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Type A’s: 3 Business Reasons You Should Stop Trying So Hard
If you are a tough-as-nails, “I-can-take-anything” Type A who pushes yourself and others over the edge, keep reading.
Type A individuals are prone to blowing off the early warning signs of internal collateral damage. That’s a little like ignoring the fire alarm because you think you’re too cool to burn.
Internal collateral damage includes feeling stressed out, frustrated, exhausted, overwhelmed, impatient, anxious and stretched too thin. It also includes insomnia, depression, high blood pressure, weight gain and heart attacks.
Here’s the deal. You have the ability to stop internal collateral damage before it stops you. Internal collateral damage is created when your stress response system is stuck in the ‘on’ position. Learn to turn off your stress response system and you can conquer internal collateral damage.
Unfortunately, too many Type A’s mistakenly wear their internal collateral damage like rusty war medals.
Listen up, Don Quixote, persevering with high levels of stress, frustration and exhaustion does not make you tougher, smarter or more sexy. It just makes you old, tired, cranky, fat, unhealthy and wasteful.
Yep. Internal collateral damage wastes important resources. Not only are you frittering away your happiness and health, you’re flushing critical business resources down the drain.
John Medina, author of Brain Rules, reveals these stressful statistics:
77% of the workforce reports being burned out.
In 1990, worker depression cost businesses an estimated $53 billion with lost productivity representing $33 billion.
Sleep deprivation costs U.S. businesses more than $100 billion a year.
Statistical analyses from many studies indicate that stress causes companies to lose between $200 billion and $300 billion a year generating up to $75 billion of red ink per quarter.
Wow. Businesses lose $200 billion to $300 billion a year because of stress.
If that’s not enough to convince you to toss the rusty medals, try this.
Here are three hard-core business reasons you should put the kibosh on internal collateral damage:
1. Internal collateral damage destroys an employee’s effectiveness.
As internal collateral damage revs up, your brain powers down. Executive reasoning skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, creativity, learning, memory and decision-making all decrease. This impacts both the quality and the quantity of the individual’s work.
To make matters worse, when the frustrated, stressed out or exhausted individual is responsible for managing other people or leading important initiates, the company’s risk exposure soars as the employee’s effectiveness drops. An unhappy, stressed out boss can become a weapon of mass destruction quicker than a possum can play dead.
2. Internal collateral damage sabotages employee satisfaction and engagement.
Think about it. When you’re feeling exhausted, frustrated and impatient, you are rarely feeling happy and satisfied. Why should a business care if their employees are feeling happy and satisfied? One reason: satisfied employees are much more likely to be engaged employees. They get more done and tend to stay in their jobs longer.
Prolonged internal collateral damage creates burnout. The last thing you want is for your most talented people to walk out the door in a flame of frustration.
3. Internal collateral damage metastasizes into external collateral damage.
The natural tendency for a Type A top performer is to react to internal collateral damage by trying harder. They take their strengths to a toxic extreme in order to overcome the resistance caused by internal collateral damage. Sadly, this usually results in bulldozing, blaming, micromanaging and crappy communication.
What this all boils down to is this. Internal collateral damage destroys people, productivity and profits.
What would happen to your bottom line if all of your employees learned how to stop internal collateral damage?
Risk Factor 1: Whatever It Takes Is a Big Mistake
Are you ready to cast some light on the seven invisible risk factors of top performer collateral damage? Let’s get going. Here’s the first one.
Risk Factor 1: The ‘whatever it takes’ philosophy is encouraged and rewarded.
Let’s be clear.
The vast majority of top performers are Type A individuals. They are ambitious, driven to achieve and prone to setting very high expectations. It stands to reason then that these well-intentioned warriors are predisposed to take on enormous challenges and power their way to success by doing…. ‘Whatever It Takes’.
To get a flavor of this ‘success on steriods’ mindset, check out this quote from T. Herv Eker’s best-selling book, Secrets of the Millionaire Mind.
The definition of the word commit is to “devote oneself unreservedly.” This means holding absolutely nothing back; giving 100 percent of everything you’ve got to achieving wealth. It means being willing to do ‘Whatever It Takes’ for as long as it takes. This is the warrior’s way. No excuses, no ifs, no butts, no maybes—and failure isn’t an option. The warrior’s way is simple: “I will be rich or I will die trying.”
From Oprah to George W. to Kobe, the Type A mindset of ‘Whatever It Takes’ shows up all over America. Don’t believe me? Just start paying attention. “Whatever It Takes” is flexing its cape covered arms hither, thither and yon – including the business world.
Executive leadership and Board of Directors are often composed of Type A titans who encourage, reward and perpetuate the ‘Whatever It Takes’ mindset.
There is a dark side to this seductive Type A mindset that is seldom recognized until it’s too late.
