Colorful Leadership

Weak project mangers complain about accountability without authority. Powerful project managers get things done by looking beyond authority, seeing the world as it really is. Colorful Leadership offers a disciplined approach to viewing a situation through three filters and managing a project appropriately from three perspectives: People, Quality, and Innovation.

How You Will Benefit
It does no good to look at the world through rose colored glasses, unless you also look through other colors, too. We call this spinning the filters. How people feel is important, but no more important than how they are doing against plan, or how they are adapting in the face of uncertainty. The value of a disciplined approach for spinning the filters is you see a complete picture and make the best decision to increase your chance of success.

Topics covered:
* People Filter - dealing with perceptions and feelings.
* Quality Filter – repeatable processes that work regardless of how people feel.
* Future Filter - adapting to uncertain conditions.
* 3-Filter Blindness - discovering your area of leadershipblindness.
* Automatic color balance – adapting to the current situation.
* Trump – a strategy for when you are out of sync with the corporate culture.
* Out of control situations – what good can come from this?

This workshop is based on the new book, Colorful Leadership, and is presented by the author, Steve Wille. The book is available on Amazon.com and additional information is available at www.colorfulleadedrship.info.
Presenter: Steve Wille
Location Regis University

The participant evaluations are available for your entertainment and review.

Royalty Check

I received a royalty check from books sales on Amazon.com.  I guess they actually sold some books. 

CPEx - Colorado Performance Excellence

Yesterday, I attended the CPEx Quest for Excellence VII, where Colorado organizations were recognized for performance excellence based on Baldrige criteria.

Two of the education sessions I attended caught my attention:

• “Innovation in Process Management — Lean Six Sigma and Malcolm Baldrige” Leon Spackman, PMC Solutions

• “Organization Creativity, Disney Style” - David Mulvey, The Disney Institute

When I think of Baldrige, Six Sigma and process management, I do not think of organizational creativity.  Process management is about driving out variation while creativity is about introducing variation.  When an organization focuses on one, it is often to the exclusion of the other.  I was quite pleased to see both topics addressed in one conference, and neither was watered down to accommodate the other.  This is what Colorful Leadership is all about.  Fully explore each perspective and then do both.  Process excellence without innovation leads to stagnation and diminishing returns.  Innovation without process excellence leads to interesting ideas that will not survive the test of reality.

The Disney presentation was particularly interesting.  I have heard the term Imagineering before, but I never really thought about it.  It is the blending of imagination and engineering.  It takes great engineering to bring the the great creative ideas to life.  It takes incredible and playful creativity to think of the ideas that are worth brining to life.  The magic of Disney is both process excellence and innovation.  All they while their focus is on the customer, defined as anyone, any age, from anywhere.  This sounds like the 3-Filters in Colorful Leadership, People-Feelings, Quality-Security, and Innovation-Future.

At the conference I ran into Cheryl White, author of Change on Demand.  As we were listening to the Disney presentation, she wrote me a note that the creativity tools would never fly at a bank or insurance company.  I thought about it and agreed that culture plays an important role in how you roll out Imagineering.  In a financial institution, quality trumps creativity.  Bank customers want accuracy and security, not fun and games.  On the other hand, banks do need to keep up with technology and adapt to the changing economy.  There is need for innovation, but it will always be trumped by quality.  This means the creative people have to act strategically when they play their cards.  Innovation needs to live within the context of the organization's culture and goals.

For more information on CPEx contact Tom Mauro, CEO, at 303-893-CPEx (2739) www.coloradoexcellence.org

