Episode 66: See It Coming

Have you ever said, "I didn't see that one coming." It is often an expression of bewilderment or angst because of some unforeseen ripple effect due to a decision or situation. While we know change is going to happen, is there anything we can practice or do to help see what the ripple effect is? Dr. Celina kicks off this discussion in a 10-episode series about being change ready as a professional, team, and organization. Let's build some strategic thinking muscle to read our environment, to improve our foresight skills, and be even more ready to adjust and adapt when we need to.

Transcript

Welcome to the Workplace Chameleon.   This is Dr. Celina.   The sky is falling.   The sky is falling.   Anyone remember that childhood book?   It takes a few different forms across different cultures.   And yet today with you, I want to talk about why sometimes it is falling and we need an   early warning detection system to know that it is going to.   And then sometimes we don't know it until it is.   And sometimes it's just simply our imagination or emotion, set of emotions running wild with   us.   Chicken Little of childhood story fame isn't the only one to claim the sky falls.   In my own work, I hear employees say these types of similar fateful statements.   So what is that about?   What happens during change where our brain goes doomsday instead of hope?   So the fictional character Chicken Little is really a classic figure in a lot of folktales   and children's literature across so many different types of cultures and backgrounds and the ways   they express it.   And the story of Chicken Little is often used to teach lessons like many of our folk heroes   to young readers.   The primary lesson behind Chicken Little is usually around the consequences of overreacting,   spreading fear, or false information and the importance of critical thinking.   What are some key lessons, even if you aren't familiar with the Chicken Little story?   What could we learn from this panic?   The sky is falling, the sky is falling.   First, consequences of hysteria.   The story illustrates really how hysteria and panic can lead to unnecessary chaos and   negative consequences.   What we need to be able to do in that moment is consider our impact of actions on ourselves   and those around us when bad news hits or when we're upset or we're reacting.   So maybe it isn't hysteria as noted by the story.   Consider what those consequences of fear are for you.   What do we do when?   One of the things that it also brings up is this need for critical thinking.   So Chicken Little is known for believing that the sky is falling when an acorn falls on   Chicken Little's head.   The story teaches us the importance of thinking critically and not jumping to conclusions   without evidence or rational thought.   Okay, in my work as an organizational psychologist, it is not unusual for me to get a phone call   from a well-meaning senior leader who says, hey, can you come do some staff development   for us?   There's just a lot of drama that's going on with our frontline.   I will always ask, what does drama look like in your place?   Because drama doesn't look the same.   It may be consequences of hysteria.   It may be a lack of critical thinking, or it might be something else.   So they'll ask me to come spend time doing some staff development with their team, bring   them all together because we don't want drama.   And I'll say, so how long?   And they'll say, production's important, or we can't pull everybody together, so we'll   do it multiple times.   We get them each one hour.   Well, I'm not going to undo bad habits and 30, 40, 50 years of bad habits in one hour,   but absolutely as a learning and development professional and as somebody who wants to   make an impact, I'll take an hour if that's what I can get.   But I always have a condition first.   I want to see the senior team.   And they go, oh, we're fine.   And I'm like, no, I want to see the senior team first before I see your team, because   that'll tell me a lot of what's going on right there.   And they're like, okay, I'll see what I can do.   True story company, not too long ago, I go in to see their senior team before I do this   whole slate of workshops for their frontline staff members.   And out of a team of eight department heads, three didn't show up.   One decided it wasn't for him and he didn't have to go.   And two didn't show up because they weren't speaking to each other and they didn't really   want to deal with it.   People do what people see.   People do what people see.   So if as leaders, we are chicken little with an acorn falling our head and then concluding   in hysteria, the sky is falling, that's not going to do anybody any well.   But if we're not modeling good team member responses to them, if we're not taking good   care of each other as coworkers and modeling teamwork, nobody else is going to either.   So there is this piece of response versus reaction.   Now there are some other elements of chicken little story.   In some adaptations, it also includes interactions with other animals who have different explanations   for why the sky is falling.   Now this could help us think about seeking diverse opinions when we're faced with uncertainty.   Oh man, can we just do a little more about that?   In our organizations, in our teams, normalize doubt during change.   It's okay that we don't know all of this.   But how can we see this from different perspectives and then come up with the best solution possible?   Time and place is another one that comes with the Chicken Little story because the importance   of verification is central to this idea.   Instead of blindly accepting information, we need to verify facts and seek evidence   before making conclusions or taking actions.   Chicken Little's story underscores the significance of verifying information.   What does the data tell us?   Data can be numbers, but data can be also perspectives from different people involved   in the situation.   One of the themes that most often comes up with change at work and a Chicken Little type   of panic is the need for us to overcome our fear.   And when Chicken Little's panic and fear cause her to spread some hysteria among her friends,   it emphasizes the need to remain calm in challenging situations and not let fear cloud our judgment.   Fear still shows up too much at work.   So as a leader, as an influencer, as a team member, where can you help reduce fear during   change?   Employees can experience fear in the workplace for all sorts of reasons.   And these fears can have a significant impact on our job satisfaction, performance, and   really our overall well-being.   