Regardless of whether you are the boisterous Braveheart or the tight-lipped, stoic Dirty Harry, Whatever It Takes can be a huge mistake. When you shift into the ‘Whatever It Takes’ mindset, you become so focused on achieving the end result that you develop tunnel vision.
Using the ‘Whatever It Takes’ approach to power through challenges day in and day out leads to exhaustion, diminished judgment and poor execution. The odds of a collateral damage catastrophe soar and, chances are, you don’t even see the writing on the wall because you are too consumed doing ‘Whatever It Takes’.
Listen to what former professional baseball player and New York Times columnist Doug Glanville has to say:
There is a tipping point in a player’s career where he goes from chasing the dream to running from a nightmare. At that point, ambition is replaced with anxiety, passion is replaced with survival. It is a downhill run and it spares no one.
We call it “drive” or “ambition,” but when doing “Whatever It Takes” leads us down the wrong road, it can erode our humanity. The game ends up playing us.
Your ‘Whatever It Takes’ may be well-intentioned, but, in the long-run, it’s a short-sighted strategy that backfires and dramatically increases your odds of a collateral damage train wreck.
Are you being seduced by “Whatever It Takes”?
Coming up: Risk Factor Two – Normalization of Deviance
The Seven Invisible Risk Factors of Collateral Damage
Just like cigarettes and donuts skyrocket your chances of becoming a coronary time bomb, there are risk factors which increase your odds of becoming a collateral damage catastrophe.
Taken individually, each of these risk factors increases the odds of Type A top performer collateral damage occurring. However, when two or more of these factors occur simultaneously, the odds of collateral damage increase exponentially.
If you’ve got two or more of these risk factors, it’s like being a chain-smoker perpetually gorging on Big Macs, french fries and Mountain Dew. Keep it up and there’s going to be costly consequences.
Here’s an important secret I want to share with you.
Unlike donuts, Big Macs and cigarettes, these seven collateral damage risk factors are so common they go unnoticed. They vanish right before your eyes.
Because these risk factors tend to be invisible to the untrained eye, recognizing the early warning signs of collateral damage is like trying to spot the hidden object in a visually cluttered photo. Now you see it. Now you don’t.
It’s no wonder we find ourselves asking, ‘What just happened?!” when a top performer goes nuts, implodes or does something stupid. We didn’t see the writing on the wall.
Over the next several weeks in this blog, we’re going to dig into and drill down into each of the seven risk factors that increase the odds of a collateral damage catastrophe.
Here’s a preview of coming attractions.
The Seven Risk Factors that Encourage Collateral Damage Catastrophes
1. The Whatever It Takes Philosophy is encouraged and rewarded.
2. Normalization of Deviance turns unacceptable behaviors into acceptable behaviors.
3. Performance Metrics are skewed towards measurable business objectives.
4. Collateral damage occurs in small bits that add up over time.
5. The top performer is unaware she is creating collateral damage so self-correction does not occur.
6. The complexity of the work environment hides the top performer as the source of collateral damage.
7. Supervisors tend to give the benefit of the doubt until the cost becomes too great.
What collateral damage risk factors are sneaking up on you?
Top Performer Collateral Damage
What kinds of collateral damage are your Type A top performers creating?
As we say good-by to 2009 and hello to 2010, it’s a great time for a collateral damage check-up before you find yourself cleaning up a screw up.
To prevent collateral damage, you must first understand what it is.
Collateral damage is the undesirable consequences arising from a top performer’s actions, decisions or attitudes.
You’ve seen it happen countless times.
The perfectionist boss makes unrealistic demands which create employee unhappiness and staff turnover.
The overly competitive executive takes credit for other people’s ideas which leads to distrust and team dysfunction.
A project leader bulldozes over dissenting opinions and shuts down critical communication.
The stoic manager takes on more than he can realistically handle and makes a costly error.
The over eager junior associate jumps the gun and politically embarrasses the company.
These are just a few examples of the many forms top performer collateral damage can take.
Who in your organization is causing collateral damage? Is it you?
Kelly Flood’s Kitchen Table Wisdom
“I’m such a Type A that I’m even a Type A when I’m decorating my home for the holidays.”
Whip together powerful, passionate and driven. Then stir in warm and thoughtful. Top it all off with a quick sense of humor and a healthy dose of perspective. That describes Type A tribe member, Rev. Kelly Flood, Kentucky State Representative and Vice President for Advancement for Starr King School for the Ministry located in Berkley, CA.
While commuting between California and Kentucky keeps her super busy, Kelly slowed down long enough to share her personal insights regarding the collateral damage so often unwittingly created by turbocharged Type A’s.
“When I was younger, I certainly created collateral damage in my drive to achieve. I finally realized that I didn’t want to spend my energy cleaning up the collateral damage I created. I want to spend my energy working for the greater good in society. How I spend my energy is a motivator for me.”
