The march toward more
From his formative years in strategy consulting, Richard Koch remembers two colleagues who, by way of contrast, helped crystallize his leadership philosophy.
Frantic Fred was on one end of the spectrum. When Fred was leading a team, there was a distinctive energy in the room. The space was cramped and crowded and roaring with activity. People were yelling at each other from either side of the conference table. There was a constant surge of adrenaline as everyone rushed to complete their deliverables ahead of looming deadlines.
Many found it stressful and challenging to work with Fred, but he was indisputably effective as a leader.
Calm Christine was at the other end of the spectrum. She paid zero attention to administrative matters. She was entirely focused on increasing revenues with the most important clients, and then putting systems in place to accomplish her objectives with the least amount of personal effort. She never had more than three priorities and often only one. Everything outside of those priorities was dismissed as irrelevant.
Many found it frustrating to work with Christine, but she was spectacularly successful. Koch concluded she was most worthy of his emulation.
The distinction between these two archetypes becomes increasingly important as 'The March Toward More' continues: more information, more to process, more to do. Knowledge is the underlying basis of competition in almost every industry, and knowledge stocks are rapidly compounding because of technological progression.
The March pushes us to be more reactive. The March triggers a need to assert control over that which seems increasingly uncontrollable. The March creates a perception that the busiest person in the room has an edge.
In such a context, the logic of the 80/20 principle is being pushed to the limit. It's now closer to the 99/1 principle. A mere 7 of the top 500 companies (1.4%) have delivered 60% of the gains in the US stock market this year.
That is symptomatic of a central challenge with knowledge work in general. By definition, the vast majority of tasks are non-essential. Also by definition, the vast majority of new and allegedly important tasks will ultimately prove to be a distraction.
To prioritize effectively, we must continually refine our ability to identify the critical few, and then have the confidence, conviction, and stamina to defend them as our rightful focus. It's a discipline that takes active resistance to the growing demands on our time and attention. It's a practice that requires pausing, reflecting, and re-committing on a regular basis.
Fred and Christine were impressive in their own way, but we can learn slightly more from Christine nowadays.