People are different. Leaders are different. And different leaders have different approaches to making decisions. There’s no one “right way” — but it can be challenging when your own style doesn’t match with your colleague or your boss. Watch Bobbie LaPorte’s July 16 “Calling the Game” video for some tips on how to work together despite these differences.
Strategies for Aligning Diverse Approaches in a VUCA World
My executive coaching clients bring me all types of contemporary issues that they are facing. When I reflect on these, it seems like many of them come down to a difference of approach in decision-making, often based on an individual’s workplace style – for example, cautious vs. action-oriented – and the situational context for the decision.
For example, you might have a very strong bias to action, wanting to move as quickly as possible to make decisions, execute, and deliver results.
Your manager, on the other hand, might be more cautious, opting to conduct a more thorough analysis of supporting data, carefully weighing all the options, soliciting input from multiple stakeholders…..then another round of analysis, etc. You get the picture.
Or it could be the reverse: you have a more moderate, risk-averse approach while your manager is actively pushing to make a decision and move on.
I am not attempting to over-simplify this: many factors come into play in making decisions. The important distinction here is that both of these approaches are good and have their place in any company at different points in time.
Leaders have different styles in terms of what motivates them, what stresses them, and how flexible they are in different situations. All of that contributes to their approach to decision-making.
Three Clashing Decision-Making Approaches to Consider
So, if you find yourself in a situation when there is clearly a difference, if not an outright clash, in how you and your manager are approaching decisions, here are three things to consider:
- Try not to react; be objective. Don’t take it as criticism of you personally or of your work.
- Reflect on whether this is a pattern of clear differences in approach or perhaps more situational.
- To make a case for your approach, share why you need to move more quickly or more cautiously, as the case may be, and how it will impact your goals and the work of your team, putting it in the business context.
Decision-making can be anxiety-provoking and downright scary in a world where so many of the variables we work with and the context we work in are changing so quickly.
Taking a more subjective, rational view (which I acknowledge can be difficult when you are in the middle of it) will help bring some clarity (and sanity) to the process.
However, having said that, one of the biggest curveballs leaders now face is how the timeline and process for making decisions in a VUCA world (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous) have changed—more on that in next week’s VLOG.
Related Posts
Decision-Making is Different Now →
How Can I Improve My Decision-Making Under Uncertainty? →
Leadership Shift #1: A New Model for Decision-Making →
Decision Dynamics: 3 Shifts Leaders Must Make Now – Part 2 →
How to Make Decisions in Uncharted Territory →
How to Communicate Clashing Operating Styles with Your Boss →