Great Understanding

I attend Brené Brown’s Fancy School for Folks on a Budget (I could also say “I listen to Brené’s podcasts and read her books,” but I digress), and this line from Dare to Lead’s episode with Dr. Donald Sull and Charlie Sull (How Toxic Work Cultures are Driving the Great Resignation) landed hard:

As a social species, in the absence of data [and communication], we make up stories.

-Dr. Brené Brown

Man. Don’t I do that.

Additionally, we often don’t wait around for data or communication to come forward. Too often, patience isn’t an attractive enough virtue if there’s a conclusion we could jump to instead.

There’s a Christian proverb (Proverbs 14:29) that encourages us to wait: “He who is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who is quick-tempered exacts folly.” The Message exchanges those last two words for “stockpiles stupidity,” so, ouch?

Being slow to speak, slow to anger, it’s not just a checklist item that qualifies one for a wisdom award. It’s a genuinely powerful tactic for allowing experts the time they need to gather and express their thoughts. It’s a tool for providing data-gatherers the space they need to accrue and publish their findings. It’s just…a good habit.

It’s also the time experts, data-folks, and leaders MUST rise to the occasion and communicate (share the data), or face the consequences, and those consequences often land on the community. It's hard, and it requires vulnerability, but leaders (in an organization, field, etc.) MUST communicate well. With boundaries? Yes. But is there an opt-out? Not we want to come out on the other side.

A few years ago, when a new leader entered a sphere of my world, I asked a mid-level manager what they thought. "Seems great," they answered. "But we'll really know when there's a fire."