Stupid Enough to Open My Mouth
Today dawned with a clear sky and strong sun, hiding the potential for severe weather later. I am enjoying the sun and my coffee, thinking about being the one "stupid enough" to say out loud what everyone is thinking but doesn't say.
Recently I've written about the local fire protection funds and local politics. Many people talked about it, but I was the only one to write about it, to raise the hidden voices to the fore. This morning while enjoying the summer flowers shout their beauty with their blossoms, I thought about times in my work career where I said what was unpopular because others didn't want to, or were fearful to speak.
When I think back to those times, it is now obvious that the reason for the fear was the environment built by leadership, an environment where the CEO led with micromanagement and intimidation. I remember my supervisor saying to me, "I think I just lost my job for speaking the truth in an Executive Meeting because it disagreed with the CEO." This trickled down to the detriment of the company. Most adopted an "I'm just doing my job, keeping my head down" mentality.
In retrospect I see with better clarity how damaging this leadership was. It wasn't the lack of employees speaking up that caused the problems — it was the leadership.
There was no feeling of cooperation, no pulling the same wagon. There was fear of someone watching over your shoulder and criticizing, quietly threatening employment even though there were no firings or restructures.
In the workplace, perception becomes reality.
While the management team had no plans for workforce changes, the message from them and the CEO manifested as fear — fear of firings. That perception became reality and cost the company more than they ever knew. All because of the environment cultivated by leadership.
As you work with your teams, how do you react when someone is "stupid enough" to say out loud what others are thinking? Maybe instead of criticism, the response should be an inquisitive one — if they said it, what are others thinking? Especially when it doesn't come from the persistent contrarian.