AmBIGuity for Leaders

Photo Credit: Richard Chicoine iCopyright

Fear of Ambiguity

It's easy enough not to notice the opportunity to innovate - to ignore the possibilities. Our daily routines determine our most common direction and pace. We can easily ignore the obvious. That's a dangerous leadership trait.
As leaders, how can you become more aware of circumstances which will spur on unlikely intersections of ideas and help others to get over the fear of "change", for example?

This week's photo - the Snow Rose - illustrates the potential of "intersections" of thoughts. The question at the root of the experiment: "What would happen if... " (And yes, there was snow in our backyard in northern Ontario on the first of May!)

Leaders need to see the possible in the impossible and help others leap through the fear of the unknown.

In his book, ICONOCLAST, Gregory Berns says:

"Fear of the unknown, or ambiguity, is a funny thing. It is not a specific event event such as an electric shock or the pain experienced from the criticism of an unempathetic supervisor. Ambiguity stems from lack of knowledge. It looms over the psyche like a dark cloud on the horizon. Some people are better at dealing with ambiguity than others, but when fear of the unknown bubbles to the surface, it is universally experienced in the same way."

What to do? Re-direct your fear of ambiguity. ASK! Read. Discuss. Experiment - play. Find the "intersections" and lather yourself up with ambiguity.

There's a biological reason behind this theory.

As a leader, you have to find the knowledge and then stimulate your own - and everyone's - "amygdala". That's the brain's critical processing centre, an almond shaped structure critical for processing emotions. Amygdala's have a long memory, and they can be trained!

The practical application for you? Play with intersections of ideas... create an ambience for your team, where it's safe to throw half baked ideas up for discussion. Engage and appreciate mavericks for their natural attempts to change the status quo. And dare I say it, love your amygdala!

For more on ideas for leadership: go to www.theideasculptor.com MagOhZine blog. Click on Archives. Cheers!