Steve Wille, November 8, 2008

Workforce Filters
Blindness and Transparency at Work

Today, I met with Rina Delmonico, a leader in the Colorado technology community, and she asked me how this book applies to everyday work, regardless of your position in the organization.  We got into the topic of filter blindness.  It is normal to think that everyone sees exactly what you see.  Unfortunately, it is not that way.  Due to your filters, you can be blind to critical information that others see clearly.  Compounding the problem, this blindness causes you to neglect to address items that others see as important and urgent.  Such items can be dark shadows that make no sense to you.  Most blockages to effective communications are unintentional.  We are totally unaware of them because we get used to seeing the world through colored glasses. Take a look at the pictures on the left.  If you were wearing green glasses, you would see the top image.  Notice that the words red and blue are dark shadows and you cannot tell what color should be there.  If you remove the green glasses and look through red, remembering what you saw through the green, you would effectively see both red and green which gives you the yellow image.  The word blue is still a mysterious dark shadow.  The only way to see the complete picture is to take off the red glasses and look through blue, remembering what you saw through green and red.  This is how a DLP computer projector works.  A white light shines through a set of spinning filters, creating red, green and blue images in rapid succession.  You quickly assemble the three distinct images in your mind and see full color. The way to achieve transparency is to spin the filters.  You do this by paying attention to people, quality, and innovation, one filter at a time.  After you spin the filters to see what others are seeing, turn on the automatic color balance in your brain to adjust for other people's filters as you talk to them. Transparency is about seeing the complete picture, and then addressing it in your communications.  All of your communications need to be 3-Filters compliant if you want others to see the complete pictures. Steve Wille, October 17, 2008

Politics, Mathematics and Chaos in the Economy
Understanding the September, 2008, economic meltdown, and how to deal with it.

In chapter 6 of Colorful Leadership, I used economic theory to illustrate how you can explain something three ways, all of them right. 

Political Economics
From a political point of view you see political causes and political opportunity.  If you are a socialist, the financial collapse is a clear case point on what is wrong with capitalism. The solution is more government regulation and oversight.  If you are libertarian, you probably want the government to stay of it and let the market correct itself.  If you are running for office, it is useful to cast blame on the other party.

Traditional Economics
Economists explain the problem in terms of supply and demand, along with expectations of the market.  The solution is to support the market and soften the blow so the market can correct itself.  Once confidence is restored the market will return to normal patterns.  Mathematical models help economists find trends, and we all want to accurately predict the future based on these trends.

Chaos Economics
There has always been boom and bust.  There is no stability and no equilibrium.  Whatever pattern is in play, it will continue with an amplified effect until something changes and the pattern reverses.  The market is like a herd of animals.  You never know where they might go, but you can count on them to stay together.  They might move slowly and they might stampede, leaving nothing standing in their path.  Give up on stability and control, and develop a strategy for surviving boom and bust economics.  Watch out for the herd as you make your decisions.   The amplification principle tells us that small changes can make big differences.

Which is right?
They are all right at the same time.  What should be done?  Look through all three filters and try to understand them all.  Only then, can you make an informed decision and develop the best strategy for dealing with the current reality.

Steve Wille, September 29, 2008

9/30/2008

Subject: Re: Chaos Economics

Oh how right you are, an oh how libertarian I am. I have a Bob Barr bumper sticker on my car now.

Mike

9/30/2008

Hi Steve: Thanks for giving me an opportunity to respond to your thought provoking blog. I must admit that I really struggled as I created my response. So let me know if my comments make any sense.

The following addresses the question "What can be done?" rather than the "interpretive reasoning" discussion which is your area of expertise. As you read this, please overlook the lack of examples at this point. So much study has been conducted on this subject, but much of it is colored by "lessons of history". I am reluctant to color the validity of my comments by including examples taken from a "fallen enemy"

Studies conducted right after WWII examine social shaping mechanisms in detail. Ellule's book on propaganda, (while sociological rather than mathematical) summarizes key findings on the subject. These studies suggest that achieving desired social behaviors requires careful manipulation of the group--as an integrated social-system!!!  (I can only imagine what Ellule could have discovered had he had the ability to apply our current mathematical modeling tools to these data.)

Since the war, scientists have discovered that social systems, including the Market and politics, are the outcomes of the behavior of complex adaptive systems. The promise of chaos and complexity theory is that the behavior of even large social systems can be regulated. The “twin” sciences tell us that social systems are ideal candidates for oversight and control because they are programmable systems. Insights from science can also assist us in determining how this reprogramming can be accomplished.

While it is true that at times social systems behave at times like migrating wildebeests--carrying people along with them, science suggests that we can reprogram these systems if the right amount of energy is applied to the system at the right place and at the right time. The secret is to know precisely how much change is possible at one time, how much energy to apply, and where to apply it. Using sound scientific techniques, a knowledgeable practitioner can set tolerances on, and provide governance over the self-regulating mechanisms inherent in wildly oscillating social systems.