Some of the reasons why employees get fearful at work that I see in my walk alongside every   day with organizations, job insecurity.   When we are concerned about job stability or the possibility of layoffs or downsizing   or mergers and acquisitions, this can create a pervasive sense of fear with employees.   We see this also with economic downturns and industry changes or organizational restructuring   and the fear of reprimand or termination in our environments where expectations aren't   clear, support isn't there, a punitive approach to performance management is taken, where   we aren't allowed to fail safely, we may fear discipline actions, including reprimands,   warnings, or even termination when our job performance is not meeting expectations.   What an opportunity we have to be even clearer with people to reduce the fear because you   can't improve, you can't learn if fear has overtaken.   Now, I am not saying that there aren't some performance management issues, plenty of them   that need to be addressed.   The question is, how will we address them?   Micromanagement that overly controlling or micromanaging supervisors will do for the   intent of creating fear where employees don't feel like they can make mistakes or not meet   strict standards.   We get really picky or we stifle employees' autonomy and creativity with micromanagement.   Certainly there are other well-founded spaces where fear shows up with workplace bullying,   harassment, discrimination from colleagues and supervisors will create a hostile work   environment and instill fear in victims.   Other types of fear that sometimes shows up in my daily conversations would be unrealistic   expectations, pressure to meet unrealistic goals, deadlines or targets.   We need a good push.   I love good stretch goals.   But without adequate resources or support leads to increased stress and probably a fear   of failure.   The number one thing I keep hearing about is lack of clear communication.   Poor communication from leadership can leave employees uncertain about their roles, their   responsibilities and the future director of the organization.   Contributing again to anxiety and fear when people don't know they make it up.   We certainly see fear of change take hold.   When I'm really good at something, when I'm an expert or I'm comfortable doing what I   do and you change it, I'm now a learner.   It takes effort.   So employees may fear organizational change and that then leads to uncertainty.   Other types of things that can show up, fear of conflict.   We may avoid addressing workplace conflict due to fear of repercussions or negative consequences.   We may not want to speak up or give a presentation that can hinder our communication, it can   hinder our sharing or even our career growth.   Fear of retaliation, employees who especially are in marginalized groups may fear discrimination,   unequal treatment or retaliation if we speak up about workplace issues.   Fear of failure, fear of peer pressure, fear of technology.   I wrote out a whole list here, fear of public feedback, fear of retaliation.   There's so many ways fear shows up.   So what can we do?   Effective leadership, transparent communication and a supportive workplace culture can help   mitigate these fears.   Addressing these concerns can lead to a more positive and productive work environment,   situation by situation so that employees feel valued, safe and motivated to perform   our best.   In some versions of the story, Chicken Little takes on a leadership role as she alerts other   people about perceived danger.   This could be seen as a lesson in taking responsibility for one's own actions and their impact on   others.   Chicken Little and her friends work together to address their fear and solve the problem.   This could teach us even more about teamwork or problem-solving skills and the idea, we   could learn some from this, that facing challenges together is more effective than facing them   alone.   These lessons certainly vary based on the specific version of the story you're reading,   but you create your story every day.   Critical thinking, responsible behavior, and how do we help each other overcome the obstacles   that are in front of us so we can do this better?   Fostering a supportive environment, creating an open and inclusive workplace culture where   employees feel safe, where we can approach without fear of retribution, setting realistic   expectations, defining job expectations, roles, responsibilities, so that employees can do   their best work.   And breaking those down into manageable steps creates a less intimidating process for employees.   My favorite, providing training and development, of course, to enhance employee skills, knowledge,   make them more confident in their roles when confidence is there, fear can't creep in.   Offer opportunities for continuous learning and growth, which can help employees feel   more capable and less fearful of new challenges.   Constructive feedback, leading by example, offering empathetic support, all help us minimize   the negative emotions so people can focus on what's most important, what you produce,   who you serve, taking great care of their responsibilities.   There is another favorite of mine, and that is actually to encourage risk-taking.   And you might say, uh, Selena, I thought we're trying to reduce fear, and risk is fear.   Not necessarily.   Not when you build muscle strength there.   When we talk about our risk-taking approach, when we take calculated risks and experiment,   when we let employees know it's okay to make mistakes as long as they learn from them,   it builds some muscle strength there, and they're going to be more confident and more   knowledgeable and take and handle risk better.   So where do we do with all of this monitor progress?   Where are you at now?   Check in with employees, see how they're feeling about their work and any fears that they may   have.   They may not tell you the first time because they're not sure how you're going to handle   the information, so don't pull the frantic chicken little on them.   Be your best self.   Collaborate, identify, clarify.   So many good things we can do because overcoming fear is a gradual process and not all employees   will have the same fears or respond to the same changes or strategies.   So tailor your approach to individual needs and concerns.   Be patient and supportive as they work to overcome their fears and become the best they   can be in their roles.   On behalf of the workplace chameleon, learn something new today.   Crush some more mental health stigmas today and make good choices.   This is Dr. Celina.