Next Level Leaders - The Originals

Next Level Leader: Originals – Agents Of Change

It’s a familiar adage: “The only constant in life is change.” 1 Even if you argue that life has more “constants,” most of us can agree that life is ever-changing and that in modern times the pace of change is ever-increasing. As Next Level leaders, you understand not only the inevitability of change, but are often asked to promote it. Leaders are more effective when they are looking for new ideas which they can develop in order to help enhance their company and the people served through it. To be a successful agent of change, you need to think like an “Original.” In his book, Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World, 2 organizational psychologist and professor Adam Grant outlines several traits of these change agents, including their innate curiosity and how they deal with risk.

ORIGINALS ARE RISK AVERSE: For many leaders, there’s a common perception that they must “burn the ships” after launching their new initiative or venture. Filled with confidence and no plan B, these leaders will work feverishly to accomplish their goals and strive to make an enormous difference. However, a study conducted by University of Wisconsin researchers Joseph Raffie and Jie Feng debunked this belief. From 1994 through 2008, these human resources professors tracked more than 5,000 entrepreneurs ages 20-50 and found that those who kept their day job while launching their dream job had a 33 percent lower odds of failure than those who didn’t. 4

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Experience Question:

On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate your willingness to take risks? (consider that higher the ranking, the greater risk you’re willing to take, based on the potential return)

GETTING “GREAT IDEA” CONSENSUS: Once you’ve come up with a great idea, it’s important to have a strategy for getting others to buy into it. What’s the best way forward? Grant suggests you lead with your idea’s flaws, for at least two reasons: