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BRIEF OBRIEF OBRIEF OBRIEF OBRIEF OVERVERVERVERVERVIEWVIEWVIEWVIEWVIEW

ContentsContentsContentsContentsContents

The Prepared Mind of aThe Prepared Mind of aThe Prepared Mind of aThe Prepared Mind of aThe Prepared Mind of aLeaderLeaderLeaderLeaderLeaderEight Skills Leaders use to Innovate, Make Decisions and Solve ProblemsEight Skills Leaders use to Innovate, Make Decisions and Solve ProblemsEight Skills Leaders use to Innovate, Make Decisions and Solve ProblemsEight Skills Leaders use to Innovate, Make Decisions and Solve ProblemsEight Skills Leaders use to Innovate, Make Decisions and Solve Problems

In today's complex business climate, people - no matter what their role in theorganisation - need to make informed decisions and to learn how to thinkflexibly.

A leader's most important asset is the ability to anticipate changes in theenvironment and to adapt to them quickly. The Prepared Mind of a Leaderpresents an original and effective way of thinking more flexibly about innova-tion, strategy, change and problem solving. Throughout the book, the authorsinclude triggers for exploring how these ideas apply to an organisation's uniquecircumstances. The Prepared Mind of a Leader helps readers prepare for thefuture by laying out a programme for developing, maintaining and mobilisingthe key mental skills that define Prepared-Mind leadership. The following eightskills can be applied in a wide range of settings, from large-scale organisationsto small entrepreneurial firms:

OBSERVING: search out confirming and non-confirming information aboutyour world-view.

REASONING: clearly explain why you are following a course of action.

IMAGINING: visualise new ideas for your company's policies and practices.

CHALLENGING: question your organisation's assumptions and test theirvalidity.

DECIDING: make or influence decisions that will propel action to progress.

LEARNING: master the information you need to keep you moving forward.

ENABLING: offer the people around you the knowledge, means and opportu-nities to progress.

REFLECTING: invest time in thinking about trade-offs and the consequencesof those trade-offs that result from our decisions.

These skills provide a framework that the thoughtful leader or manager can useto approach issues of strategy and innovation. The authors also show how todevelop the skills further and to apply them in everyday life.

The Only Foundation We Have 2

Observing: Seeing beyond theObvious 3

Imagining: Envisioning theFuture before it Arrives 4

Reasoning: Moving from theKnown to the Undetermined 4

Challenging: Pushing for Higherand Deeper Thinking 5

Deciding: Choosing withConsequences in Mind 6

Learning: Keeping aDevelopmental Mind-set 6

Enabling: Exercising Leadershipfrom the Outside In 7

Conclusion 8Reflecting: Looking Backward,Forward and Inward 8

THE PREPTHE PREPTHE PREPTHE PREPTHE PREPARED MIND OF A LEADERARED MIND OF A LEADERARED MIND OF A LEADERARED MIND OF A LEADERARED MIND OF A LEADEREight Skills Leaders Use to Innovate, Make Decisions,and Solve Problems

Selected by Knowledge Resources as anSelected by Knowledge Resources as anSelected by Knowledge Resources as anSelected by Knowledge Resources as anSelected by Knowledge Resources as anOutstanding Book for Business People.Outstanding Book for Business People.Outstanding Book for Business People.Outstanding Book for Business People.Outstanding Book for Business People.

The Authors:

Bill WelterBill WelterBill WelterBill WelterBill Welter is the Managing Director of Adaptive Strate-gies (MindPrep.com), a firm specialising in business edu-cation and consulting. He has more than thirty-five yearsof varied military, engineering, consulting and teachingexperience.

Jean EgmonJean EgmonJean EgmonJean EgmonJean Egmon is a faculty member in managerial econom-ics and decision sciences at the Kellogg School of Man-agement at Northwestern University and is Director of theComplexity in Action Network at Northwestern. She is alsothe President of Third Angle Inc. (Third-Angle.com).

2

Copyright Copyright Copyright Copyright Copyright 2006 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.2006 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.2006 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.2006 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.2006 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.Summarized by permission of the publisher, John Wiley &Sons, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA01923.

