Gautam Muralidharan A 11.4
Two metrics I would like to add is “Organized” and “Patient” to my list.
Through the labeling exercise I realized that a team always appreciates a leader who is willing and wanting to truly to listen to his team before making decisions. This is a trait I think will be measured by how many opinions I listen to before I chirp in. Ideally I listen to every single opinion in the room before I state my own. This would my measure for success against this personality trait.
Being organized has always eluded me. But clearly, there are negative impacts on not just my work ethic but other team members if I do not become organized very soon. I am hoping to do so by taking advice from several gurus in this area. The first place I start at will be using a to-do list that is effective and that I am faithful to. I will measure my success against this trait by seeing how much I am able to get done against my lists.
Through the labeling exercise I realized that a team always appreciates a leader who is willing and wanting to truly to listen to his team before making decisions. This is a trait I think will be measured by how many opinions I listen to before I chirp in. Ideally I listen to every single opinion in the room before I state my own. This would my measure for success against this personality trait.
Being organized has always eluded me. But clearly, there are negative impacts on not just my work ethic but other team members if I do not become organized very soon. I am hoping to do so by taking advice from several gurus in this area. The first place I start at will be using a to-do list that is effective and that I am faithful to. I will measure my success against this trait by seeing how much I am able to get done against my lists.
Gautam Muralidharan A 10.3
As I did my SWOT analysis I realized I needed to add few more metrics to progress towards becoming a better leader:
1. Time management: I think I am pretty bad at the management. If i have to become a better leader it is very important i understand where my time goes and how I spend it. This includes being able to prioritize projects and selecting the right activities to focus on. This will be a very important metric for me as a leader.
2. Being organized: This is very closely related to the previous item. This does not mean I need to have a pocket book wherever I go but making sure i have a plan that I have my daily and weekly activities progress towards. This will be measured to effective task lists (daily/weekly/monthly) that I will track my status against and measure performance towards
3. Risk Taking: I have an issue with paralysis through analysis. I sometimes realize the risk by over-imagining it. As I creative leader I would like to take a few more risks and understand that this is a natural process towards progressing and improving as a leader.
As I did my SWOT analysis I realized I needed to add few more metrics to progress towards becoming a better leader:
1. Time management: I think I am pretty bad at the management. If i have to become a better leader it is very important i understand where my time goes and how I spend it. This includes being able to prioritize projects and selecting the right activities to focus on. This will be a very important metric for me as a leader.
2. Being organized: This is very closely related to the previous item. This does not mean I need to have a pocket book wherever I go but making sure i have a plan that I have my daily and weekly activities progress towards. This will be measured to effective task lists (daily/weekly/monthly) that I will track my status against and measure performance towards
3. Risk Taking: I have an issue with paralysis through analysis. I sometimes realize the risk by over-imagining it. As I creative leader I would like to take a few more risks and understand that this is a natural process towards progressing and improving as a leader.
Gautam Muralidharan - A 5.2.2
Three additional metrics:
Short list of metrics:
1. Honest: This is basically something that demonstrates to the followers that the leader is someone they can trust. The metrics I would measure this trait by is by seeing if the person is truthful, ethical and principled
2. Forward-Looking: People expect leaders to have a sense of direction and a concern for the future of the organization. The metric therefore that could be used to measure this trait directly is the ability of the leader to clearly articulate the future and understand the risks/pros-cons of this vision.
3. Competent: This is basically that the leader is competent to lead us where we are headed. A metric here would be track record of getting things done.
4. Inspiring: We also expect our leaders to be enthusiastic, energetic and positive about the future. A good metric to measure this would be the leader’s ability to be able to communicate the future in ways that would inspire people.
5. Intelligent: The leader is able to demonstrate logic, abstract thought, understanding, self-awareness, communication, learning, having emotional knowledge, retaining, planning, and problem solving. This is a tougher one to measure. Credentials and IQ tests explain one dimensionally intelligence. However, track record once again may prove to measure this metric.
6. Experimental: A leader should be willing to try new things. They are innovative, risk taking and daring to take on new challenges. This trait can be measured by the number of innovative things a team does under the leadership of an experimenting leader.
7. Dependable: A good leader is always there to take the fall if things go bad. This trait is measured in moments of crisis based on how the leader reacts.
Three additional metrics:
- Self Awareness: A leaders should be able to continuously reflect inward and constantly learn from feedback. Being aware of one's limitations and an organization's limitations will allow a leader to do appropriate risk management when pursuing a new frontier. This trait can measured by a leader who makes sensible decisions based on available resources.
