchal societies, she has dispelled whatever doubt may have existed by her strong stance against North Korea.
As
a legislator, Ms. Park was never known for a feminist agenda, and her
male rival in the presidential election won the backing of many women’s
groups. She is described (1) a strong-minded leader, who is (2) a
female.The secret to Ms. Park’s success as a leader in a male dominated society is that she simply sees the the fact that she is a woman as nothing more than one more adversity to be overcome. Her gender has remained a non-issue because she has refused to allow it to become one.
She’s tough-minded, but not any more so than her male contemporaries. Like many people who work in male-dominated environments, Ms. Park has learned to appreciate the opportunities that adversity presents to forge her steely and strong mind. Read Secrets of A Strong Mind.
Here are 4 steps to help you become a strong-minded leader:
1. Take One Step at A Time
The corporate ladder implies progress is measured in one direction—Straight + Up. In reality, rarely is success straight or up;
instead, it looks more like an old-fashioned fusebox full of tangled
wires that need to be carefully teased out to determine where each
leads. Career paths can take many different paths, sideways and even
downward on their way up. Sheryl Sandberg
has it right when she describes the path to overcoming obstacles and
breaking through barriers as “a jungle gym, not a ladder.” Sometimes the
answer is as simple as having the perseverance to keep moving, however
small the step or the number of detours it takes to get there.Ms. Park never intended to go into politics. When her mother was assassinated, she was going to school in Paris and planned to pursue her dream of becoming a professor. She gave that up and returned to South Korea as the de facto first lady. Nearly 40 years later she has re-entered the presidential Blue-House, this time as the President herself.
2. Visualize Success
A key component of inspiration is being able to envision ourselves achieving success (click to tweet).
Soldiers, surgeons, and athletes mentally prepare for the challenge
before them. By mental preparation I don’t mean getting “psyched up” to
get into the right frame of mind. I mean mentally running through the
mental and physical requirements required to accomplish the job. Studies
have shown that mentally rehearsing works for both physical and
cognitive elements. Rehearsal can be useful for a job interview or
important meeting, not just in what you say’ll but how you’ll talk,
carry yourself, and interact with others. It’s not about visualizing
success; it’s about visualizing the process.When Park Chung-hee was assassinated, it was widely believed that although his wife was killed, he was the real target and the North Koreans were behind it. Ms. Park decided to meet with Kim Jong-il, the North Korean leader, during a visit to the North’s capital in 2002. Ms. Park was prepared to meet the son of the man who may have ordered the assassination attempt that killed her mother. Her performance was rehearsed and seamless, and it helped bolster her political standing.
3. Claim Your Mastery
We begin to face the pressure from adversity as a child when we don’t get to play with the red ball in the playground. Everyone is a master at overcoming obstacles; if we weren’t, we wouldn’t have gotten through grade school. The key is to learn from our experiences so we’re stronger than when we started (click to tweet). It’s never too late to excavate the significance of our stories and lives. The way we cope with obstacles in life is learned in childhood.I was born on a cattle ranch in Wyoming. Wyoming is a tough place to grow up: fast food is hitting a deer at 60 miles an hour. My parents did not break my barriers for me when I was confronted with a challenge. The same lessons I learned about working my way through adversity in my childhood would prepare me for life. The reason is that the patterns of thinking I developed as a kid out there on our cattle ranch trained my mind to embrace the adversity and challenges I would meet in life as an FBI agent.
Ms. Park had similar advantages because she was required to overcome obstacles and adversity early in her life.
4. Create Ways to Engage Both Brains
When confronted with adversity, our thinking is heavily freighted with powerful negative emotions. It’s easy to let the
emotional limbic brain system take over and hijack the logical cerebral
brain. Instead, engage both brains for problem solving. Even the simple
task of naming the emotion that we are feeling activates the thinking
cerebral brain so the two brains can work together. The more we can
switch back and forth, the easier brain community is formed. This is why
writing our feelings in a journal is so productive: it actually engages
both brains at once.Ms. Park was using brain community when she was told of her father’s assassination at the behest of North Korea. Immediately, she switched off the emotional limbic brain system and inquired whether South Korea was being invaded. That resolved, she was then able to focus on the sadness of losing her father.
Ms. Park has shown that she is a leader who also happens to be a woman. The most important characteristic that has endeared her to the general population and silenced critics is that she is resolved to be strong-minded.
How do you look at the adversity you faced in your early years as an advantage to you now as a leader? How are parents harming their children by protecting them from adversity and obstacles?
You can follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LaRaeQuy
Read my book ““Secrets of a Strong Mind,” available now on Amazon.How Thinking Small Can Lead to Big Success
Monday, March 25th, 2013 Most of us have seen enough James Bond movies to recognize a seduction when we see it; few of us, however, recognize the seduction process. A seduction process is a series of small steps so minor that we are not aware of what is happening.
