Hack:
Could Sacred Cows be Blocking Innovation's Way?

By Ellen Weber - Director at MITA International Brain Center

July 10, 2011 at 12:05pm

Moonshots

Focus the work of management on a higher purpose

Redefine the work of leadership

Summary

The traps that hold back new talent may be the very traditions dubbed as excellent where you work!

Innovation requires risk - and novelty surpasses traditions that drive most organizations as holy cows drive belief.

One leader recently told me he was unable to risk any secure traditions - which he described as sacred cows. Opportunities in his organization seemed strangely absent.

Sacred Cows, he said, need to be fed and as we feed them - and focus on them - we prevent genuine change and growth.

As Gary Hamel said "Over the last decade, the Internet has had a profound impact on business." My question is: Are we bringing idols to the altar, that subtly hold back the brainpower we need for genuine change that impact all?

10 sacred cows tend to hold us back most, while talents languish in stagnant organizations. You may have more to add to the list.

Problem

10 Polular Idols that Kill Innovation

1). Scientific Method – Rather than invite wonder, and delight for discovery – we’ve dragged people into a jaded sense of self worth. What if each person lived true scientific methods with a mind to discover 4 possibilities? Spot – Wonder – Test – Win!

2. Lectures – Rather than engage, and invent – lectures drown new ideas and stifle original solutions. What if we run from all lectures, in favor of engaging brilliant ideas together? 100 Reasons to Run from Lectures!

3. Mentoring – Rather than reciprocal coaching, that benefits from differences, mentors advice clever cronies to operate much like a seasoned reprobate. What if we morphed into mutually benefiting opportunities to grow? From Mentor to Mindguide.

4. Fixed IQ – Rather than stretch tasks to make space for more brainpower from all, we operate as if some people are smart and others never will be. What if we saw IQ as fluid, and surveyed for multiple intelligence contributions? Question Brainpower through Mita Growth Survey.

5. Competition – Rather than consider a wider or finer good and focus on ways to give back at times, we push incessantly to advance personally at all costs. What if we cultivated shared values with ethics at the helm? A Brain on Ethics.

6. Traditions – Rather than learn daily from advances in innovation, we cling to traditions as if broken systems from past offer the best plans forward. What if we dropped one sluggish tradition per month for an advanced magic carpet ride over new possibilities? Wonders and Woes of Change.

7. Performance Reviews – Rather than use laughter to build mental and emotional health, we’ve barred it from places it would contribute most growth. What if comedy helped us to deign innovative possibilities past daily mistakes? A Brain on Laughter.

8. Politics – Rather than serve people or build a better world, political leaders serve themselves and build a better campaign. What if all political leaders had to pass a course in civility and serve collaboratively with folks who differ? What’s Political about Human Brains?

9. War – Rather than cultivate freedom and liberate humans, war leaves us primed for violence and without regard for humanity that differs. What if we created an icon and plan for peace to match every tribute we offer to wars or violence? What if war Wired for War or Poised for Peace10. Critical Thinking – Rather than offer intelligent responses that critics pretend to bring, brainpower is sadly truncated with increasing waves of cynicism and attacks. What if we harnessed lateral thinking on the other side of cynicism? Brainpower Beyond Sea of Cynicism?

10. Critical Thinking – Rather than offer intelligent responses that critics pretend to bring, brainpower is sadly truncated with increasing waves of cynicism and attacks. What if we harnessed lateral thinking on the other side of cynicism? Brainpower Beyond Sea of Cynicism.

Solution

Question traditions - Check out Ken Robinson video forSolutions to Modern Epidemic

Risk innovative wonders that exchange broken and outmoded traditions for novelt solutions.

Ask people what traditions get in their way. Lead exchanges that invite original alternatives.

10 Polular Idols Kill Innovation

1). Scientific Method – What if each person lived true scientific methods with a mind to discover 4 possibilities? Spot – Wonder – Test – Win!