ISBN 0-7879-7680-6 - 304 pages. R308-00 (less 20% (less 20% (less 20% (less 20% (less 20%for Knowledge Resources Book Summariesfor Knowledge Resources Book Summariesfor Knowledge Resources Book Summariesfor Knowledge Resources Book Summariesfor Knowledge Resources Book SummariesSubscriberSubscriberSubscriberSubscriberSubscribers R2s R2s R2s R2s R246-40).46-40).46-40).46-40).46-40).

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The Only FThe Only FThe Only FThe Only FThe Only Foundation Woundation Woundation Woundation Woundation We Hae Hae Hae Hae HavvvvveeeeeTHE ONLTHE ONLTHE ONLTHE ONLTHE ONLY FY FY FY FY FOUNDOUNDOUNDOUNDOUNDAAAAATION WE HATION WE HATION WE HATION WE HATION WE HAVEVEVEVEVE

People and organisations have been prepared and un-prepared throughout history, yet businesses continue torun, decisions and problems continue to be dealt with,and innovations continue to break through. So why is theneed to have a Prepared Mind more critical than everbefore? We build new knowledge and skills by append-ing new information to existing knowledge and skills andby recombining the old with the new in new ways. Wethus start with some of the important things we alreadyknow as business practitioners. These, combined withnew information we gain from reading, listening and ex-periencing business for ourselves with the application ofthe Prepared-Mind skills, will set the stage for a newway of thinking. We have no choice but to build on to-day. It's the only foundation we have.

We offer the following as what we know about the con-text for building a Prepared Mind. These are the givens,the context in which we operate:

8 We know we operate in a system; we are not alone.

8 We know we are in the midst of multiple life-cyclecurves.

8 We know that life-cycle clock speed is accelerat-ing.

8 We know that progress requires us to actively senseand respond to the changes around us.

8 We know that leadership is important during timesof change.

8 We know that every organisation has a cascade ofstrategies, whether it knows it or not.

As you think about these givens individually, and thenconsider the connections among and between them, youwill see a picture, a mosaic, of an evolving future thatrequires us to be more prepared than ever before.

TTTTTHEHEHEHEHE S S S S SENSEENSEENSEENSEENSE-R-R-R-R-RESPONSEESPONSEESPONSEESPONSEESPONSE C C C C CHALLENGEHALLENGEHALLENGEHALLENGEHALLENGE

The overarching challenge for today's leaders is to learnever faster ways to prepare for whatever will come ourway. In order to rise to this challenge, we have to look atthe Sense-Response Cycle and figure out how to increaseits speed. We suggest you use the eight skills of the Pre-pared Mind to prepare yourself to:-

3ObserObserObserObserObserving: Seeing Beving: Seeing Beving: Seeing Beving: Seeing Beving: Seeing Beyyyyyond the Obond the Obond the Obond the Obond the Obviousviousviousviousvious8 sense sooner8 make sense faster8 decide in real time8 act without waste

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Observing, as we think about it in terms of the PreparedMind, is the skill of taking in new data from the environ-ment and integrating them with what we already know inorder to select, categorise and represent the data as some-thing meaningful in our minds. That "something mean-ingful" activates further making sense of the situation andbegins to shape the boundaries of the opportunity space.The challenge here is somewhat akin to the admonitionto think outside the box. However, in this case, the chal-lenge is to be willing to change the size, or even the shape,of the box.

Consider the importance of the timing of our observa-tions. Data are hitting us constantly, and we often wres-tle with the issue of when to convert the data to informa-tion that we can try to make sense of. If we sense thatthe data point to a competitive change after it is well

under way, we are almost surely in reaction mode andare faced with a good news-bad news scenario.

The good news is that the course of action is clear, andoften painfully clear, to us at the time. The bad news isthat our competition got there first, so our options wereconstrained.

And so we have two scenarios. One is the scenario ofreacting to a competitive move after it has been com-pleted. The second scenario is one of observing the clueslaid out before us. In this scenario, we watch patent fil-ings, talk with suppliers and headhunters we both use,listen to their speakers at industry events and generallyobserve the competitive ecosystem in which we both live.This ability to observe gives us an earlier sense of wherethey are going and gives us time to make sense of theirpotential actions.

The skill of observing is key to shifting more of our mostprecious resource, time, toward the work of sensing andmaking sense of the world and its changes.

