Where Are We Stuck? And How to get Unstuck

A powerful question!

Asking yourself or your team what you’re ‘stuck’ on can be very insightful and stimulating, provided you listen with an attitude of openness and curiosity.

When you pose this question, you're at risk of hearing things you don’t like, views you completely disagree with and ideas that you find absolutely enraging or downright ridiculous. Our natural reaction is usually to shut down or shut out such 'toxicities' from the system.

The question is, can we orient ourselves differently to inure the 'poison' just a little bit? After all, poison can be medicinal if taken properly in the right dose- just the antidote we need for creativity and problem solving.

To get to the root of where you're stuck, here are three pointers for you, as a leader in any capacity -parent, teacher, coach, supervisor, manager, even CEO:

1. Address the elephant in the room

What's the obvious that you are not addressing? In my experience, it has been, amongst others, things like having unrealistic goals, unclear priorities, undefined roles and lack of buy-in from team members. To address this elephant in the room, ask yourself, "What assumptions am I holding about people or the situation, that are stopping me from voicing the issue?"

2. Be aware of your power and its impact on others

Ever wondered why your team members drop what they're doing and start to focus on the next thing you've communicated? An offhand statement you make in a meeting becomes a priority for them. Consequently, the team feels swamped and demotivated. Leaders, regardless of their level and role, are often unaware of their rank and therefore misuse it. Think well-meaning over-controlling parents. They may unknowingly be stifling the child's creativity. Or teachers who don't take control of classroom dynamics are unwittingly giving up the power the has role bestowed on them. To be an effective leader, you need to recognize the power you wield on others, and use it wisely.

3. Hold the neutral position

A tough ask but crucial in breaking a deadlock when we're stuck. We all enter situations attaching ourselves to one end of the spectrum- be for or against, feel positively or negatively, agree with or disagree with, like or dislike an idea. We may feel like we're open minded when we get into a meeting, but in reality, we have already taken a stance and are getting ready to defend it. Being in a neutral position involves listening to what is of value in the other person's idea, not necessarily accepting it or agreeing with it. And from this position, we allow opposing ideas, perspectives and experiences to intersect, allowing for creativity, collaboration, camaraderie and trust amongst team members.

These three action points need honest introspection and reflection. It may be hard to do initially, but will pay off in the long run by building collaborative, creative and thriving teams.

Read more on the benefits of this adopting this approach in the HBR article: https://lnkd.in/gdzdWbcg

If this blogpost resonated with you and you'd like to know more about dealing with internal and external conflict, understanding power dynamics and building an inclusive mindset for yourself or team write to me at gauri.raosharma@gmail.com.