Why Bezos is right, context rules and how a new set of lenses will serve you well.
Jeff Bezos said he’s frequently asked to predict what will change in the next 10 years, however, he’s seldom asked: “What’s not going to change in the next 10 years?” He made the smart observation that the second question is more important: “Because you can build a business strategy around the things that are stable in time.”
Working with clients at the intersection of leadership, futures, transformation and purpose-driven business, the dynamic interplay between change and stability is a constant. Global contexts keep shifting, creative minds keep innovating, and the advancements across the sciences don’t wait for us to catch up.
Yet, some things don’t change a great deal.
Human nature – what drives us, and our way of being in the world and with each other – is consistent. Consistently human.
However, leaders don’t always factor human nature into their strategies. Rather, they tend to invest heavily in attempting to predict what’s next, and as a result, major change programmes. The irony is that around 70% of all change initiatives fail. Why? Because we tend to resist change unless we’re in the driving seat – or it’s something we believe in and can get behind.
Context, Context, Context
This week, I’ve got ‘context’ on my mind, which is all about finding the stability in constant change. I’m preparing the kick-off session for an eight-part Masterclass starting in Vienna this September, and the first session is all about ‘contextual intelligence’. It’s the right place to begin in today’s world of work, and I thought I’d share some insight on the topic with you.
Typing the words ‘context’ and ‘September’ made me sit back for a moment. So much has shifted over the last eight months. When we cast our minds back to January, our ideas about how the year might play out, what’s happened so far and what’s yet to come, it’s easy to appreciate how important framing and working with context is.
We can easily be thrown into disarray when the context changes, and the rug (the illusion of control) is pulled from under our feet.
Becoming Contextually Aware
Context explains the setting and circumstances of an event or situation, and how we think about, react and respond to it. It helps to think of context as a filter or lens that enables us to make sense of and navigate the complexities of our world. Without putting things into context, we are likely to misinterpret information, make poor decisions, or miss out on a deeper understanding and meaning.
However, there is more to this contextual lens than meets the eye. While we often think of ourselves as being contextually aware when it comes to what’s going on ‘out there’, it’s only part of the story. We also need to become aware of what’s going on ‘in here’. In our vast inner worlds.
Being contextually aware encompasses our internal and external worlds – it’s a snapshot of who and where we are in time and space.
How we think about, interpret and frame things through our personal (often unconscious) lenses on the world determines how we experience the context we’re in, and ultimately, the decisions we make.
Our Lenses on the World
We go through our lives creating mental shortcuts to help us make sense of what's going on around us, and predict what may come next. These internal representations of reality act as filters or our lenses on the world. They help us quickly understand and manage the deluge of information we encounter every day, and adapt to new situations.
These invisible frameworks emerge from our life experiences and serve as the foundations of our thoughts, feelings, beliefs, biases and decision-making. They're informed by how we've grown up and been schooled and trained and the encouragement and criticism we've received in our personal and professional lives. Our enthralling wins and profoundly debilitating losses. The highs and lows and everything in between.
We often think of our lenses on the world as our mindset or worldview. They contain our past and map our future, creating a self-fulfilling prophesy – unless we do something to disrupt their trajectory.
Take a moment now to reflect on your life and career.
Can you remember a defining moment or event that landed, took root and grew within you? Something that has filtered your understanding, directed your thoughts, shaped your perception and the decisions you've made in the last day, week, or month?
We all have an abundance of these, both conscious and unconscious. Some still work brilliantly for us, while others inadvertently get in the way of what we're striving for.
As leaders, it's hugely beneficial to acknowledge the role of these lenses in our lives. Being aware of how we filter the world through a lifetime of experiences empowers us to challenge our assumptions and identify areas of personal growth. This self-awareness improves our critical thinking skills across three key areas; decision-making, problem-solving and communication.
Without this awareness, it’s all too easy to automatically apply the same thinking to everything, leaving us wondering why things don’t pan out the way we intended. Or as Abraham Maslow so aptly observed:
"To a man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail."
Useful Links
More Depth
If you’re reading, Relevant: Future-Focused Leadership, you’ll find more depth on the topics I’ve mentioned:
- Context: Introductory Chapter: Context Eats Strategy At Whim
- Lenses: Part I, Chapter 3: Our Lenses on the World
- Change: Part II, Chapter 14: Change + Transition = Transformation