Observing with a Prepared Mind includes looking formeaning. The quest for meaning behind data affects howwe interpret what we observe, and what we observe inthe first place. Problems with the skill of observing areusually not associated with the lack of data from the en-vironment, but result from not knowing what to pay at-tention to in the midst of all that data and from oftenspending energy on "urgent" things that are less mean-ingful in the big picture of our business and family lives.Problems also arise when we attribute the wrong mean-ing to data.

AAAAANCHORINGNCHORINGNCHORINGNCHORINGNCHORING C C C C CONCEPTSONCEPTSONCEPTSONCEPTSONCEPTS OFOFOFOFOF O O O O OBSERVINGBSERVINGBSERVINGBSERVINGBSERVING

To improve your ability to observe, and to be flexible andstrategic in your thinking and application of the Prepared-Mind skills, you need to understand the roots of the skillsand concepts that anchor them. The three anchoring con-cepts of observing are:

(1) attention,

(2) perception and

(3) pattern recognition.

One reason why the skill of observing is so vital to build-ing the Prepared Mind is that we must constantly be add-ing to and reshaping our mental maps if we are to de-velop our leadership capability beyond what it is today.

SSSSSENSEENSEENSEENSEENSE

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4Imagining: EnImagining: EnImagining: EnImagining: EnImagining: Envisioning the Fvisioning the Fvisioning the Fvisioning the Fvisioning the FutureutureutureutureutureWe have to make a conscious effort to broaden anddeepen our ways of attending, perceiving and seeing pat-terns in our observations that translate into richer net-works of concepts and ideas in our minds.

TTTTTHEHEHEHEHE C C C C CYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLE OFOFOFOFOF O O O O OBSERVINGBSERVINGBSERVINGBSERVINGBSERVING

If we are going to be prepared for our future, we need tokeep ourselves open and honest by better observing thechanges around us. Some changes are obvious, while oth-ers are very subtle. Consider the following questions as away to leverage attention, perception and recognition:

8 What "seems odd" in my competitive mindscape?

8 Is a new pattern emerging?

8 Do I need to modify my mental map to make theodd event fit?

8 Who else has to change their mental maps?

8 Does the event still seem odd?

REASONING: MOVING FROM THEREASONING: MOVING FROM THEREASONING: MOVING FROM THEREASONING: MOVING FROM THEREASONING: MOVING FROM THEKNOKNOKNOKNOKNOWN TWN TWN TWN TWN TO THE UNDETERMINEDO THE UNDETERMINEDO THE UNDETERMINEDO THE UNDETERMINEDO THE UNDETERMINED

Reasoning is one of those concepts that is often lumpedtogether with other activities of the mind, such as think-ing, judging, analysing, concluding, deciding and makingsense. All of these concepts are important and are re-lated to reasoning. However, we know that part of deeplearning involves conceptual understanding. It follows,then, that, if our goal is to learn what reasoning is andhow it works so we can be more adept in practising it asa skill, it is important to know specifically what reasoningis and where it fits into the scheme of the Prepared Mind.

Reasoning is a rule-based process for deciding what tobelieve. The fact that it is rule-based implies that there isa rational movement from one idea to another by seeingconnections of logic between the ideas and by drawingconclusions from given premises. Reasoning is the skillbehind sound argumentation (argumentation is a rhetori-cal sense and does not necessarily imply conflict). Rea-soning can be deductive: drawing specific, valid conclu-sions from premises that are known to be true. Deduc-tive reasoning is sometimes known as "reasoning down".Reasoning can also be inductive: "reasoning up" or draw-ing more general and likely conclusions from a series ofspecific premises or observations of what we believe tobe facts.

Why is reasoning important? In order to believe some-thing, to make a decision and to act, we must rely onreasoning, even when we do not have all the facts or allof the premises. Decision making and leadership underuncertainty require the skill of reasoning, along with otherskills of the Prepared Mind. Reasoning provides a mecha-nism, or set of rules or procedures, for coming to conclu-sions in an orderly way that can be supported (or re-futed) by evidence to support our propositions.

AAAAANCHORINGNCHORINGNCHORINGNCHORINGNCHORING C C C C CONCEPTSONCEPTSONCEPTSONCEPTSONCEPTS OFOFOFOFOF R R R R REASONINGEASONINGEASONINGEASONINGEASONING

To improve our reasoning skill, we need to improve ourunderstanding and use of three core concepts and theirallied processes. These are:

(1) mental models,

(2) information processing and

(3) rationality.

