All posts by steve@kerrzone.com

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

People’s Inhumanity to People

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Throughout my life I have always been puzzled by man’s inhumanity to man (Retitled people above for accuracy, but I grew up in a world where strangely people were referred to as man – but that is a rant for another time.)

When I see the atrocious behavior aimed at others with full disregard for common and reasonably expected decency I wonder “People am I going insane” (also the title of a Black Sabbath song.)

Black lives matter

I can only lament how low humankind has sunk when we feel the need to highlight a group based on their appearance alone.  It is surely misunderstood for me to broaden the statement in today’s environment but for me, the correct slogan is “All lives matter”.

As I have included in many posts, the single universal core value we all need to believe and practice is the simple statement,  “Everyone is important” (even you, just kidding).

Real Change

This is again a time when around the globe people are gathering to further advance the principle that everyone matters and everyone is important.

The outrage being expressed at the incredibly biased and racist treatment observed in every country and every corner of the globe is exposed like never before with the huge assist of social media.

Just one such incident is too many, we unfortunately are suffering a plethora of such occurrences.    The history of humans is long and checkered with many attempts to create true equality.

We should never stop.  Each time the efforts of the many do change the strange and unwelcome perspectives of the few.  We need to keep at it until really everyone believes and expresses that believe through behaviour that we all deserve the opportunity to thrive.

 

 

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Us and Them

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Many organizations, both public and private tend to compartmentalize their work.  This can be through creation of functional silos (e.g, departments) or even specialized teams.

The concept is based on grouping folks with similar skills and abilities together so they can best leverage each others strengths and concentrate on the task at hand without unnecessary distractions.

Internal Dissension

This approach creates a focus that is valuable and can be effective but it does require departments/groups to work together and integrate processes with each other.

After all the organization exists holistically for a reason and creating operational silos can be efficient however care needs to be paid to ensure the empowering of various units does not detract from the integrated outcomes expected of the organization.

Unfortunately internal dissension, arising from the very separation and goal differentiation created by silos, is common (but not inevitable).

To overcome this the overall organizational infrastructure must facilitate collective operational effectiveness (for the organization as a whole) while enabling the appropriate level of individual and group empowerment.

We are One

Most importantly teams, groups, sections, units, departments must all avoid “us versus them” thinking.  Everything that is done anywhere in the organization needs to be linked to the overall mission and vision (not just or exclusively about the owning group).

The key to this is creating a culture of “us and we” where everyone is included in these pro-nouns.  Justifying an action as important to a single groups needs is not necessarily appropriate.

It must fit firstly and most importantly with what the organization is and does.  After all everyone in the organization is a piece of the whole and must act that way.

 

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Behaviour Governance

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You have the authority over your personal deportment, that is your behaviour or manners.  Self governance does not mean you can act any way you wish.

It simply means you chose (under your personal authority) which boundaries apply to you.  This decision must be undertaken with consideration paid to the influence of social and cultural norms ( both legally defined, and common sense ).

Impact and Influence

Your personal choices which guide your daily deportment define how others perceive you.  Taking control of these choices and being sure to practice good governance is a simple way  ensure others view you in a positive context.

Acting in the moment or solely according to your personality (i.e., your go to behaviours) without applying some level of constraint can result in others discounting your value to some extent.

Conforming to both your needs and others

Individuals perceived by others to provide  high levels of value typically are under control.  That is their behaviours satisfies everyone (including themselves).

They  have developed an inner code of personal behavioural governance which allows them to tailor their action most appropriately both to the situation and to other peoples needs.

Not a Bad Word

Often I run into people that describe governance as a necessary evil.  Something to avoid if possible.  While this is usually focused on corporate governance it does apply to the concept of governance holistically.

I respectfully disagree, the practice of good governance will almost always, if practiced judiciously, lead to positive outcomes.  Personal governance underpins personal greatness.

 

 

 

 

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Questions 67 & 68

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In the late sixties, the group Chicago released a song titled “Questions 67 & 68” which was about a romantic relationship that occurred during 1967 and 1968.

Focusing on the title alone (although this is a great tune and psychedelic songwriting at it’s best) I love the randomness of highlighting two numbered questions  (this was before I realized the numbers were years, I just thought it was random).

