Assumptions and Middle Way Management

In my last post, I discussed how taking action can positively impact your Middle Way Management™ practice. Here, I discuss how you can turn assumptions from a destructive to a constructive force to make your practice more vibrant and definitely more interesting.

When you assume, you make an...
Let's face it, you cannot navigate your busy management day without making assumptions. In fact, they're a fundamental part of our daily lives. As you fall asleep at night, you assume your alarm will function and wake you up in time to get ready for work in the morning. On your commute in, you assume you will arrive at work at about the same time as always. You could spend a significant amount of your day slicing and dicing your assumptions out of every millisecond of your life. In the end, you would realize that 99.9% of your assumptions are based upon experience and, being empirically-based, they help you far more than they hinder you. Or do they?

While assumptions are a natural heuristic for we of the big brain, they can also act as an inhibitor of everything necessary to make you successful in the workplace. At the heart of every assumption lies a value-based observation. By this, I mean every assumption you make is rooted in your values, your attitude, and the view you take of the world. Some people see the glass as half empty and others see it as half full. Your view of the glass (i.e., situation) will largely determine your assumptions. If you always believe your efforts are going to fail, your boss will not support you in a decision, your team members will revolt - they certainly will! You have the power to create your world in your own image.

Being Conscious - at the Quantum Level You've probably heard by now of the recent observation of the Higgs Boson, a building block of matter that is theorized to give it mass and one that describes the weak force, among other things. As new observations continue to reinforce theoretical quantum concepts, older ideas such as entanglement and the role of human consciousness in shaping reality are becoming more widely understood and accepted. Entanglement is the idea that two particles once made aware of each other are forever linked so that a change in one will affect the other - no matter the distance of separation. Einstein (and others) have referred to this as "spooky action at a distance."Whenever you interact with a team member, you are forever entangled.

Along with entanglement, the role of human consciousness in shaping quantum-level outcomes has been documented in several experiments. This means that quantum constituents are zipping around as particles until we observe them and "collapse the wave" so that they do, indeed, appear to be a wave. This, more than any other aspect of quantum mechanics, is important to Middle Way Managers™ because it tells us we can take an active part in creating a reality that reflects our conscious intent. Have you ever had a day where nothing went right? Sorry to say you created the events that accumulated into your crappy day. By expecting the worst, you got it. Likewise, when you've expected something to turn to your advantage and it did, you had a hand it creating that reality, as well.

It's All About Intent
Have you ever managed a person who could not seem to do anything right? Eventually, you either reduce their responsibilities or let them go if things get bad enough. I submit that you took part in that person behaving in disappointing ways simply by allowing your assumptions (that they would fail) to direct expected outcomes (they failed). If you've ever been on the receiving end of such unhelpful management, you know how frustrating and humiliating such an experience can be. I once had a boss who took to calling me "Bonehead" every time he addressed me. I'll let you guess how my performance was affected by his assumptions and negative intent.

Attitude is one thing, believing you can affect reality at the quantum level is quite another. So, I have a challenge for you: If you have someone on your team who is constantly underperforming, give that person your conscious attention and expect them to perform at a stellar level. Give them your positive intent and make the assumption that they will outperform everyone else on the team. Visualize them succeeding and how it makes them feel - and you need not let them know you are doing it. I guarantee you will reduce the team member's suffering (your prime Middle Way Management objective) and you will benefit the organization by fostering a contributing, successful team member. As you work through this experiment, drop me a line to let me know how it goes for you.

In my next post, I will discuss how you can transform your organization's "culture of no" to one of not just yes, but "Hell, Yes!"

Now go, and manage with compassion! Onward! Darin

Copyright © 2009-2013, Darin R. Molnar, PhD. All rights reserved.

Taking Action and Middle Way Management

In my last post, I discussed many aspects of fear in the workplace. It’s been a while since that post for several reasons. First, I’ve been super-busy consulting and bringing the practice of Middle Way Management to organizations in the real world. Second, I’ve been ruminating on the mitigation of fear in the workplace and the management of its attendant emotions once it arises; both of these require pre-emptive action and reactionary moves.