TTTTTHEHEHEHEHE C C C C CYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLE OFOFOFOFOF R R R R REASONINGEASONINGEASONINGEASONINGEASONING

Reasoning is essential to innovation, decision making andproblem solving, especially in these times of change. Con-sider how the following questions show how the skill ofreasoning applies to any and all phases in the Sense-Re-sponse Cycle.

8 Are my mental maps correct?

8 Are my mental maps complete and robust enough?

8 What conclusions can I draw about what I'm sens-ing?

8 Based on these conclusions, what can I infer aboutfuture consequences?

IMAGINING: ENVISIONING THE FUTUREIMAGINING: ENVISIONING THE FUTUREIMAGINING: ENVISIONING THE FUTUREIMAGINING: ENVISIONING THE FUTUREIMAGINING: ENVISIONING THE FUTUREBEFORE IT ARRIVESBEFORE IT ARRIVESBEFORE IT ARRIVESBEFORE IT ARRIVESBEFORE IT ARRIVES

Of the eight skills of the Prepared Mind, the ability toimagine is the maverick. Many of us live in the fact-based, objective world of business. We have a love af-fair with data. Yet, in the face of the unknown, a littleimagination is a most valuable asset. The skill of imagin-ing is what helps us see the opportunity in opportunityspace. Imagining is the prerequisite skill for creativityand innovation that take what we imagine and turn it intoan object or experience that others can observe.

5Challenging: Pushing fChallenging: Pushing fChallenging: Pushing fChallenging: Pushing fChallenging: Pushing for Higher Thinkingor Higher Thinkingor Higher Thinkingor Higher Thinkingor Higher ThinkingPredictive modelling, forecasting, competitive intelligenceand other tools of business strategy that sound very ra-tional, and which are focused on reasoning and decisionmaking, all depend on the skill of imagining, because theyrequire us to envision patterns and implications. As muchas we like to be rational in how we think about business,the skill of imagining requires us to be a little irrational attimes - but smart too. Imagination provides the compel-ling vision of what will be valuable to current and futurecustomers, even when all the data are not in.

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In order to understand and develop the skill of imaginingin ourselves, we have to engineer our methods from threeof the unique human abilities that the skill of imaginationrests on:

(1) forethought,

(2) imagery and

(3) analogical thinking.

Maybe one reason they say leadership is both an art anda science is that the art of imagining, based on forethought,imagery and analogical thinking, paints the picture of afuture when all the evidence is not yet available.

TTTTTHEHEHEHEHE C C C C CYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLE OFOFOFOFOF I I I I IMAGININGMAGININGMAGININGMAGININGMAGINING

We can see and react to those things we observe in thehere and now, but we can only imagine the future. Con-sider the following questions as a starting point:

8 What could this event, problem or issue mean in thelong run?

8 What alternative conclusions are possible?

8 Is there another way to handle this?

8 What needs to be involved because they have neverseen this before?

8 What should we put on our watch list?

There are times when we need to let our imagination flyahead of us. What can you imagine is in your future?

CHALLENGING: PUSHING FOR HIGHERCHALLENGING: PUSHING FOR HIGHERCHALLENGING: PUSHING FOR HIGHERCHALLENGING: PUSHING FOR HIGHERCHALLENGING: PUSHING FOR HIGHERAND DEEPER THINKINGAND DEEPER THINKINGAND DEEPER THINKINGAND DEEPER THINKINGAND DEEPER THINKING

The common understanding behind the concept of chal-lenge is built around a zero-sum game: one team wins,the other loses; one company increases sales, the othersexperience decreased sales; and on it goes. However, aswe think of challenging as a skill of the Prepared Mind,the goal is for everyone to win - not necessarily throughconsensus or compromise, but by pushing for higher anddeeper thinking through opportunities, strategies and tac-tics.

We challenge you to think of challenge as an invitation toconsider something new and not necessarily somethingopposite. Also, consider how we can challenge our ownthinking, with or without the help of someone taking an-other side. Some of the things we see when we open upthe skill of challenging include multiple options or streamsof thought, a spoken statement about the organisation'smission and values, questioning to help people thinkthrough motives and consequences in advance of takingaction, a sharing of what is better, stronger and wiser inthe person who is being challenged, and a call to rise tothat higher level.