Any Questions

In a discussion with a colleague today we wondered “Is there any question that should never be asked?”  Whatever the number can all questions be valid?

Should there be a constraint on our constant search for knowledge?  Which raises the question should we continually seek to build and grow our personal body of knowledge?

Is the answer not rhetorical, do we even need to ask these questions?

Annoyance

As you may have discovered through reading the above paragraph constant and numerous questioning can be annoying and the knowledge source or sources might not respond in the clearest or most accurate ways (if they respond at all).

Questions are certainly a great way to build your own knowledge and understanding in a planned and organized way but they do not always need to be directly posed to others.

Research of documentation, experimentation, trial, and error are all ways of finding answers.  Sometimes these methods will actually produce the best answers as you can balance and weigh them based on results and parallel research.

Is it the right answer

Asking a question of others may get you an answer but it will be based on what they know and understand and that might not be correct.

A classic example of this is the question about the shape of the earth.  Even today you can find people who will answer that question with no it is not round.

So be judicious in the questions you ask, only ask someone else directly when you are sure that is the best way to get the best answer.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Reductive Reasoning

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Taking a subject or problem and reducing it to its simplest form can be used to help clarify but often this approach is used to refute others arguments through simplification.

The danger with reductive reasoning is it can lead to misinformation and result in the acceptance of illogical or false positions.  It can be a powerful tool of influence but caution is needed to prevent misuse.

For Example

Taking facts out of context some people are saying “Covid originated in China, clearly this means Chinese people collectively are at fault and evil.”

When the facts are reduced to their simplest perspective, often driven by personal bias we can reach weak inaccurate conclusion.  The reduced statement of fact is often little more than wild pontification.

Coupled with binary thinking this approach can breed prejudice.  That is there are only two options, for example  the Chinese attacked the world with covid or they did not.

Things just are not that simple in reality.

Victims of Bias

I am a white person married to an asian person. This offers me an interesting perspective on racism.  I have watched my wife experience racial bias (e.g., airport security) and it always saddens me for all of humanity.

Why can’t we all just be friends?   I wish this were a rhetorical question, unfortunately it is not, I don’t know the answer.  The motivation for racism escapes me.

Fortunately my own natural environment has enabled me to view everyone as people.  Admittedly I like some people and dislike others but the decision is always based on their behaviour never appearance.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Are you safe?

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Being able to believe yourself to be protected from or not exposed to danger or risk is an important ingredient in achieving personal harmony

Is the being safe a state of mind or circumstantial?  Does the mere fact of perceiving yourself to be safe alleviate danger?  Probably not, but practicing safe behaviour definitely reduces the risk something untoward will occur.

Seeking Safety

Personal care includes practicing  behaviours oriented to keep you safe.  Fear can be managed through your behaviour.  This does not provide absolute protection but it does create a comfort zone.

Feeling unsafe can lead to anxiety.  Taking action to address and reduce the risk of negative consequences, leads to increased safety and thus reduced anxiety.

This is not to suggest potential harm will be avoided but taking simple precautions coupled with a belief in your own personal safety can leave you comfortable and settled.

Don’t Overthink It

Being safe is not a state of mind in and of itself.  I think I am safe, therefore I am is most likely a risky position.  Safety starts with thinking but ends with action.

On one hand being convinced danger lurks at every corner is both unsettling and potential can lead to a dangerous level of stress and mental instability.

Thinking yourself into danger is not helpful nor will it lead to positive outcomes.  Be comfortable with what you can achieve relative to your personal safety and that of those you interact with.

Those things outside your control will only impact your thoughts and create fears you cannot address if you let them.  Stay save on your own, it is a choice.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

The Root of Confusion

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I will hazard a guess that we have all been bewildered or unclear in our minds about something, at some point in our lives if not on many occasions.

Confusion largely results from inadequate communication and unclear objectives and is particularly prominent when the circumstances are complex.

Too Many Cooks

A very common aspect of confusing situations is a multitude of stakeholders, each of whom purports to have a full understanding of the situation.

Feeding the confusion is these multiple explanations offered to add clarity are often perceived to be different or even in some cases are actually different.

Keep it Simple

Avoiding confusion always begins with simplicity.  Clearing away the misunderstood begins by reducing the situation to the fewest components.

