Do you have what it takes to be an Ignorance Abolitionist?
Perhaps you say, "Just what is that good Sir?"
First, ignorance is not a derogatory term. It simply refers to the lack of information. I won't bore you with the Miriam Webster definition.
Figuring out what course to take is often the hardest task. You have options. You might not even know all the options, or the additional information you need to judge the options. An ignorance abolitionist helps colleagues fill those gaps in relevant information.
As a leader and advocate of abolishing ignorance you help people draw maps. Maps to find things. Maps to obtain additional information. You also help people draw maps that lay out the course to achieve a vision or fulfill and sustain a mission. When you can't make the uncertain certain, a map will help you find a way.
It's about sharing what you know - not protecting it, hiding it, and pulling it out only when YOU need it. You share it in order to help others.
It's also about engaging with colleagues who may have relevant information. Not waiting for them to push it to you. Or worse, going off and designing a solution in a vacuum without seeking out information. An ignorance abolitionist seeks that information out, pulls it from those who may have knowledge, experience, valuable insight and different perspectives on the topic.
Most important though to seeking out information is to speak with those who might not share your views or agree with the current map or path to a solution. Yes, I'm invoking a well know behavior of President Abraham Lincoln, who actively engaged his political opponents before embarking on bold decisions.
And be aware of those who might not understand your approach and may even feel threatened by your style of engagement. They may wish to protect their information and not share important insight as a means to preserve their power and position. Also be weary of the senior leader who objects to sharing information, often in subtle and hard to detect ways, because he may not believe in the objective and the stated path to achieving it. Thus not wanting to actually help you and your colleagues succeed.
I hope you would agree that this way of thinking about abolishing ignorance in the course of meeting goals and objectives is an important aspect to being an effective leader.
Will you join my movement?
Perhaps you say, "Just what is that good Sir?"
First, ignorance is not a derogatory term. It simply refers to the lack of information. I won't bore you with the Miriam Webster definition.
Figuring out what course to take is often the hardest task. You have options. You might not even know all the options, or the additional information you need to judge the options. An ignorance abolitionist helps colleagues fill those gaps in relevant information.
As a leader and advocate of abolishing ignorance you help people draw maps. Maps to find things. Maps to obtain additional information. You also help people draw maps that lay out the course to achieve a vision or fulfill and sustain a mission. When you can't make the uncertain certain, a map will help you find a way.
It's about sharing what you know - not protecting it, hiding it, and pulling it out only when YOU need it. You share it in order to help others.
It's also about engaging with colleagues who may have relevant information. Not waiting for them to push it to you. Or worse, going off and designing a solution in a vacuum without seeking out information. An ignorance abolitionist seeks that information out, pulls it from those who may have knowledge, experience, valuable insight and different perspectives on the topic.
Most important though to seeking out information is to speak with those who might not share your views or agree with the current map or path to a solution. Yes, I'm invoking a well know behavior of President Abraham Lincoln, who actively engaged his political opponents before embarking on bold decisions.
And be aware of those who might not understand your approach and may even feel threatened by your style of engagement. They may wish to protect their information and not share important insight as a means to preserve their power and position. Also be weary of the senior leader who objects to sharing information, often in subtle and hard to detect ways, because he may not believe in the objective and the stated path to achieving it. Thus not wanting to actually help you and your colleagues succeed.
I hope you would agree that this way of thinking about abolishing ignorance in the course of meeting goals and objectives is an important aspect to being an effective leader.
Will you join my movement?
No comments:
Post a Comment