As you may have noticed, I’ve exchanged the idea of “intervention” (from psychology) with “action”. I chose this exchange based upon my own experience and from recently reading an article in which the authors actively promote the idea of combining conviction with compassion, resulting in a scholar who “dares to care.” In this article, they advocate for the passionate, courageous researcher who not only speaks out, but acts out. We are taught at the university to view management and leadership in purely scientific ways, which are, at the end of the day, pretty dispassionate means for viewing just about anything. An activist scholar is a rare things these days.

What the authors of the article are really calling for is action, a kind of positive action based upon fundamental, closely-held values that require the courage of holding convictions dear as ideas are presented to the world. By creating an assessment instrument, consulting with organizations about how to apply it, and writing fairly extensively about it, it has been my intent to put Middle Way Management into action. Is this a courageous act? Only time will tell.

Back to the mitigation of organizational fear.

Pre-emptive Mitigation

I am not now nor have I ever been an advocate of pre-emptive war. The pre-emptive mitigation of fear is another matter entirely. The most critical aspect of any pre-emptive action is a necessarily overriding concern with making the right move at the right time. As you can imagine, it is never possible to plan for or prevent every possible cause of fear, especially in a workplace with so many souls who all have their own ideas about what makes them fearful. The best we can do is take action to clear the air of anything that might create an environment (i.e., culture) of fear.

 When taking action to clear the organizational air, deciding about what does and does not cause fear is crucial to a successful effort. In the context of organizations, several actions and, frankly, inactions create a culture of fear. For instance, feeding and then allowing the rumor mill to take its own negative course is a deadly concoction of action/inaction that will create a fear-filled environment and destroy morale across the board. A great way to accomplish this is to lay off several employees with no open discussion about why they were laid off or what the future holds for everyone else in the organization. This seems like common sense, yet you would be shocked at how many organizations mismanage even this seemingly obvious task.

The Heart of the Matter

At the heart of every negative emotion lies a black, smoldering core of fear. For example, a manager who feels he should have been promoted to vice president by now is driven by the fear of failure and of how his colleagues, peers, family members, and friends view his apparent failure with organization. In his mind, he has so tightly linked and defined himself by his job title that he has no choice but to create his own suffering by thinking he is not measuring up to preconceived idea about where he should be in his career at any point in time. In this way, he lets fear rule his life by conquering his mind with thoughts of inadequacy.

I call this “Willful suffering.”

Such thoughts and attitudes can be changed, yet many of us choose to measure ourselves against a fanciful standard that does nothing more than create suffering. Of course, we should all have goals, yet those should never create anger, frustration, sadness, embarrassment, or other emotions that lead to suffering. The magic is clearly in how we view ourselves as we pursue our short-term, intermediate, and long-term goals. If you are content with your progress, you will avoid the type of fear-based suffering that leads to hasty decision-making, bad choices, and deep personal misery.

As a Middle Way Manager, you must constantly value the progress you have made and are making. This is not dwelling in the past; rather, it is a recognition that remaining mindful and living in the present have worked to put you in a position where you can realize more good, meaningful accomplishments in the present and moving forward. You are a model to those you lead and it is encumbent on you to present a clear, coherent vision to your team members that helps them manage their own emotions with patience, empathy, kindness, and compassion.

So, go now, and management with compassion!

Onward! Darin

Article mentioned in this post:

Adler, N. J., & Hansen, H. (2012). Daring to care: Scholarship that supports the courage of our convictions. Journal of Management Inquiry, 21(2), 128-139.

Copyright © 2009-2012, Darin R. Molnar, PhD. All rights reserved.

Middle Way Management and Fear

In my last post, I considered how boundaries create respectful fences that help us develop healthy self-compassion and reduce overcommitment and other behaviors that can lead us into stressful situations. In this post, I discuss how fear as conscious and unconscious process acts as an inhibitor of creativity and innovation in the workplace.

The Only Thing to Fear is...
Fear is an emotion we must all deal with on a daily basis. While this may strike you as a bold statement, it is true: we experience fear and engage in fear reactions many times throughout our busy days. In fact, fear and the fear response are fundamental parts of what it means to be human. Without fear, we would rush into situations that compromise our integrity, our relationships, and, at worst, our physical well-being; on the other hand, it can lead to debilitating emotion and reactive behaviors that stop our progress dead in its tracks.

Fear is our greatest gift, and our greatest curse.