Small steps were the secret sauce I used as an FBI counterintelligence agent recruiting foreign spies to work for the U.S. government. Each act in the recruitment process was so small that the spies were not alerted to the changes in their environment. The reason this approach was so successful in my investigations is that it is a form of persuasion that is gradual, intentional, and progressive.
If I had walked up to a spy and simply asked them to work for the FBI, a huge barrier would have instantly sprung up between us, making progress toward developing a relationship impossible. Instead, the presence—and eventual acceptance—of the FBI was a gradual process, each step small enough so it was not intimidating.
The principle behind the seduction process can be applied to breaking down the resistance of people as well as barriers and obstacles. Many hurdles in life can be overcome in the same way if they are broken down gradually, deliberately, and relentlessly.
The use of small steps can be applied to any barrier or obstacle we face. In my book, Secrets of A Strong Mind, I talk about how leaders with strong minds are those who find ways to move forward when confronted with adversity, risk, or uncertainty.
Here is how small thinking can lead to big success:
1. Quicker, To Prevent Escalation
In business and life, bigger is no longer able to beat smaller anymore. It is the fast that will beat the slow (click to tweet).
Small steps don’t mean you move slowly—you can still move very quickly, but by taking small steps instead of giant leaps when you’re moving into the unknown, you have time to explore a volatile and unpredictable situation as you press into it. The quicker you can move when faced with a fast-moving situation, the better your chances of preventing the situation from escalating.
Strong minded leadership moves quickly to prevent the escalation of a situation where predictability of the outcome is limited.
One of the most dangerous arrest situations occur when FBI agents follow a suspect to a house. As they prepare to enter the house to make an arrest, they face many unknowns: How many others are inside? Are they accomplices or innocent bystanders? Are there weapons? The quicker agents can enter a house, the greater their chances of apprehending suspects before the situation escalates to the point where they have a chance to grab weapons.
2. Smarter, To Reduce Uncertainty
Smart is using our strengths and resources in ways to overcome our obstacles, not walk around them (click to tweet).
Strong minded leadership makes smarter moves if they allow themselves time to go deep in figuring out one aspect of the situation at a time, rather than trying to tackle the entire problem all at once.
Small steps allow you the opportunity to take the problem by the “soft handle”—by the approach that is easiest to grasp as you’re looking right at it. This allows you to make smarter moves by reducing the element of uncertainty as much as possible.
When FBI agents move into the interior of the house, they reduce uncertainty by clearing one room (as they come to it) at a time—they move quickly into each room but they don’t spread their net too far by trying to clear the entire house at once.
3. Measurable, To Move Forward With IntentionThe more specific and measurable your goal, the more quickly you will be able to identify, locate, create, and implement the use of necessary resources to achieve it.
Strong minded leadership makes measurable progress in reasonable time (click to tweet).
When facing an obstacle:
- Break the bigger goal down into a series of small goals.
- Identify one of the small goals
- Take action and complete it
- Pick another small goal
- Get it done
- Continue until you’ve completed each small goal
- Re-evaluate what still needs to be done
Confidence is bred by action and courage; doubt is bred by inaction and fear. If you want to build confidence, do not sit and think about. Go out and start planning.
Strong minded leadership gains confidence in every experience in which they stop to remind themselves that they have learned from past crises, and that not only can they take the next thing that comes along, they’ll be smarter about it.
When tackling an huge obstacle, we need an equally large belief system in our own capabilities to continue to move us forward. It doesn’t matter how much we want something; all that matters is how much we believe we can achieve it. Small steps allows us to build momentum, and nothing builds confidence like momentum. The purpose of small steps, and smaller goals along the way, is not just to get us closer to the bigger goal of overcoming the obstacle. It’s also to help us develop the confidence that we can do it.
5. Strategic, To Be Flexible Enough To Take In New Information
Obstacles and barriers cannot be avoided, but our approach to them can be strategic if we continually re-evaluate our situation as new information becomes available.
It’s easier to make mini-evaluations along the way and determine whether a change in direction is needed before you get too invested down one path. Look at an obstacle like an opponent: it needs to be brought down and can be attacked from a variety of angles, some of which do make themselves known until we are closer to the very thing we fear.
Strong minded leadership is the capacity for evaluation of uncertain, conflicting, and risky information (click to tweet).
In arrest situations, communication is pared down to simple affirmations and directions. Arrest plans follow a set protocol and can be adapted to almost every arrest situation; however, the plan is always flexible enough to be changed or tweaked if needed as new information becomes available.
Sometimes, the person who needs to be seduced into believing they have what it takes overcome obstacles and breaking barriers is . . . you. By taking small steps, you will be amazed at how big your accomplishments can be.
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