Kelly slips into thought and then adds, “Earlier in my life, it would infuriate me when my family and friends would tell me to calm down. I felt like they were telling me to shut up. Then I realized that calming down was really about learning to direct my energy. When I direct my energy, I’m able to achieve without creating collateral damage.”
A knowing smile creeps across Kelly’s face. “Passion can cloud perspective. Discernment of passions is wisdom.”
I ask Kelly what she does at this point in her life to avoid creating collateral damage.
“First and most importantly, I keep compassion for myself. That reminds me to have compassion for my enemies. By having compassion for my enemies, it prevents me from seeing them as demons and doing harm to them.”
“Secondly, don’t always believe what you tell yourself. I have a tendency to believe myself too quickly. When you feel passionately about something it’s easy to believe what you tell yourself. I’m always trying to engage my critical mind by asking, ‘What’s the rest of the story?’ I’ve learned to listen for the thoughts that cause trouble like… ‘I deserve….’ or ‘I’ve worked hard…’ These thoughts get my attention that I may be undermining myself.”
We talk for a few minutes about how collateral damage isn’t always about other people. Very often, Type A collateral damage is internal. It’s the consequences of allowing our passion and drive to push us beyond what’s healthy for our bodies. This internal collateral damage can be the most difficult for hard-driving Type A’s to see until it takes a big toll on our well-being.
“It’s so easy to deny what our bodies’ messages are,” Kelly observes. “We choose not to listen because we are on such an enormous high from living the passion-infused life.”
So, what advice does Kelly have for Type A tribe members who want to avoid creating collateral damage?
Kelly thinks long and hard before answering. You can see her critical mind weighing each thought for merit.
“You need to be connected to:
1. Your self.
2. Your family, as you choose to define it.
3. A mission in life that feeds your soul.
4. Friends who will tell you the truth.
“In the past, I created collateral damage when I behaved as if I was not connected to anything… when I did not own my accountability…when I acted like an island.”
With a mischievous sparkle in her eye, Kelly quickly adds in a playful voice, “We Type A’s can be very independent! We like to do things by ourselves.”
Kelly’s expression softens as she gazes through her kitchen window into her garden. “At this point in my life, I’ve come to treasure moments of serenity.”
I ask Kelly what serenity means for her.
“Serenity is the ability to know – wholly – that life is great. Just being alive is great. I am so glad to be a human being that is alive.”
One thing is really clear. For this powerful and passionate woman, discernment of passions is more than wisdom. It’s serenity.
Motivating a Type A Superstar to Change – Part 2
Contrary to the old saw, you can teach an old dog a new trick. It just requires a tantalizing treat that captures and holds the dog’s attention… like freeze dried liver morsels or a hedgehog squeaky toy.
Same thing goes for motivating a Type A superstar to do something new or different.
You must tie the change to something the individual finds very enticing. Something so titillating that they are willing to break out of their success comfort zone.
Here’s where so many bosses go wrong. They fall into the trap of…
1. Explaining how the change is good for the company and stop there. (“So it’s good for the company but it sucks for my pocketbook. I’m supposed to want that???”)
2. Using veiled threats of unpleasant consequences if the change doesn’t occur. (“Yeah, right. You’re really going to fire someone who your most important customers trust. We both know you’re not that stupid.”)
3. Pulling out stale, generic WIIFM motivators that simply don’t pack enough punch to interest a Type A superstar in the long-run. (“Let me get this straight. In exchange for keeping my job during the lay-offs, you expect me to take on the additional work of the two people who were let go and that’s a sign of how much the company values my contribution? I’m already working 60 hours a week. I don’t need any more appreciation if that’s what it entails.”)
To motivate a Type A superstar to change his personal recipe for success, you’ve got to make the consequences positive, personal and extremely meaningful. That means as the boss you’ve got to know what ignites and excites each of your Type A superstars before you ask them to change.
Is it freeze dried liver, a squeaky hedgehog or some other tasty treat?
Motivating a Type A Superstar to Change
Here’s a brutal truth hiding behind closed doors in executive suites all over the country.
Motivating a Type A Superstar to change her magic formula for success can be the boss’s toughest challenge.
Think about it. When you’ve got a proven track record of bringing home the bacon, it’s a natural tendency to dig in your heels when someone tells you that you’ve got to do things differently.
Take outstanding results, mix in some power and whip with a hefty dose of ego and you’ve got a recipe for one stubborn Type A superstar.
Don’t believe me? Just ask a General Sales Manager who leads a team of top notch account executives in a constricting, highly competitive marketplace. Or ask the CEO who is trying to get the COO and CMO to stop playing office politics.
Here’s the deal. If your Type A Superstar thinks the proposed changes are going to negatively impact her pocketbook, her power or her prestige, chances are that you’re going to meet resistance.