Fear is created in several ways. The first and most obvious is the result of an overt physical threat that sends the heart racing and the brain looking for a way out or a way to fight back. This is the classic "fight or flight" response that pulses adrenaline throughout the body, changing our physiology in significant ways. As a manager, you can experience this in the workplace as a reaction to a non-physical business situation involving a boss, a peer, a customer, a team member - just about anyone with whom you interact can push you into a fear reaction.

The second way fear is created is through our own thoughts. We can run "what-ifs" and "coulda-woulda-shoulda" scenarios on the movie screens of our minds, creating fear that is as real as any created by external sources. This can occur in the workplace as a manager considers the potential ramifications of a tough decision that might affect his own position within the organization. This sort of scenario often results in "analysis paralysis" or ends up prompting either hasty or overly cautious decisions that do not reflect the manager's true decision-making skill or personal ethics; a poor outcome, indeed.

Finally, a leader-manager has many opportunities throughout the day to create fear. Attending to one's language and understanding how one's words can land on another are crucial parts of an effective Middle Way Management™ practice. Along with this, subtle body language cues can create the type of fear that results in damage to team morale or the destruction of a business relationship (explained in greater detail below). The true Middle Way Managemer™ neither creates nor promotes fear in any form.

Regardless of how the emotion of fear is created in one's mind, it is real and we are geared as a species to react to it in very specific ways based upon brain function and neurochemistry that are the results of millennia of natural selection and evolutionary refinement of homo sapiens.

This is Your Brain on Fear
In the classical systems theory sense, the brain really is more than the sum of its parts. Pull out one component and others will surely fail, as well. We see evidence of this in people who suffer serious brain trauma. Along these lines, specific parts of the brain are implicated in the creation of and reaction to fear. When those parts are damaged or in some way incapacitated, fear can be emphasized or displaced depending on the injury. Likewise, a malfunctioning part of the brain that works with another to encode memories important for self-preservation based upon the fear response can inhibit such activity, compromising a person's personal safety.

Fortunately, most of us never experience such injuries and our fear functions remain fully intact and operational for the duration of our lives. Implicated in the creation of the fear emotion and responses are several key parts of the brain; specifically, the amygdala, anterior cingulate cortex, prefrontal cortex, thalamus, hippocampus and other structures (don't worry - no more brain terms will be forthcoming). The point here is that the human brain is wired to detect and react to fearful situations, even when they are created within our own minds based upon nothing more than thoughts (which are, by the way, things).

A recognition of the role of the nearly autonomic response to fear by the human brain is necessary because serious implications exist for how you deliver your daily Middle Way Management practice in light of fear's impact upon human behaviors. Two example illustrate this point nicely. First, we have evidence from neuroscientific studies that body language can induce the fear response (via the amygdala's ability to catch such signals). Based upon this, the Middle Way Manager must not only attend to language, every subtlety of every interaction must become a matter for utmost concern.

Second, we have evidence, also from neuroscientific studies, that communication between the two hemispheres of the brain via the corpus callosum (the thick, fibrous material that connects them) is inhibited as part of the fear response. This means the necessary functional components of creativity and logic are seriously hampered, thereby stifling the processes so necessary for people to provide the innovation that is a critical part of any vibrant organizational culture.

Interventions or Remedies?
In psychological terms, a solution designed to remedy fear is called an "intervention". I will not make suggestions for interventions in the post, saving them for my next submission. My point here is that there are interventions that a Middle Way Manager can include in her practice to mitigate the perceptions of and reactions to fear in the workplace. It is not always possible to avoid fear incidents, yet it most certainly is possible to practice the sort of mindfulness that allows us to recognize potential fear-inducing situations and to react to them with equanimity, patience, kindness, and compassion, all hallmarks of the true Middle Way Manager.  More to come on this topic in my next post.

Go now, and manage with compassion!

Onward! Darin

Copyright © 2009-2012, Darin R. Molnar, PhD. All rights reserved.

Middle Way Management and Boundaries

In my last post, I discussed the role humility plays in a Middle Way Manager's™ daily practice. Humility is a necessary part of Middle Way Management™  because it removes many ego drives and allows a Middle Way Manager to approach those he manages with grace and respect. In this post, I discuss how boundaries can help a Middle Way Manager maintain a vibrant, healthy workplace environment.

