The Snack BOxD Monthly Digest - June 2022 Edition
This is the Snack BOxD, a highly digestible digest from me, Nenuca, CEO at BOxD - Better Organizations by Design. Every month I send a round-up of my favorite tips on how to create healthy, high performing organizations. If you like this kind of thing or found me by accident, get your snack on and hit the subscribe button.
On the menu this month: Extremophyte organizations … Offsite season… Psychological safety… Nenuca on the Authentic Change Podcast… plus a hot take about Jack Welch!
This month we’re thinking about extremophyte plants...
Wait– what?
How did we get here? Isn’t this a newsletter about organizational behavior?
Let me explain.
Extremophytes are plants that can grow in extreme environments (hence the name). A recent paper published out of Stanford shows that these plants survive– nay, thrive!– in unimaginably harsh conditions. The more stressful the atmosphere, the faster they grow.
Studying these plants is a useful thing. Scientists can use what they learn to help our crops adapt to the increasingly extreme weather conditions brought on by climate change.
Maybe you, too, can imagine yourself a lone reed struggling to sprout from the salty, inhospitable shores of your operating environment.
I don’t have to tell you that conditions are harsh out there.
Endless teeth-gnashing over hybrid work norms. Inflation rates not seen in over 40 years. Volatile stock market. Talent shortages, retention crises. Even the giants are struggling (but of course, they’ve still amassed even greater market share than pre-pandemic).
To me, the people who work with BOxD are extremophyte leaders and organizations. They’re growing faster despite the odds. They’re constantly evolving to respond to a chaotic environment.
Like extremophyte scientists in the field, we can all learn a lot from studying these remarkable organizations. Take a look at some of these success stories to see how we’ve helped our clients adapt to a changing world of work.
It's Offsite Season!
Time to dust off the ole’ “talking pillow” and get into our sharing circles!
Oop– is that not what people do anymore?
Kidding, of course; if you know me, you know I have no patience for cheesy teambuilding exercises.
When it comes to these big meetings, yes we’re here to bond…
AND…
We are PRIMARILY gathered to get critical work done that we cannot do alone.
We are here to make decisions that we should not make alone.
Most importantly? We’re spending our most precious resource: time.
That said, does it really make sense to throw on SiriusXM Yacht Rock Radio while participants hunch over a mound of multicolored sticky notes?
You know it doesn’t!
If you want to get the most out of a big meeting, BOxD has a free playlist you can stream or download to unlock the best of your team’s collective brainpower during your next big meeting.
Curated by behavioral psychologists and expert facilitators, each track on the BOxD “Best Meeting Ever” playlist has been designed to complement key sections of your typical strategic working session (e.g. brainstorming, reflection, decision-making).
When matched with the right activity, certain music can stimulate innovation and creativity. Different activities call for different kinds of music. (And no, we don’t think Kate Bush can be played for EVERY occasion.)
Ditch the boring tunes at your next offsite. Stream or download our free playlist here:
Psychological safety is having a moment
At BOxD, we love when good behavioral research gets its day in the sun.
But we also worry when these psychological constructs get their 15 minutes of fame on LinkedIn. The more these concepts get trotted out, the more likely they are to become reduced to cliches or to have the actual studies or evidence behind them become misinterpreted and warped.
DON’T GET IT TWISTED! Psychological safety is the MEANS to high performance– not the GOAL.
Psychological safety is the belief that you can speak up at work without fear of negative consequences. Your voice is valued. You feel confident that you can ask questions, suggest ideas, raise red flags, and make mistakes without fear of retribution.
This is not about coddling. This is not about treading on eggshells to protect feelings. This is not permissive, loosey-goosey management.
This is about trust. This is about whether your people actually decide to unmute themselves to raise a question during an all-hands. This is about whether your leaders know how to create conditions for people to throw up a red flag on an issue that you just can’t see from where you’re sitting.
We have a great page on our site that breaks it down for you.
What has Nenuca been up to...
A few weeks ago I sat down with Mike Horne to discuss self-esteem and leadership on his podcast, Authentic Change. This topic is so important to me because I know firsthand how crucial self-esteem is for effective leadership. It’s a quick listen, and you’ll walk away with some tools for identifying what low self-esteem looks like at work, and how we can help leaders who suffer from it.
Listen below (or skim the transcript if you’re really in a crunch!):
Just for Fun...
In case anyone needs permission to go out and get themselves a donut, It’s National Chocolate Eclair Day. Hey, it wouldn’t be a proper Snack BOxD without it.
What We're Reading...
Creating a Trans-Inclusive Workplace
Want to avoid being a performative LGBTQ+ ally this year? On top of changing your logo to rainbow colors, I strongly encourage you to read and print to PDF this HBR piece from 2020. Unfortunately it’s as relevant today as it was 2 years ago. The bottom line shouldn’t surprise anyone in the year-of-our-lord-2022: discriminatory workplaces prevent companies from attracting and retaining top talent. The authors lay out tactical ways to move beyond PR stunts and get into the realm of action. My favorite quote: The overriding reason to address this is that it’s simply the right thing to do.
The Man Who Broke Capitalism: How Jack Welch Gutted the Heartland and Crushed the Soul of Corporate America--And How to Undo His Legacy a book by David Gelles
And here I thought I’d seen all the hot takes already! This is a controversial one, and for good reason. Jack Welch is well-represented in the average MBA curriculum and tends to be lionized by management literature. 40 years after Welch took over GE, this book revisits his leadership style and presents a different frame.
I'm curious – does anyone have strong feelings about this? Leave a comment and let me know your reactions. (I promise I read every response!)
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Sources...
Extremophytes: “Extreme” Plants Grow Faster in the Face of Stress
Does Listening to Music Stimulate Creative Thinking, or Stifle It?
These 6 Types of Music Are Known to Dramatically Improve Productivity