2. Lectures – What if we run from all lectures, in favor of engaging brilliant ideas together? 100 Reasons to Run from Lectures!

3. Mentoring – What if we morphed into mutually benefiting opportunities to grow? From Mentor to Mindguide.

4. Fixed IQ –What if we saw IQ as fluid, and surveyed for multiple intelligence contributions? Question Brainpower through Mita Growth Survey.

5. Competition – What if we cultivated shared values with ethics at the helm? A Brain on Ethics.

6. Traditions – What if we dropped one sluggish tradition per month for an advanced magic carpet ride over new possibilities? Wonders and Woes of Change.

7. Performance Reviews – . What if comedy helped us to deign innovative possibilities past daily mistakes? A Brain on Laughter.

8. Politics - What if all political leaders had to pass a course in civility and serve collaboratively with folks who differ? What’s Political about Human Brains?

9. War – What if we created an icon and plan for peace to match every tribute we offer to wars or violence? What if war Wired for War or Poised for Peace?

10. Critical Thinking – What if we harnessed lateral thinking on the other side of cynicism? Brainpower Beyond Sea of Cynicism.

Practical Impact

A rather straightforward impact.

See the cows and enter a new pasture for more sustainable fluidity forward!

Ensure that innovative thinkers from diverse corners can access your helm!

We need thinkers who SEE the cows and folks willing to innovate beyond popular traditions most are bowing down to. We need leaders ready to lead others into into a NEW PASTURE.

Currently we are underguirded by flawed and broken systems which sustain traditions, blind most leaders who've been entitled by the old, and that block new vision!

First Steps

Replace one idol a week - to make the shift.

Look vulnerability in the face as men and women and people from diverse backgrounds work together!

Make sure the dividends spread across the different offerings so that people see the value in their taking part.

Envision change that shows up in different meadows - and resolves the broken parts that hinder all. .

Videos

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November 17, 2011 at 5:01pm

Ellen Weber

Thanks Dhaval. It saddens me to see that, just as in so many organizations:

Years of “tradition” and “politics” have created a culture where employees regularly circumvent their required responsibilities and game the system to accrue vast overtime hours and pad their pockets at the expense of taxpayers.

I’m intrigued with your notion of mentoring. Would you agree that traditional mentoring processes tend to make heros of conventional leaders, and retain tired approaches? We use a mutual mentoring that we call mind-guiding. People both teach from their talents, and they both learn in their weaker areas. Innovation typically emerges as both parties are delightfully rejuvenated by the process.

Would love to hear more about your sense of “promote good mentoring, provide healthy competition and to reduce politics.”

HOW INSPIRING to hear: “We had a long conversation about how he was fully committed to helping remove the “10 popular idols that kill innovation,” or at least he was fully committed to trying! The glimmer of change that came along with that conversation will help us to keep pushing forward.”

Bravo! We need support of others to help the change to become lived experience.

Can identify with your sense of triumph – and find myself blessing your efforts and talents! Just last week we had 3 world class leaders visit the brain center. They were full of insights for game-changing opportunities - that we’ll do as a team to make change a reality – using Mita brainpowered tools.

It takes people like you to make change a lived experience – and in so doing you also encouraged my own efforts to do the same. Please return and let us know how you make out because I’ll be cheering you on!

November 17, 2011 at 4:06pm

Dhaval Gandhi

Coming from someone who knows how sacred cows are, I appreciate the concept of moving past the traditions that hold us back, in life and in our organizations. As a civil servant for the state, I can clearly see the traditions that have held back government organizations for far too long. Mentoring (or lack thereof), competition (or lack thereof), traditions, and politics all play a role in preventing positive and radical change for all government organizations. One prime example of this is the transportation agency in San Francisco. Years of “tradition” and “politics” have created a culture where employees regularly circumvent their required responsibilities and game the system to accrue vast overtime hours and pad their pockets at the expense of taxpayers. The government is one of the last “fortresses” where this type of behavior is tolerated. The rules and regulations that govern the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency need to be updated to provide for these radical and positive changes and to remove the “sacred cows” of the road to change. The agency needs to promote good mentoring, provide healthy competition and to reduce politics. It could be done with simple fixes such as providing the best schedules and favored routes to employees who fulfill their duties rather than by seniority.