Whenever I bring up the topic of boundaries, a negative connotation threatens the model. Boundaries are not negative. In fact, they are a very positive thing for both the person setting them and for those on the receiving end. Boundaries show respect in two ways: to yourself and to those around you. Setting boundaries is a clear form of communication, one that establishes expectations and provides a framework for gentle accountability, a hallmark of the Middle Way Manager.

Autocompassion

A topic that I have not touched upon on in this blog is self-compassion. Many of us spend a considerable amount of time practicing patience and kindness, ensuring we do not pass unfair judgment on others, yet we are relentless critics of our own behaviors. I am surely my own harshest critic. I do not afford myself the forgiveness I offer to others nor do I always take the time out of my busy day to think deeply about my actions and motivations. Clearly, I have yet to fulfill on the Middle Way Management idea that we must set boundaries with ourselves first.

How do we set boundaries for ourselves first? We set our own boundaries by practicing self-compassion and recognizing when we might violate our personal standards of integrity. An example self-boundary might be telling the truth in all situations, even when it is hard. Such a boundary can be difficult to maintain, especially if you are someone who wants “everything to be okay.” Trying to not cause harm to anyone by equivocating (or outright lying) ends up harming everyone involved in the interaction – you and the persons with whom you are involved. For instance, telling an executive manager that a team is making good progress when it is not with the intent of shielding the team from potential managerial chaos is a lie (no matter how small) that will catch up with you and your team. In such a case, you have put the organization, your manager, your team, and yourself at risk of failure.

Respectful Fences

Another boundary in the workplace that is often crossed results in overcommitment, leading to task or job failure. Of course, a manager can do the same thing by overpromising on behalf of the team. In the case of a team member, a manager might ask him/her to take on an unforeseen task when the team member is already overburdened with other work. Rather than respectfully declining the request in the interest of not putting everyone involved at risk of failure, we will often accept such requests with the full intent of fulfilling on our promises. Usually, the result is a plunge from hero to zero, which serves no one involved. Setting a clear boundary in this case is a compassionate way to avoid potential failure by allowing the requesting manager to seek help where resources might be more plentiful or appropriate to the task. It also preserves a healthy self-compassion and self-respect.

Until recently, I was one of those people who would over-promise and then either harm myself by working too much, too hard, and on the wrong things to fulfill on my commitment or simply fail at the job. By honestly and forthrightly saying “no” when appropriate, I am showing both myself and the person requesting my help a higher level of respect. Of course, my previous interpretation was that saying “yes” to everything asked of me shows a healthy measure of respect when, in fact, it does not – it only puts myself, the person requesting my help, my team and my organization at risk, which is where none of us wish to find ourselves. Saying “no” in love and compassion sets boundaries that are well-defined and results in success for everyone involved. Try it today – you will be amazed at the results.

Onward! Darin

Copyright © 2009-2012, Darin R. Molnar, PhD. All rights reserved.

Middle Way Management and Humility

In my last post, I discussed how to recognize and relieve suffering in the workplace. As a Middle Way Manager™, it is your special responsibility to work with those you manage to relieve their suffering, regardless of its origins. In this post, I will consider what it means to be humble and how to practice humility on a daily basis as you develop your Middle Way Management™ practice.

It's Hard to be Humble
It truly is hard to manage with humility in an American-style organization, especially if you live in the United States. Are we not taught that the leader charges ahead of the pack, relying only on his wits and wisdom to lead everyone else into a brighter future? That it is not only desirable, but necessary, for the leader/manager to recognize, develop, and loudly proclaim her leadership strengths? That a humble person is soft-spoken, walks with his head down, eyes directed at the floor, never acknowledging his own self-worth? None of these attributes should be a part of your daily Middle Way Management practice and here's why.

The Bold, the Proud, the Humble
Personal pride should be a fundamental part of your Middle Way Management practice. You simply cannot develop a solid, congruent management practice - of any kind - without it. Is this the sort of pride that is boastful and arrogant? Certainly not. Is this the sort of pride that recognizes you as a special person here at a special time to fulfill a special duty? Certainly! Taking pride in your own achievements is a healthy way to build your own commitment to an organization while developing a trust relationship with those you manage. Yet, how does this fit with humility in the workplace?