The Science of Change, which is really a number of sciences that offer a set of tools for regulating social (mis)behavior, sits at the intersection of the primary colors. While offering us virtually no information on how to control the behavior of any individual within a group (the last being the domain of psychology and largely irrelevant to the motivation of "group mind"), this “New Science” tells us precisely how to reshape and direct the behavior of groups as complex adaptive systems.

In change capable hands, tools based on the Science of Change promote “good” outcomes by proactively maneuvering society (including societal sub-systems such as the Market and politics) in a socially responsible, fiscally sound direction--something that our present state of learned helplessness and passive watchfulness does not allow.

Unfortunately, these tools can be used just as readily to promote evil or socially irresponsible results. The tools, like atomic energy, are amoral in and of themselves. It is the tool user who determines the ethical nature of the outcome.

I agree with you that each filter has value in understanding a political situation. Because of the volatile nature of social situations, however, filters can only expose "the truth" that lies within the “current range of possible behaviors".  As the range of possible behaviors shifts, so does the implicit "truth" of the situation.

The white light shines where scientific principles underscoring each primary sector overlap in a single, unified theory for creating measurable social change. This light illuminates a range of behavior probabilities (probable truths if you will) from which to build a cohesive strategy that embraces all the philosophies of politics in all colors of light.

Cheryl White
Executive Partner
Change Delivery Group
http://www.changeperfect.com/

Keynote:  Corporate Culture and Conflict
Steve Wille - Author, Colorful Leadership

Do you think your organization is going in the right direction?  Do you sometimes feel out of sync with the corporate culture?  Like it or not, you have to play the hand you are dealt.  If you want to survive and thrive in any organization you need to play your cards strategically.  Pick your direction and go for it, but avoid unnecessary battles that could end your career.  Along the way pay attention to the people around you.  Will they be with you or against you?

This presentation is based on the new book, Colorful Leadership.  We will take a disciplined approach in assessing a situation from three perspectives to build a complete image of the current reality.  Next, we will examine our choice of action.  Sometimes a passive, wait and see approach is the best strategy.  Other time a much more aggressive, make it happen approach offers the biggest payback.  Either way, it has to be constructive if you want something good to come out of it.

Benefits:

1. Learn how to rapidly assess a situation, even at the height of conflict.
2. Practice finding at least three alternative courses of action.
3. Think strategically and focus on the future when choosing the best alternative.

This will be an interactive session with an opportunity to observe a situation and practice the skills.

Steve Wille is a senior applications manager at Great-West Life & Annuity.  He has over 25 years experience in corporate technology management.  His article on Constructive Conflict has been published internationally and his most recent book, Colorful Leadership, was published in 2008.

Steve Wille, September, 25, 2008

9/30/2008

Hi Wille,

Looks GREAT! We are really looking forward to this and thanks so much for doing it. Is March 19^th still good for you?

Thanks

Randy
http://www.denveraitp.org/

NOTE: Steve Wille will be the keynote speaker at AITP on March 19.  See my proposed talk above.

Understanding the center by walking on the edges.

Last night I was at the Society of Information Managers (SIM) and was asked what this book was all about.  I looked at the triangle on the cover and pointed out that the only part of the photograph with natural color was in the center where the colors on the edges converge to form one complete picture.  The book is about understanding and living in the center by walking on the edges.  To understand what other people see, you need to look through their eyes.  Each person sees an image that is accurate, but incomplete.  If I put on red colored glasses everything looks red, but I can still see what is out there.  The red image is accurate, but incomplete.  The same would be true with blue and green glasses.  By spinning the filters I build the complete picture in my mind, even though I am actually seeing three distinctly different images, one at a time.

Your color television works by displaying three images on the screen, each shot through a colored filter in the camera.   The red, green, and blue component images exist as colored dots, side by side.  If you turned off one or two of the colors on the TV, the picture would look like one of the sections of the triangle on the cover of my book.  I built this triangle a section at a time by turning off colors in Photoshop.  The center triangle, of course, had all three colors turned on.