So… How do you motivate a Type A Superstar?
Stay tuned…..
What’s really capturing your attention?
Did you see the article in the New York Times, Ear Plugs to Lasers: The Science of Concentration? In the book, Rapt, author Winifred Gallagher, reminds us of two well known concepts:
- What we pay attention to determines what kind of experience we create.
- Our brains work best when we concentrate and focus on one thing at time… multi-tasking is not good for us.
Gallagher goes on to make the point that we have the choice to focus our attention on the negative things or the positive things. Not surprisingly, she points out that shifting your attention to and focusing on the positive things in life are the secrets to creating a more satisfying life.
I’m not going to disagree with that, but I do think it’s a black or white approach… especially for high level leaders who get paid to solve problems and achieve results in a technicolor world.
Here’s two more things to think about.
First, events are rarely all positive or all negative. They are usually a bitter sweet mixture of both. Wisdom comes from being able to see and appreciate both the good and the bad. Remember the old saw… Learning from your mistakes?
Secondly, your unconscious mindsets have an enormous impact on how you see the world and what captures your attention. Shifting your conscious attention without first uncovering your underlying unconscious mindsets is a little like whacking off dandelion leaves. It’s just a matter of time before your unconscious mindset sends up another flower of frustration. Just look at Kristie Alley’s failed weight loss…
Here’s my advice:
1. Focus your attention on the whole experience. Step outside of your judgment of good or bad. Look at things from both sides at once. Find the wisdom in the experience. The great thing about wisdom is that you can take it with you whereever you go.
2. Cultivate your consciousness. Dig out your unconscious mindsets so you get rid of the weeds once and for all. That leaves plenty of room and nutrients for creativity. And with creativity comes inspired problem solving and new perspectives.
Why You Should Love Pain-in-the-Butt Employees
I get the question all the time… “How can I deal with an employee who is a real pain in the a—-? She’s driving me crazy!”
When I ask why the employee hasn’t been given her walking papers, the boss usually spits out, “Because she’s one of our best producers. She’s too valuable to fire but she makes my life hell and stirs up everybody else!”
I love these kinds of employees and you should, too. Here’s why.
They’ve still got a fire burning in their gut. It’s just a misdirected fire. As a leader it’s a lot easier to re-direct a fire than it is to rekindle cold embers.
I’d much rather have a passionate, pain-in-the-butt employee than one who is a business-as-usual employee or – even worse – an employee that has quit but still comes to work collecting a paycheck.
Re-direct the passion and you’re going to transform the pain-in-the-butt into an outstanding contributor. I’ve done it myself and I’ve seen it done by other leaders countless times.
But here’s the deal. You can’t just keep doing your same old leadership tricks and hoping for a different outcome. You’ve got to drop your attitude and dig beneath your own frustration to discover what is motivating the employee to be difficult. You need to become Sherlock Holmes.
Here are some questions to help your investigation:
1. Is the employee angry about some perceived injustice? (Hint: Bosses tend to expect more out of high performers than they do other employees.)
2. Is the employee bored? (Hint: High performers often feed on change and challenge and love to collect the next trophy.)
3. Is the employee wanting more power and influence in the workplace? (Hint: Money only goes so far in rewarding a high performer. Respect, responsibility and authority – even if it’s coming from the gossip club – often fill the gap between money and meaning.)
4. Is the employee frustrated about some aspect of their job? (Hint: High performers frequently don’t like rules that seem ridiculous or decisions that don’t contribute to results – like time wasting staff meetings or ill-informed strategies.)
5. What have I done to contribute to this problem? (Hint: High performers want to be heard and valued by the folks in charge. If they only get your attention by causing problems, then that’s what they are going to do.)
One last thing. Ditch the hero routine. Don’t try to save a bad apple. It’ll ruin your whole team.
Let’s face it. Occasionally even the best leaders hire a dud or inherit a crazy person. I know because I’ve been in both situations. If your pain-in-the-butt employee is acting unstable or is a real threat to other people or your business, consult with your HR department pronto to determine the safest and quickest way to deal with them. Don’t tackle this challenge by yourself.
But… if you have a pain-in-the-butt, high performing employee, get busy! You’ve got a diamond waiting to be polished. Want to solve the high performance puzzle quicker? Call me. 859-266-2436.
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It’s time to wake up and smell the truth. Like gas guzzling relics, traditional Type A’s are becoming passé. In the good ole’ days, with their steely-eyed focus and turbo-charged tactics, Type A’s could dominate the game by slicing, dicing and sacrificing. That pricey party is over. Award-winning executive coach Kay Cannon offers a funny insider’s look into the secret world of top performing Type A individuals and redefines how these talented and smart superstars can get great results without collateral damage.