Strategic Sense made a commitment this year to highlight some of the remarkable authors, leadership professionals and business people we have had the great fortune of meeting and working with over the last 3 years. On Wednesdays, (and this is very late Wednesday) you will see guest-posts from some of these folks. All are leaders in their field and will have solutions to some of our biggest workplace issues. As with Kevin Eikenberry, from The Eikenberry Group who wrote about Encouragement last week and asked us who it is WE encourage.
Today’s Guest Post is by Dr. Ellen Weber, Director at Mita International Brain Center, her blogs (blogs Mita brainpowered approaches, to lead innovation – at Forbes’ Mind Makeover and at Brain Leaders and Learners) top of the line blogs how the brain works, how we can use what we know about the brain to change ourselves and how we can better understand leading others.
And now, here’s Ellen…
Scan any newspaper or flip to news channels and you’re soon swamped with lack of advancement woes and tales of loss. Story after story in workplaces too, suggest doom due to ruts, routines and dead-end regulations. Ever wonder why disasters seem to trump wins these days in business and for that matter, in human brains?
Not surprisingly, negative forces work against personal growth in stagnant organizations, in much the same way they halt progress in business. That’s largely because your brain comes equipped with mirror neurons so that you mimic much of what you hear and see in others around you, whether you are aware of it or not. See why media vents, bureaucrats’ defensiveness, and tenured workers who resist change work against progress? It doesn’t have to be that way though.
We’ve witnessed more and more innovative leaders, who take advantage of unique mental tools such as mirror neurons, to mimic and run with winning sprinters. Leaders who dare to risk on the flip side of stagnation, and who capitalize on neuro discoveries, wield rejuvenation remedies that transform tired traditions. How so?
Run from ruts:
Some leaders lament that the time is not right for moving in a new direction. Others remain stuck because they expect to remain in their ruts. Still others tend to blame workforce decline on any number of problems. Workers resist change, accreditation drains time and effort, profit’s down, or they simply don’t have enough proof that suggested changes will improve their lot.
Neuro discoveries, on the other hand, reveal that it’s stressed or demoralized workers who default to ruts faster. Simply put, rut-like-tendencies trigger a dangerous chemical, cortisol, which shuts down brainpower. In fact this potent hormone can actually shrink the human brain and shave years off a person’s life. Sadly, cortisol also sinks workplaces as morale plummets, people perpetuate losing routines, and profits decrease in its wake.
Run toward risks:
Regardless of your position in an organization, you lead risks for innovation, by simply stepping out boldly to implement an original idea in an attempt to resolve a stubborn workplace problem. It’s quite scary at first, so you’ll want to act before fear tosses cortisol into the mix, and stops spigots for courage needed to carry out the novel proposal. You may be surprised at your brain’s equipment to help here.
Luckily, we now know that dopamine, the brain chemical for risk-taking and change, also increases with each step taken in new directions. That’s why it’s critical to act on your innovations and move with novel proposals, in spite of setbacks that even progressive workplaces can suffer at times. Good news is that nightly, during REM sleep, your brain rewires, and literally changes itself based on what you did the prior day. Design an innovative practice for your workplace, and your brain changes itself nightly for further success in changes you apply.
Run with winners:
Serotonin, the brain chemical that stirs shared well being, and collaborative success is passed from team member to team member whenever we engage multiple intelligences to partner for inventions that pony up new shots at success. Simply start by using more of your own and other’s strengths.
Ready to risk growth? If so, create the kind of mind-bending news that media report for novelty, and help replace naysayers’ reports that create workplace chaos and loss. How so?
Why not, identify one small area that could use improvement where you work. Fuel your own brain with a shot of dopamine, by proposing a novel idea for growth. Then run with a few winners in the opposite direction of busted routines. With a little help from talented peers, brainpowered tools, you’ve never before tried – will equip you to lead novel designs you’ve never before imagined.
Visit Dr. Ellen Weber, Director at Mita International Brain Center, by visiting her blogs Mita brainpowered approaches, to lead innovation – at Forbes’ Mind Makeover and at Brain Leaders and Learners.
Patti is a strategic advisor in Leadership, Customer Service and Cultural integration through Mergers and Acquisition. You can book her to speak at her personal page. Need Strategic Sense for your business? – hire us for Leadership Development of individuals, teams, group training and company strategy. Happy Workplaces Succeed, take the path to get there. (403) 201-8512