Years ago I learned to draw reading Betty Edwards’ book, “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain.” The effort sharpened my perspective of just about everything. To draw, I learned to see differently and I walked away with a clearer, fuller appreciation of the things around me.
This new perspective also improved my leadership skills. One exercise, in particular, was illuminating; I learned that if you are struggling to draw a portrait, just turn it upside down. No longer constrained by language like that’s a face with a nose, ears, and eyes, you are free to see the face for what it is, a series of lines, curves, and shades which are much easier to draw than the body part in your mind’s eye.
Just as I turned that picture over to see it more clearly, I recommend you flip your organization chart to see it for what it really is. What you’ll find at the top are all the necessary functions—where the rubber meets the road; in between there and the C-Suite, you’ll find the majority of your company—some designed to support the chief executive and some designed to support the field, but most designed to support the organization in between. While some of these functions are necessary, most are not. If you run an old, established entity, I’d challenge you to find anyone who can remember why a particular office, agency, or activity was created in the first place.
By changing your perspective, your executive function will become clearer. You’ll rediscover what the organization was designed to do and test the necessity of the ancillary functions. This review serves a second purpose. It reminds you that most of the organization was designed to support critical functions that existed long before anyone said, “I think we need a CEO.” So to find out what really makes a difference in your organization, try changing your perspective.
Thoughts?
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