George Perles, the head football coach of the Michigan State Spartans from 1983 to 1994, delivered a powerful message years ago. He shared a mantra from his days as an assistant coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers during their heyday in the 1970s. He said, “We made every decision like we were going to the Super Bowl,” and they ended up winning the Super Bowl four times.
The Abilene Paradox is a paradox in which a group of people collectively decide on a course of action that is counter to the preferences of any of the individuals in the group. The Abilene paradox was introduced by management expert Jerry B. Harvey in his article The Abilene Paradox: The Management of Agreement. The name of the phenomenon comes from an anecdote in the article which Harvey uses to elucidate the paradox.
Every year during annual planning, we urge our clients to take a hard look at their core values and make sure they are standing the test of time; to confirm they are still the foundation the leadership team wants to build the company upon; and to make sure they are keeping them alive by hiring, firing, reviewing, rewarding, and recognizing everyone around them.
When leadership teams are addressing issues within the organization, business coaches or EOS Implementers™ often find that most of the time is spent discussing the issues and not enough time is spent working towards viable solutions. It can be tough for teams to solve issues when they are trying to overcome fear of conflict, lack of focus, lack of discipline, lack of commitment and personal ego. The Issues Solving Track overcomes these obstacle and helps leadership teams and departments get to the solution quickly.
In an open and honest organization, the Issues List is a tool that creates the discipline needed to keep all business issues out in the open and organized. As business coaches or EOS Implementers™ teach, having this level of honesty in an organization means that everyone, from leadership teams and others in the organization, has a clear understanding of what your issues are.
This is a phrase professional EOS Implementers use frequently. It helps leaders keep things in perspective, avoid unnecessary drama, and focus on resolving Issues (rather than lamenting their inevitable existence). The following story reminded me just how important that discipline is…in business and in life.
