One of the books I got for Christmas was Influencer, and although it gets a bit repetitious (get to the point already!), it has enough great substance to make it a worthwhile read. One point in particular has me spinning, and I'll be writing about other points in the next few days. Roughly, from the book: People tend to be better copers than influencers. In fact, we're wonderful at inventing ways to cope. For instance, at work we abandon our quality-control program and install full-time inspectors because nobody will listen. Instead of fixing lousy schools, we complain to our friends and then backfill by tutoring our children because it's the best we can do. And when it comes to diet and exercise, we own two or three different-sized wardrobes because it's impossible to stick to a diet.You can see evidence of coping everywhere. IT department isn't performing well? Outsource it. Recently released convicts leaping too quickly back into crime? Build bigger penitentiaries. It's as if a steady stream of automobiles hurtles toward a cliff to plunge to destruction. Instead of rushing to the top of the cliff to prevent drivers from speeding toward disaster, we park a fleet of ambulances in the valley below to manage the carnage. Is that speaking to you like it speaks to me? It's all about settling instead of fighting to get it right. And what's worse, we become complacent and blind to the coping mechanisms employed and just take them for granted as the way it has to be.No, we need to get to the root cause. The book goes into how masters of influence effectively do this, and it's an interesting read that Tamara and I are sharing together. More about this later... |