I recently completed a performance review where I had a nice, open conversation with my new manager. This manager brings experience from the private sector and with that experience he saw very quickly the “sacred cows” that have blocked positive change and innovation. He saw within me a motivation to help promote change but also understood that that motivation was stifled in our department. We had a long conversation about how he was fully committed to helping remove the “10 popular idols that kill innovation,” or at least he was fully committed to trying! The glimmer of change that came along with that conversation will help us to keep pushing forward.

July 11, 2011 at 2:54pm

Edward Colozzi

Ellen,
Another excellent post to stimulate our brain power through reflection, creativity, and problem-solving. Now wouldn't this be useful throughout our entire education system! Keep up your thought-provoking posts that are always packed with fabulous links. EdC

July 11, 2011 at 5:38pm

Ellen Weber

Ed thanks for your generosity, have you ever noticed how many of these traditions we simply follow without unpacking or taking another look at how they play out. Love your notion of reflect - create - solve. That would take care of ensuring the focus of an organization remained fresh and that people looked to innovation as the way forward.

You are so right - the learning system has dug a deep trench for several traditions that literally work against human brainpower. It takes new thinkers like you to help to furrow new pathways and I am wondering what you see these will be in the coming decade - as we look to new careers to save this nation? What cows will go first as you see it - and what/who will replace these? Thoughts? Best, Ellen

July 11, 2011 at 1:50pm

Robyn McMaster

Ellen, fish in a bowl do not see the water which encompasses them. This is why we need a post like this to think more about what we have valued in past and how these might be changed to meet the needs of the future. Change is ongoing for those willing to unlearn past systems to develop new dynamic systems that work more equitably and efficiently.

July 11, 2011 at 5:40pm

Ellen Weber

Love your notion here of unlearning Robyn, as that is far harder than it appears at first - given that all the past learning is stored in the brain's storehouses and very easily defaulted to daily. Any ideas for how unlearning happens when traditions often control the resources in ways that cling to conventions?

February 26, 2012 at 9:52pm

sam01

I think this is wise and timely, and makes me think of crowdsourcing applied to internal HR. I've been thinking about this for a while, and it turns out that a number of Silicon Valley tech companies are considering moving, tentatively, in this direction. These days, we don't work on production lines, and the nature of knowledge mananagement-oriented work is that it's inherently "lumpy," with some days busier than others. So if we want to maximize the usefulness of everyone within an organization, quests (or you might call them projects, but "quest" is more novel and aspirational) allow people to gravitate towards what they desire. What I love about this is that it gives employees more power in the equation; rather than the traditional hierarchical model where employees are "told" what to do, they get to move to the areas to which they are most attracted. And perhaps companies have to work a little harder so that employees are "sold" on a given quest. In other words, companies need to make the quests attractive. Personally, I see this as a way to even out the power dynamic between employees and employers. It's really more like artisans (employees) and patrons (employers), going back to the Renaissance. Perhaps this also means that people will be apprentices on certain quests, developing their skills from those who are masters, and masters will move on to other quests to develop new skills themselves.

February 27, 2012 at 12:48am

Ellen Weber

Thanks John for your thoughtful exchange which reminds me of the reason I wrote this blog from potential I saw in the “artisan” role as you stated so well here. Love the notion of Renaissance but see a going forward to an Innovation Era, rather than going back with some of the access problems that could be avoided in so doing. Would you agree?

Especially agree with your statement: “Perhaps this also means that people will be apprentices on certain quests, developing their skills from those who are masters, and masters will move on to other quests to develop new skills themselves.”

What a refreshing thought? Do you see possibilities at the MIX to help this transformation to happen in practical, sustainable and observable ways? Thoughts?