When you assess a situation, take the time to spin the filters.  Spin them slowly so you can understand each perspective. 

• When looking through the people filter, pay attention to feelings.  Feelings are reality to each person.  To be an effective leader you must anticipate the feelings of others.  To understand feelings, you must turn off the logic filter for a short time. 

• When looking through the security filter, turn off the people filter and take a cold hearted view of reality.  How I feel about a situation does not change the reality.  If there is bad stuff out there I must protect myself.  If the quality of my product is bad, I need to do something about it, regardless of how I feel about it.  To sustain an organization that I manage, I must build processes that work regardless of the people doing the work.

• When looking through the future filter, forget logic and forget feelings.  Instead, look at possibilities.  Don't limit your possibilities by staying tied to the past, filtering out everything inconsistent with what you know to be true.  Don't pay attention to your initial feelings as you explore new ideas.

After spinning the filters to see a more complete images, make your decision and go where you decide to go.

Steve Wille, September 23, 2008

We were interviewed on Talk Internet, W3W3
Steve, Bill, Larry, August 12, 2008

 Listen to the Colorful Leadership interview: Skill Set for All Leaders, All the Time
 We now live and operate at Web speed. The five year plan is out. If you can plan ahead for five quarters, you're doing well. We must produce more with less. Steve Wille and Bill Kuehn, partners of Tough Teams are also co-authors of Colorful Leadership along with Larry Nelson. When it comes to Leaders, Managers and Entrepreneurs Steve always asks, "Are you looking at the world through rose colored glasses?" Listen to their discussion as it will give specific how-to ideas that can be used right away. Past frustrations will be understood and then dissipated. You will be able to win with any boss, sell more ideas, and get results that exceed expectations. Simply stated, we all see the world through three filters - future, people, and security. We prefer to communicate with one filter. This means, if we communicate through the future filter only people with the exact same filter will receive our message with clarity. To attain total clarity, we must communicate through all three filters all of the time. This also explains why we don't understand other people the way we really want to. If they don’t communicate in our preferred filter we will be confused. Every communication needs to be 3-Filters™ compliant, and there are three simple questions to ask in any situation. 1- What do you think? 2- How do you feel about it? 3- Where can this go? Listen for some great ideas for all Leaders.
Related Links: Colorful Leadership || Tough Teams || 3-Filters Technology™ || Amazon || Keywords: Steve Wille, Bill Kuehn, Colorful Leadership, 3-Filters Technology™, Tough Teams, Leaders, Total Clarity, Communicate - Bytes: 11125240 LISTEN 8/18/08

Good Morning Steve,

First, thank you for letting me read your soon to be published book Colorful Leadership.  I found that once I had the time to sit and read the book without any distractions, I could not put the book down!  That is rare for me when it comes to these types of books. I always enjoy reading books related to this subject, but yours was an easy read and I found that it relates to the reader on a ‘personal level’, therefore making the reader not wanting to put the book down.

The material is well organized and easy to understand.  Direct and to the point.  The content is very clear – no ‘fluff’ to fill up pages.  All information that can be used and practiced easily.  I made notes in the manuscript you gave me – hopefully in a way you can find quickly and address (or ignore…….).  My notes are more towards editing and not the content of the material – as I was able to read the book – understanding exactly what your intent was.  It was very clear to me.  Not confusing or ever leaving me with the feeling of ‘who cares’.  I always wanted to turn the page to see what was next.  Again, unusual for me.

So many times when you read a book on related matter as yours, you end up skipping sections because you can’t relate to what is being said or understand why it was there in the first place.   Or you just say, who cares?

I can’t wait for you to place on Amazon.com so I can purchase my own copy – and also start planning on who else I am going to buy a copy for as well. Thank you again for this opportunity.  I truly enjoyed it.

Elliott Morgan
7/26/2008

I am seeing myself in a different light. The biggest mistake I can make is to think that others think the way I think.

This speaks to people at all levels.  I understand better how my managers think and feel.  This would help them to understand my thinking. It is not left brain vs. right brain. It is whole brain.

Patty McCully
7/26/2008