The skill of challenging is clearly one of the Prepared-Mind skills that is closely linked to our emotional self. It'seasy to intellectualise the skill from the point of view ofwhat has to be done and what tools can be used. But,when you look at leaders who are actually good at chal-lenging, you see a set of requirements that go beyondtools and techniques. We see five basic requirements:

8 Courage to step out of the mainstream8 A commitment to values8 Curiosity about their opportunity space8 A desire to improve8 Self-awareness of strengths and weaknesses

Our view of leadership is that you have to be willing togo beyond the strict confines of your job description totake advantage of opportunities for your organisation. Thisrequires a considerable amount of courage and a willing-ness to put up with resistance from those who see youmoving onto their turf.

We believe that, if we are not challenging, we are notleading. Leading with a Prepared Mind requires our know-

6Learning: KLearning: KLearning: KLearning: KLearning: Keeping a Deeeping a Deeeping a Deeeping a Deeeping a Devvvvvelopmental Mind-Seelopmental Mind-Seelopmental Mind-Seelopmental Mind-Seelopmental Mind-Settttting why, at its foundation, challenging is so difficult, andthen building our skill on that foundation.

AAAAANCHORINGNCHORINGNCHORINGNCHORINGNCHORING C C C C CONCEPTSONCEPTSONCEPTSONCEPTSONCEPTS OFOFOFOFOF C C C C CHALLENGINGHALLENGINGHALLENGINGHALLENGINGHALLENGING

We find that it is critical to understand and use threecore concepts when learning and exercising the skill ofchallenging:

(1) cognitive dissonance,

(2) dialectical thinking and

(3) perspective taking.

TTTTTHEHEHEHEHE C C C C CYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLE OFOFOFOFOF C C C C CHALLENGINGHALLENGINGHALLENGINGHALLENGINGHALLENGING

Obviously there are times when we will need to chal-lenge others. But, in the long run, the ability to challengeourselves is the most important. Consider the followingquestions as a starting point:

8 What am I seeing that I'm denying because it doesn'tfit my view of the world?

8 Can you see what makes sense to yourstakeholders?

8 Who should really make this decision?

8 What was incomplete, inaccurate or wrong aboutmy decision?

8 What unintended consequences of our actions shouldI watch for?

DECIDING: CHOOSING WITH CONSE-DECIDING: CHOOSING WITH CONSE-DECIDING: CHOOSING WITH CONSE-DECIDING: CHOOSING WITH CONSE-DECIDING: CHOOSING WITH CONSE-QUENCES IN MINDQUENCES IN MINDQUENCES IN MINDQUENCES IN MINDQUENCES IN MIND

The skill of deciding transforms cognitive agility (quicklysizing up a situation) into decision-making agility (turningthought into action in a timely manner). Deciding is theprocess for committing to a particular course of action.How leaders turn thought into action depends on howthey come to understand or make sense of the situation.And once they have decided on a course of action, theyhave to find ways to communicate it effectively, engagethe stakeholders and enable those who will be called onto execute the decision.

Research and experience tell us there are simultaneous

social, emotional and cognitive processes at play duringreal decision making. As is the case with so many otherthings, the approach we take defines the type of out-come we get.

Prepared-Mind leaders combine the skills of imaginingand learning to assess what is in the environment andwhat the impact on the environment might be as they aredeciding.

TTTTTHEHEHEHEHE C C C C CYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLE OFOFOFOFOF D D D D DECIDINGECIDINGECIDINGECIDINGECIDING

If we are going to be prepared for our future, we need todetermine what is important and what is "noise". Fur-thermore, we need to make sense of important eventsand to use this knowledge to constantly reposition our-selves in our business ecosystem. Consider the followingquestions as a starting point:

8 Can I afford to ignore what I have sensed, or shouldI dig deeper?

8 Has my mental map evolved with the times?

8 Have we adhered to principles of good decisionmaking?

8 Is the scope of action too broad or too narrow?

8 What is the ripple effect of our actions? What's new?

Prepared-Mind leaders have a flexible and influential de-cision-making style. They adapt decisions to the emo-tional and political constraints around them. They alsoinfluence decisions objectively by adding structure to theprocess. Structure ensures quality assumptions, robustalternatives and solid criteria for selecting among them.