Humility is a special quality that requires both introspection and honesty. The humble manager understands her strengths and weaknesses and works to maximize her effectiveness within the context of the organization. Humility does not promote boasting or sycophantic behavior; it requires a manager to think, speak, and act with clarity of purpose and to view himself as a critical part of the organization's success. The humble manager understands that his success depends entirely upon the team. In this way, the manager only ever operates in a support role - as a facilitator of success. When you are humble, honest, forthright, and clear, trust will abound and the team will excel.

Back to the Breath
Because humility falls under the "way of being" rubric of Middle Way Management, the single best way to become humble is to reflect upon it during your busy work day. Once again, taking time to sit quietly and concentrate on your breathing will prepare you to move into concentrating on humility. Breathe in and recognize your breath, breathe out and recognize your breath.  Breath in and consider humility, breath out and consider humility. It takes very little effort to incorporate ideals like humility, compassion, and accountability into your thought processes simply by concentrating on them for a few minutes every day. Of course, deftly applying the Middle Way Management practice methodology will also help you change your habits and behaviors in long-term, lasting ways, as well.

In my next post, I will discuss boundaries and how they can help you develop your Middle Way Management practice based upon trust, a basic requirement of the true Middle Way Manager.

Until then...go now, and manage with compassion!

Onward! Darin

Copyright © 2009-2012, Darin R. Molnar, PhD. All rights reserved.

Middle Way Management and Suffering

In my last post, I discussed freedom - the sort of psychological freedom that leads to right thought, right speech, and right action. In this post, I consider how the true Middle Way Manager™ addresses suffering at the individual and organizational levels.

Suffering in the Workplace
As one of the Four Noble Truths of Buddhist traditions reminds us, suffering exists, and it exists in many forms. Psychologists tell us that the suffering caused by depression, a mental malady, causes real, physical pain. Considering this, we must remain attentive to those who suffer in the workplace - for whatever reason. As we consider suffering in an organizational context, we understand that suffering at the individual and organizational levels causes intense pain that dictates behaviors. A person who is suffering is often angry, spiteful, and hard to work with. Likewise, the suffering organization creates an environment of anxiety that represses creativity and inhibits innovation. Clearly, suffering in the workplace must be recognized and relieved, which is a mandate of the true Middle Way Manager™.

What is Suffering?
People and organizations suffer in so many ways it is impossible to catalog them here. Middle Way Managers cannot always completely understand the causes of suffering, yet they can certainly recognize the symptoms. The suffering organizational member is contentious and quick to judge others. S/he is often late for work or does not complete tasks on time. The suffering organization is ineffective and inefficient with a dark cloud hanging over all. Organizational members work in vacuums and teamwork simply does not take place. The culture of the organization encourages backbiting and gossip and little real work gets accomplished. When both individuals and organizations are suffering, organizational members work in an environment of fear, uncertainty, and doubt (the good, old FUD Factor).

Individual suffering can be caused by issues in the home and at work. Regardless of the origin, it is suffering nonetheless. So often, managers are prisoners of a mindset that considers only work-related issues to be of any importance in a person's work life. Unfortunately, it is inevitable that people bring their suffering to the workplace. Even those who try not to let personal matters affect their work performance struggle with hiding thoughts and emotions throughout their busy day, which, of course, affects their work performance. Issues between organizational members (including managers and those they manage) can seriously affect performance on both sides of the relationship. Regardless of the cause(s), it is the responsibility of the Middle Way Manager to recognize suffering and take measures to relieve it.

Organizational suffering is caused by leaders and managers. Because these people set the policies and often create the procedures of organizations, it is their responsibility to see that their work does not create undue suffering. Draconian managerial edicts and treating people like children cause suffering. Encouraging a culture of duplicity and allowing people to treat each other poorly cause suffering. Handing down goals and objectives that are impossible to meet causes suffering. Considering people to be nothing more than resources to be manipulated in the interest of profit, rather than vital human beings, causes suffering. It is the special responsibility of leaders and managers to recognize their roles in the relief of suffering in organizations.

The Relief of Suffering
Like suffering, its relief can take many forms. Many organizations have policies and procedures in place to help relieve the suffering of organizational members. Employee assistance programs, health insurance and counseling availability, and plain, old-fashioned personal interest are excellent ways to help relieve individual suffering. Managing  with compassion and gentle accountability creates an environment in which people understand that it is okay to suffer and that there are ways to relieve their suffering. Encouraging organizational members to seek help when it is needed and to offer the time for them to do so must be a part of your Middle Way Management practice. Helping people change habits and behaviors by applying the Middle Way Management practice methodology can help move people into a new thought space that relieves their suffering on several levels.

