Energy vs. Entropy

Mal Fletcher Added 03 November 2009

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Dealing with Vision Entropy in your Enterprise

The principal of entropy is a cornerstone of modern physics. It says that any natural system left to itself, without the application of outside energy, will eventually wind down.

The same principle holds true in the leadership of companies and organisations. Without constant attention and engagement from leaders, the central vision driving an enterprise will eventually leak energy and die.

Every vision will pass through several phases - unless, that is, leaders are aware of the cycle and proactively engage to head off entropy.

The first phase in the life of a vision we might label 'innovation'. Product and project ideas are forming quickly and creativity is at its peak. Team members are energised with the pioneer spirit. This is an exciting time for all involved.

Over time, innovation gives way to 'adaptation'. Original ideas are tweaked, romanced and re-engineered to better meet the needs of consumers.

Then, at some point, the vision reaches the 'maturity' phase. This is where the success of the vision is evident for all to see, both inside and outside the company itself. People are talking about the project, there is a buzz surrounding the product and strategic goals and projections are being met. There's a real sense of achievement and satisfaction for the core team, who know they're backing a winner.

However, this is when things often become a little precarious and leaders need to be watchful. It's been said that what made you successful in the past will sometimes prevent you being successful in the future. This is true: the maturity phase can lead to 'saturation', where people have become so familiar with the product or service that it no longer excites their interest. An over-saturation of the market or community sometimes leads to outright antagonism.

Saturation then leads to 'decline'. A vision that started so well peters out and once fresh and innovative ideas go the way of the dinosaur, as do team motivation and company profits.

But vision energy doesn't have to give way to vision entropy, if leaders are willing to take a few simple but effective steps:

1. Tweak the Vision.

Constantly adjust the main ideas, deliberately adding new features and innovating without changing the core. Too little routine breeds insecurity in the team, but too much breeds boredom. Purposeful activity always reduces atrophy.

2. Re-paginate.

Don't stay on the same page too long. Nobody wants to read the same page of a book over and over again, in what would be the literary equivalent of Groundhog Day. Keep moving the story forward, demonstrating for your team and consumers how the vision is actually adding value to people's lives. Don't allow your early success to breed stagnation.

3. Recycle.

Adapt your own previous success points, bringing already proven ideas up-to-date. For example, a core idea might not have outlived its sell-by-date; it may just need an upgraded vocabulary, with new metaphors and imagery.

4. Challenge Yourself.

People always respond best to leaders who stretch themselves personally and professionally. A big part of sustaining your effectiveness as a leader is continually enlarging yourself so that people always have something more to learn from you. People always respond best to leaders who maintain a sense of mystery, without being aloof. The key here is maintaining people's interest in your constantly evolving leadership and ideas, without projecting distance.

5. Stoke the Fires of Creativity.

Expose your team, especially its core members, two new voices from outside the enterprise. Hearing the objective criticism of people who have nothing to lose from being honest with you challenges lazy or sloppy thinking.

6. Incentivise.

What you reward in your team will be repeated. Be creative in coming up with new forms of incentive. Make sure incentive schemes offer real reward - give people opportunities you wouldn't mind having yourself. Of course, the best incentive scheme is most often simple encouragement, given specifically and often - though not so often that it loses its power to inspire. Comment on and reward specific behaviours that are producing specific results. Remember, though, incentives are about inspiring people, not supporting impersonal 'targets'.

7. Stay Passionate About Your Enterprise.

As a leader, give yourself space to dream of even bigger things ahead. Use the 80:20 Principle to keep yourself sharp and fire your enthusiasm for the task ahead. You will often see 80 percent of your success as a leader and a human being from activities that require just 20 percent of your time and resources. Focus as much as possible on that 20 percent and watch your passion and productivity grow. Your convictions about the project are often the dominant message your team takes from you.

8. Wrap It Up.

Nothing de-motivates like unfinished projects or incomplete stages in the strategy. Finish every stage in the process and don't never start a new season without taking very good thing you can from the last one.

9. Be Stubborn.

Richard De Voss has said that, 'persistence is stubbornness with a purpose.' I like to say that the only difference between stubbornness and stupidity is a righteous cause. If your vision is a good one, one that's improving the lot of human beings and their environment, stubbornly refused to quit at any cost.

Vision entropy is a challenge for any leader, but the threat is diminished by our awareness of it and our commitment to keeping the spark alive.

Copyright Mal Fletcher, 2009. Published at 2020plus.net. Not to be reproduced without permission of the author.


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