LEARNING: KEEPING A DEVELOPMEN-LEARNING: KEEPING A DEVELOPMEN-LEARNING: KEEPING A DEVELOPMEN-LEARNING: KEEPING A DEVELOPMEN-LEARNING: KEEPING A DEVELOPMEN-TTTTTAL MIND-SETAL MIND-SETAL MIND-SETAL MIND-SETAL MIND-SET

All of us know learning when we see it or experience it,but we are often hard-pressed to say exactly what it is.Some have said that learning is a change in behaviour.To that we would say that a change in behaviour is apotential result of learning. Some have said that learningis the storing of knowledge in long-term memory. To thatwe would say learning sounds a lot like remembering,and, in fact, storing and recalling knowledge from ourmental maps is a necessary part of the learning process.

7Enabling: ExEnabling: ExEnabling: ExEnabling: ExEnabling: Exererererercising Leadercising Leadercising Leadercising Leadercising LeadershipshipshipshipshipFor purposes of the Prepared Mind, we will define learn-ing as a process for changing the content - and the con-nections between the content - of one's mental map,thereby expanding capacity and capability for a varietyof actions.

The Prepared Mind will focus on individual learning whileacknowledging that there is some similar process thatoccurs for collectives to develop and change their men-tal maps and cultures.

SSSSSEVENEVENEVENEVENEVEN C' C' C' C' C'SSSSS OFOFOFOFOF L L L L LEARNINGEARNINGEARNINGEARNINGEARNING

Since learning is a process, there are factors that occurto activate and enable the process. These factors arecalled the seven C's of learning at work. They are:

8 Compelling questions8 Conscious discontentment8 Content8 Connections8 Confidence8 Construction8 Capability building

Underlying the seven C's of learning are experience, priorknowledge and transfer, all of which anchor the abilitiesto learn and make use of learning across situations.

TTTTTHEHEHEHEHE C C C C CYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLE OFOFOFOFOF L L L L LEARNINGEARNINGEARNINGEARNINGEARNING

Experience is a good teacher, but not the only teacher.Consider the following questions as a starting point totrigger your learning journey:

8 What don't I know about what I've sensed?

8 Why does my mental map seem inadequate to ex-plain this?

8 Who can help me understand what's happening?

8 Do I know enough to make this decision, or do Ineed help?

8 Has this experience added to our store of knowl-edge?

The Prepared Mind makes full use of prior knowledge bytransferring ideas and skills learned for one domain toother domains. The result is that our mental maps be-come vibrant and dynamic, and learning becomes a con-tinuous process of making meaning by applying priorknowledge to new situations.

ENABLING: EXERCISING LEADERSHIPENABLING: EXERCISING LEADERSHIPENABLING: EXERCISING LEADERSHIPENABLING: EXERCISING LEADERSHIPENABLING: EXERCISING LEADERSHIPFROM THE OUTSIDE INFROM THE OUTSIDE INFROM THE OUTSIDE INFROM THE OUTSIDE INFROM THE OUTSIDE IN

Enabling, from the point of view of the Prepared Mind,entails designing opportunities for others to develop theirPrepared Minds and apply them in practice. Enabling isabout helping others to experience, know and do thingsdifferently. It is what we do when we want to help otherpeople learn and develop. Of the eight skills, enabling isthe most focused on other people's development.

When you investigate the meaning of the word "enabling"and the actions behind it, you find a proverbial three-leg-ged stool of knowledge, opportunity and means:

KKKKKNONONONONOWLEDGEWLEDGEWLEDGEWLEDGEWLEDGE: : : : : You enable others when you provide themwith relevant knowledge to understand and perform their

job.

OOOOOPPORPPORPPORPPORPPORTUNITTUNITTUNITTUNITTUNITYYYYY::::: You enable others when you provide themwith the opportunity to do their job to the best of their

ability.

MMMMMEANSEANSEANSEANSEANS: : : : : You enable others when you provide them withthe means to accomplish their job.

The skill of enabling is unique among the eight Prepared-Mind skills in that you cannot exercise this skill withoutlooking at your leadership abilities from the outside in.We can't enable the people around us unless we knowwhat reality looks like from their point of view.