To ensue clarity and focus explanations need to be single threaded, that is provided by a single designated knowledge expert.  Using a single point of reference without exception is key to avoiding honest misunderstandings.

Start with the End

When explaining a process or providing how-to instructions the comprehension of others begins with understanding the end result.  It seems to make sense to describe the journey and reveal the outcome at the end.

Perhaps strangely so, this is not the case.  My psychology studies have demonstrated humans achieve understanding much more quickly when they know what the goal is upfront.

Eliminating confusion is a combination of limiting the number of stakeholders involved with explanations coupled with providing clarity of outcome, what does done look like, right from the beginning.

 

 

 

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Escalation

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A colleague and I had an interesting discussion today about the impacts of escalation versus working together in a collaborative way to achieve resolution of outstanding issues.

In the context of this post, escalation refers to raising an issue to a higher level of authority for resolution.  Basically when someone bypasses you to try to achieve what they want.

For Example

You may be requested to provide a service outside of your preview or capability and so politely refuse.  The recipient of your answer decides to  take their dissatisfaction to a person of higher authority, that is, to escalate above you.

An interesting twist on this example is when you feel constrained and unable to respond in a way concurrent with your values and/or assessment of the situation.  You might suggest they take the request to a someone with more decision making power and latitude.

Handling Escalation

As the recipient of an escalation you are often between a rock and a hard place.  Your authority may enable you to overide and basically denigrate those at a lower level in the organization, judging their needs to be lesser than those of the escalator.

Or you can provide the escalator with a refusal, potentially damaging the organizational reputation by creating a perception of inadequate responsiveness.

Doing theDance

Of course these are just to ends of the spectrum and you can perform a dance trying to achieve an outcome that will satisfy all, the requestor, the receivers of the original request, yourself and organizational guidelines.

Never easy.  Personally, I dislike escalations and those that propagate them as a matter of principle (regardless of my role).

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Its a secret

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When you have information that you do not intend to be seen or known by others it is a secret.  When you share this with someone, most likely a limited audience, it becomes no longer secret.

”Psst, hey you wanna hear a secret? “. This is really just a way of spicing up what you have to share.  The response is often an excited and urgent “Tell me!”.

Real Secrets

When information information has a limited audience it is not really secret but rather restricted.  Other terms for this are confidential, private, internal use and so on.

Real secrets must be internalized and belong just to us.  Having the need to keep secrets can become a soul crushing exercise.  Secrets are usually of an emotional nature and the reason for keeping them is often to protect ourselves or others.

There can be a real emotional cost to this practice.  Instinctively we want to share and choosing not to do so is most likely motivated by fear.

Lack of Resolution

Unfortunately keeping secrets, real secrets you do not and cannot share, often limits you from resolving the root causes of the secret in the first place.

You may initially experience some relief and hold your fears at bay but over time the hidden knowledge will continue to gnaw at you until it either bursts out and causes damage or you keep it to yourself and the damage is internal.

Consider carefully the ramifications of keeping secrets.  The option to find a way to share your secret without incurring the risks you fear is almost always worth exploring as the wisest path.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

The Mystery of Life

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Does human life have a deeper meaning beyond what we know?  That is something that is difficult or impossible to understand or explain.  It is a mystery.

This is not to say we cannot define our own purpose and from that create individual and even group meaning.  Following a path, we define for ourselves at an earlier age can become our answer to the question, why am I here?

Living is the Answer

Of course, the mystery begins with the background.  Did the universe come into being by an accident?  Is that even possible?  Can something occur without purpose or motivation?

Perhaps it just is.  The human race evolved over many years and continues to do so.  The outcomes created by humans taken as a whole are both numerous and impactful.  Even astounding at times.

Human creations span a wide multitude of achievements, some could be considered good, while others bad and some just mediocre.  the hallmark of all these things is they are derived through the act of living.

Life is meaning in and of itself

Everything we do, from birth, encapsulates our lives.  Without a specific measure governing whether your life has achieved the purpose for which it was intended, that being a mystery, the answer lies within your own definition.

Each of us must define our own journey and self determine the value of that trip.  Do the opinions of others matter?  Only to the extent they influence your own assessment of success.  The meaning of your life is yours to determine, execute, and assess.