Regardless of the method(s) you choose, the relief of suffering at the individual and organizational levels is a crucial part of developing your Middle Way Management practice. You will find that relieving the suffering of others with compassion and empathy increases your own happiness and makes working at your organization a more fulfilling and rewarding experience.

In my next post, I will consider the role of humility in your Middle Way Management practice.

Until then...go now, and manage with compassion!

Onward! Darin

Copyright © 2009-2012, Darin R. Molnar, PhD. All rights reserved.

Middle Way Management and Freedom

In my last post, I discussed three prevailing views accessible to us in the Western world today: premodern (ancient), modern (scientific), and postmodern. Recognizing your dominant worldview at any point in time is crucial to mindfulness and critical to creating and maintaining a successful Middle Way Management™ practice. In this post, I consider freedom in the context of Middle Way Management.

What does it mean to be truly free?
In the Buddhist traditions, freedom from desire is the ultimate goal of all believers; yet, what does it mean to be truly free in a world that values above nearly all else aggressive behaviors and the accumulation of  more wealth than one could possibly spend in a lifetime? Buddhists think about freedom in two basic ways. First, they consider freedom from desire to be one of the main pursuits of practitioners. This sort of freedom is a psychological benefit that includes the ability to say "no" to desires as they arise in the mind. In this way, they break the intellectual and psychological bonds holding them to a course that is potentially disastrous. Often, this takes the form of restraint - restraint of thought, speech, and action - that pushes them into a new reality.

Second, freedom can be represented by choosing to say "yes" to something as it arises. For instance, a behavioral restraint is almost always accompanied by an alternate choice that substitutes an incongruous behavior with a congruous one, resulting in a triumph over prejudicial thought. A choice is made that leads to right speech and right action, both fundamental behavioral characteristics of the practicing Buddhist. Because these efforts take place in the mind, is it not possible for someone to let go of desire, a psycho-intellectual longing, in favor of release from wanting? In this way, even someone who is unfairly incarcerated can achieve a freedom and internal peace that might not be possible if s/he were living in the outside world.

Freedom in the Workplace
Because the practice of compassion in the workplace is the primary goal of the Middle Way Manager™, freedom is a building block on the road to achieving that goal. The Middle Way Manager has a special responsibility to help people earn freedom from oppression, subjugation, exploitation, and needless worry in the workplace. Of course, how this is accomplished can take any one of an endless number of forms. Can a Middle Way Manager help someone achieve complete freedom from desire? Most probably not. Can a Middle Way Manager help someone shift perspective or change a habitual behavior in favor of one that produces a more desirable outcome (for both the individual and the organization)? Most certainly.

As with mindfulness and compassion in general, the Middle Way Manager's practice must begin with the self. Self-compassion, compassion, and mindfulness cannot be taught by someone who does not already practice them. Not only would this be hypocritical, it would be fruitless because it would be tantamount to allowing, say, me to teach someone how to run the particle accelerator at CERN. Not a good idea - at all. My lack of knowledge and experience would surely result in catastrophe. Likewise, a Middle Way Manager who practices and manages hypocritically is inviting disaster into his or her own life, the lives of those they manage, and the organization at large.

The Ultimate Goal
Regardless of how the Middle Way Manager chooses to promote freedom among those s/he manages, and there are many ways, the end result must be an increase in the level of compassion at the individual and organizational levels. An organizational member whose mind is free of fear, uncertainty, and doubt (the FUD Factor) is one who can offer creative and innovative solutions, rather than create more chaos around an issue in the workplace. The truly free organizational member operates at top capacity with love, energy, and excitement. This is the person who gets up in the morning excited about what the day holds at work. Just remember that you can create this energetic environment simply by helping the people you manage achieve some level of intellectual and psychological freedom in the place where they spend a majority of their waking time - your workplace.

In my next post, I will consider boundaries and how a healthy respect for your own boundaries, as well as those of others, can help make your Middle Way Management practice more vibrant and productive.

Until then...go, and manage with compassion!

Onward! Darin

Copyright © 2009/2010, Darin R. Molnar, PhD. All rights reserved.