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There are three core concepts which it is necessary tounderstand if we really want to become expert in know-ing when and how and why to develop and use this skill:

(1) motivation,

(2) design and

(3) scaffolding.

8ConclusionConclusionConclusionConclusionConclusionTTTTTHEHEHEHEHE C C C C CYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLE OFOFOFOFOF E E E E ENABLINGNABLINGNABLINGNABLINGNABLING

Knowing that we can only set the conditions for an ena-bled work force means that we have to look at this skillfrom the work force's point of view. Consider the fol-lowing questions as a starting point:

8 Am I listening to the people closest to the problemor the opportunity?

8 Do I give them the opportunity to analyse situations,or do I tell them "the answer"?

8 Do I delegate decision making, or do I hold on tothat power?

8 "Do I allow freedom to solve problems?

8 "Do I let my subordinates teach me?

The Prepared Mind embraces the value of teaching andsharing knowledge. Having the discipline to share a littleknowledge every day builds relationships, deepens yourown knowledge and expands the capability of those aroundyou. In short, it produces a threefold return. This disci-pline starts with adding a small, but relevant, teachinggoal to your daily schedule.

REFLECTING: LREFLECTING: LREFLECTING: LREFLECTING: LREFLECTING: LOOKING BAOOKING BAOOKING BAOOKING BAOOKING BACKWCKWCKWCKWCKWARD,ARD,ARD,ARD,ARD,FFFFFORORORORORWWWWWARD AND INWARD AND INWARD AND INWARD AND INWARD AND INWARDARDARDARDARD

Reflecting is one of the most powerful skills for guaran-teeing and applying a Prepared Mind. It helps us holdour mind, heart, values and circumstances up to a mirrorand to see the whole picture: if they fit together, howthey fit together, and even why they fit together. Reflec-tion helps us look backward and forward. But, most ofall, reflection helps us look inward for the balance be-tween our inner world and the outer worlds we create.

As we consider the eight skills of the Prepared Mind, wesee reflecting as the quiet skill that keeps us honest. It isthe skill wherein we ask ourselves the uncomfortablequestions: "Why?" and "What was my role in this?" Butprogress and continued navigation require learning andimprovement, and this comes from sound reflection.

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At the deepest level of understanding are three core con-cepts and processes on which the skill of reflection re-lies. They all involve thinking about our thinking, beingable to act with a higher and deeper level of awareness,monitoring our own consistencies and inconsistencies, andmaking what are often fuzzy assumptions, logic or intui-tive hunches clearer so that we can hold them up to themirror of our consciousness and reflect on them. Thethree anchoring concepts are: (1) metacognition, (2) tacit,implicit and explicit knowledge and (3) self-regulation.

TTTTTHEHEHEHEHE C C C C CYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLEYCLE OFOFOFOFOF R R R R REFLECTINGEFLECTINGEFLECTINGEFLECTINGEFLECTING

If we are going to be prepared for a better future, weneed to stay true through the entire Sense-ResponseCycle. As we work the cycle, we need to reflect on thefuture, the present and the past. Consider the followingquestions:

8 Why do I ignore some of what I see?

8 Are my self-imposed boundaries preventing me fromseeing the bigger picture?

8 Is this decision aligned with my values and princi-ples?

8 Should we continue, or should we stop?

8 What could we have done better?

CONCLUSIONCONCLUSIONCONCLUSIONCONCLUSIONCONCLUSION

Preparing your mind and using the eight skills should im-

prove not only your organisation, but also your satisfac-

tion with it. Of course, there are never guarantees; some

organisations are too hidebound to deal with innovative

thinking. But worthwhile organisations almost always

have champions. Use your strengths wisely, seek out oth-

ers with complementary strengths, and work mindfully.

That, in the end, is really what leadership is all about.

Buy this book on lineVisit our websiteBRIEF OVERVIEWThe Only Foundation We Have 2Observing: Seeing beyond theObvious 3Imagining: Envisioning theFuture before it Arrives 4Reasoning: Moving from theKnown to the Undetermined 4

Challenging: Pushing for Higherand Deeper Thinking 5Deciding: Choosing withConsequences in Mind 6Learning: Keeping aDevelopmental Mind-set 6Enabling: Exercising Leadershipfrom the Outside In 7Conclusion 8Reflecting: Looking Backward,Forward and Inward 8