Opening Our Mind to Paradoxical Thinking

First published March 8, 2012

I tend to be drawn to patterns; maybe it’s a need to impose temporary order to a world of controlled chaos, or the need to look for clues that can solve complex challenges. I find that just when we get comfortable thinking about something in a certain way, there appears to be a contrarian view that has merit, and that in and of itself is helpful for leaders to keep in mind. This week I ran across three such examples of contrarian views, and as you identify more, they remind us to suspend the human inclination to sometimes think we know it all.

Contrarian view #1: Extroverted leaders are not more successful.

Francesca Gino, co-author of The Hidden Advantages of Quiet Thought, in HBR, points out that matching introverted leaders with proactive staff leads to higher team performance than extroverted highly directive leaders. This suggests the power of intentional deployment of complimentary competencies in teams. The HBR study found that introverted leaders were more successful, maybe because they don’t blow their own horns-- they were open to listening, and were receptive to followers’ ideas which contributed to higher team performance. Gino advises that leaders think about the context we’re in; if your followers are creative, adopt a non-directive style. And leaders who are naturally introverted can push their followers to be more proactive. Moreover, global leaders might adapt their leadership style (to be introverted/listening or extroverted/directive) to the local culture of the teams where they are leading.

Contrarian view #2: Conformists contribute to innovation.

If you think all you need are creative types to drive innovation, think again. In March 2012 HBR article,“To Drive Creativity, Add Some Conformity,” Ella Miron-Spektor, Miriam Erez, and Eitan Naveh point out that groups with a variety of cognitive types produce higher levels of innovation, and that getting the right balance of types is key. It might not occur to us to put “conformists” on innovation teams, but these researchers discovered that conformists support the creatives, boosting cooperation and improving a team’s confidence. However, large numbers of detail-oriented people on a team can suppress creativity in their eagerness for precision.

Contrarian view #3: Analytics may not lead us down the garden path to insight.

Analytics in the absence of judgment can lead down the garden path to nowhere. For all the value analytics bring to support evidence-based and predictive decision-making, Deloitte’s article, “A Delicate Balance- Organizational barriers to evidence-based management,” James Guszcza and John Lucker point out “the dangers of ‘magical thinking’ about analytics…. the notion that models are repositories of truth rather than inherently provisional and imperfect—but useful—tools for guiding actions.” They recommend that the people who build and use analytics know something about the real world, and, “promoting dialogue between groups with different perspectives and skills…. Modelers can do more effective work when they are in continuous dialog with the decision-makers for whom their work is intended.”

These initially contrarian views are reminders that none of us knows it all. But we can be open and search for contrarian views to either open our thinking and/or affirm comfort with our present judgment. After all, leaders bet their company’s well-being everyday on their judgment and experience. An IBM Global CEO study, “Has the Nature of Leadership Changed?” emphasizes successful leaders’ ability to make decisions in a complex world often in the absence of data. Hindustan Unilever sends developing leaders into communities to work on problems without the typical support the corporate environment provides, so that they can think their way through new challenges and engage support through influence rather than authority. The Corporate Leadership Council’s newest study on what makes a successful global leader zeroes in on one competency above all others, and that competency is influence.… so, how can we influence others if we are not open to being influenced ourselves by contrarian views and paradoxical thinking? What’s your view what makes leaders successful, and drop me a line…

tough nut photo courtesy of jochenWalters