Leaders should be agile -- not fragile -- with optimism

The fictional character of Sherlock Holmes taught the value of carefully thinking before acting, calling it a "three-pipe problem" because it required smoking three pipes to properly think the issue through, writes Scott Hutcheson, the co-founder of Hutcheson Associates. Research has backed up Holmes' method, finding that intentional reflection provides clarity, improves strategic thinking and can prevent burnout due to decision fatigue, Hutcheson writes.

Put it into practice: Develop a practice of "three-pipe thinking" by blocking time on your calendar for reflection, asking yourself what you might be overlooking or what assumptions you're making about a situation and making reflection time part of team meetings, Hutcheson writes. "Share the importance of strategic thinking with your team and encourage them to create space for their own reflective practices."

Leaders should embrace agile optimism, which is more open-minded than fragile optimism that hinges on positive outcomes, writes Nick Tasler, an organizational psychologist. "Believing that you or your team can accurately predict all the details on the road to your desired outcome without making any missteps ensures that it's only a matter of time before your fragile optimism shatters into a thousand little pieces," Tasler writes.

Put it into practice: Agile optimism can help leaders view mistakes not as failures but as part of the learning process. Tasler points to Microsoft's bumpy rollout of AI chatbots as a case study where mistakes "were to be expected and embraced as fodder for insights that would propel the company to exciting new heights."

When you speak to your team in abstract, big picture terms and principles, they are more likely to perceive you as having more personal power, writes Chris Lipp, a professor of management communication, who recommends that you "delegate the details" to their creativity while you focus on broader goals. "By communicating abstract goals, senior leaders empower subordinates with the agency to test various creative solutions," Lipp writes.

Put it into practice: Don't get lost in metrics or other concrete data when communicating corporate strategy. "We live in a world of data deluge, but leaders must remain focused on the big picture to appear powerful," Lipp writes.

Perfectionism in leadership can drive teams to achieve high standards, but it often comes at the cost of creativity and innovation, especially when accompanied by anger, which can create an environment where employees fear making mistakes, writes Gamze Koseoglu, a senior lecturer at The University of Melbourne. Leaders must temper their perfectionism with understanding and empathy if they want their teams to come up with new ideas and take risks, Koseoglu writes.

A physicist has developed a percolation model to describe how sudden insights occur during word puzzle solving. His study, featured in Physical Review E, compares these breakthroughs to percolation processes like water filtering through coffee grounds or teabags.

Today's brief holds great advice for leaders, so I invite you to take in the details of each article.

Often, teams don't reach their true potential because they have a leader who insists they perform to their idea of perfection, according to Gamze Koseoglu, a senior lecturer at The University of Melbourne. Many times, these leaders are volatile and become angry when their team comes up short. This kind of toxic culture means that team members are afraid to make mistakes, so they go along to get along, doing their assigned work they've but ignoring any creative or innovative solutions.

Such perfectionism means leaders often embrace a "fragile optimism," as organizational psychologist Nick Tasler puts it. That means they see the goal and imagine that the road to it will be easy, but challenges shatter that optimism.

What's needed for teams to thrive and reach their potential is often imprecise instructions, which allow your team the latitude they need to use their intellect and creativity to complete tasks without being micromanaged by a perfectionist. Management communication professor Chris Lipp recommends this strategy because it can empower your team.

Overall, what's needed to make all of these strategies succeed is taking time to engage in the "three-pipe problem" of Sherlock Holmes that Scott Hutcheson writes about. That means that you, as the leader, are taking time to think things through, to find the agile strategies needed to succeed. You model this contemplation and teach your team how to do it, as well, so their ideas and innovations can freely flow because they know mistakes present learning opportunities instead of reprimands.

I invite you to fully digest today's issue and glean the advice that can help you shape a more innovative and success-oriented culture.

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