Managing Tension
In Les Mckeown’s books Predictable Success and the synergist he talks about the different natural roles we all fall into within any organization we are a part of. He has also created an online quiz that allows you to easily identify which of the 3 types you are. You can find that here: https://predictablesuccess.com/styles-quiz/
The short version is that there are visionaries, operators, and processors who all thrive in different functions.
Visionaries are the idea guys, they think big and often are at the top of the organization.
Operators just want to get the work done at all costs
Processors like to make sure that things are organized and that there are systems in place to streamline tasks.
Over the past several years I’ve begun seeing this pattern in my organizations and interactions where visionaries and processors end up at odds with one another exactly how Les describes it in his books. While this doesn’t surprise me, I have begun asking the question “why?”. Why is it that visionaries think processors are trying to get in the way and slow them down, and why is it that processors think visionaries are loose cannons who can’t plan ahead?
In my own experience as a visionary often working in engineering and design roles with other engineers, I am often perceived as a processor by my leaders and a crazy visionary by my fellow engineers which has led me to a unique position of feeling the frustrations on both sides which I believe has granted me a unique window into why it is that there is often tension between these types of minds. I also believe I have discovered some middle ground that can be used to get everyone on the same page and driving toward the same goal.
In my role within churches I am responsible for utilizing the technology to create an experience for folks (I talk about the “why” more here). I often look at the stage as a blank canvas and am doing up with design ides and dreaming about what is possible. When in this frame of mind it can be easy to come up with an idea that I’m really happy with and just want to immediately jump and try and make it happen. “What’s the first and quickest thing I can grab to make this idea and immediate reality?” When I take this idea to any of my processor peers they often immediately start working through all the details of what it would actually take to implement this idea well along with all the details of how it affects everything else. This used to be extremely frustrating because it felt like it would slow the idea to a halt and most likely (probably because of budget) kill the idea all together.
On the other hand when my leaders would bring me an idea they came up with I would be the one going through all the details in my head and trying to work through the details. I know the look all to well of them watching me think and starting to get frustrated in the anticipation of me telling them that its going to be very expensive or that we don’t have the time/people/resources to pull it off well. In these situations I often think “ if only we had more time, we could have come up with something”.
I’m sure many others can relate to being on one side or the other of this thinking. Well, maybe expect for the operators who already moved on to the next task at hand after the third line.
So what’s the solution?
In my experience, I have found that when I can communicate clearly to the processors what I’m trying to achieve or communicate instead of exactly how I think we should do it, that as a team we can come up with a far superior solution to what I had visualized in the first place.
On the flip side, I’ve learned to ask my leaders “what’s the end goal, or the why behind your idea?”. This helps them to know I am behind the idea and want to see it succeed as well as gives me more clarity around what may be flexible in the execution of the idea.
This requires a more team style approach, where we can focus on the best parts of what each person brings to the table. Visionaries bring Ideas that people can get behind that have far reaching impact while processors bring specific detailed expertise that allows the idea to have a larger impact.
A visionary is like the guy who came up with the bow and arrow. He had an idea for how to near instantly reach his target at a distance. While he could build it relatively quickly, its impact was limited by his idea of how to make it work. While it took much longer to accomplish, brining in processors and engineers over time led to far more advanced weaponry that had a much higher level of effectiveness and in the case of bombs, literal impact. While this example is a little dark, it illustrates it well.
At the heart of it, we all want the same thing and need each other to give the ideas the chance to be everything it could be.
One of the best ways I can think of to improve this working relationship is to build a personal relationship. It’s a lot easier to believe the best about someone when you know they have your back because you’ve spent time together outside of the meetings where you’re discussing ideas.
If you’d like to learn more about how to improve your working relationships you can check out the podcast episode about personality profiles. I’d also be happy to chat about how we can help your team improve these relationships. Send me a message if you’d like to talk.