- Engaged: There is nothing more disturbing than a leader that is not engaged. Lack of engagement can easily be detected when a leader is not aware of the current status of a project, morale of the team or the complexity of the task ahead. An engaged leader can be detected by his ability to have a constant pulse on the state of the project and his team.
- Experimental: A leader should be willing to try new things. They are innovative, risk taking and daring to take on new challenges. This trait can be measured by the number of innovative things a team does under the leadership of an experimenting leader.
Short list of metrics:
1. Honest: This is basically something that demonstrates to the followers that the leader is someone they can trust. The metrics I would measure this trait by is by seeing if the person is truthful, ethical and principled
2. Forward-Looking: People expect leaders to have a sense of direction and a concern for the future of the organization. The metric therefore that could be used to measure this trait directly is the ability of the leader to clearly articulate the future and understand the risks/pros-cons of this vision.
3. Competent: This is basically that the leader is competent to lead us where we are headed. A metric here would be track record of getting things done.
4. Inspiring: We also expect our leaders to be enthusiastic, energetic and positive about the future. A good metric to measure this would be the leader’s ability to be able to communicate the future in ways that would inspire people.
5. Intelligent: The leader is able to demonstrate logic, abstract thought, understanding, self-awareness, communication, learning, having emotional knowledge, retaining, planning, and problem solving. This is a tougher one to measure. Credentials and IQ tests explain one dimensionally intelligence. However, track record once again may prove to measure this metric.
6. Experimental: A leader should be willing to try new things. They are innovative, risk taking and daring to take on new challenges. This trait can be measured by the number of innovative things a team does under the leadership of an experimenting leader.
7. Dependable: A good leader is always there to take the fall if things go bad. This trait is measured in moments of crisis based on how the leader reacts.
Gautam Muralidharan - 10/7/2013
A 6.2a
Meters:
Thermostat:
The NEST thermostat is a pretty cool device. It is a learning thermostat that learns your temperature patterns based on what you typically set your device at through different time windows during a day. For example, what types of cooling settings do you choose in the morning vs the afternoons vs evenings, and also weekends vs weekdays. The device is also capable of suggesting a eco-friendly temperature setting based on weather patterns in the area. The device calculates by wirelessly connecting with a central server that stores weather information for an area and the computes the best possible ambient temperatures for a home. It is capable of displaying temperatures in both Celsius and Fahrenheit. It has a rotary dial that allows for easy setting and unsetting of temperature during a day. It also has a color coded display that is either bright red or blue based on the function being performed (heating vs cooling). A space sensor is capable of detecting traffic in the area and turns off the compressor when the entire family is out for extended periods of time during the day.
Clock:
This is a pretty standard device that almost everyone uses. It is used to measure the amount of time that has passed during a day versus how much time remains relative to a nationally accepted baseline. This specific clock has a fun game visual that forces you to do some simple mathematical calculations to determine the actual time of the day. The clock is analog and has the three typical hands (minute, hour and second). The clock does not show divisions between standard 5 minute demarcations. For example, it relies on the user’s judgment to understand whether the time is exactly 8:53 vs 8:54.
Weighing Scale:
This is a digital weighing scale that is capable of displaying how much a person weighs in pounds and kgs. The scale requires someone to stand on the scale for about 5-7 seconds assuming the scale is placed on a flat stable surface (like tiled floors). The device first recalibrates and then displays that is ready to measure weights. The user than is required to stand on the scale. In a short period of time the scale displays the weight in a digital scale. The unit of measurement is also displayed.
Fuel Gauge:
This is a metric I refer to multiple times a day as I am driving across town. I drive almost a 100 miles everyday between clients. As I do so I am sometimes in parts of town I don’t want to stop and gas my car. The gauge is pretty standard. It have about 5 divisions between an empty tank to a full tank. The divisions are not labeled using numbers. They are more intuitive. A half tank is somewhere in between etc. The fuel gauge also feeds another dashboard metric that constantly shows how many miles you can drive on your current tank (based on you’re the speed you are driving at and the number of other operations you are performing like whether you have your stereo on etc.).
A 6.2a
Meters:
- Thermostat
- Clock
- Stop watch
- Softener
- Weighing scale
- Clock timer on Receiver/Blu Ray player
- Oven timer
- Washing machine timer
- Dryer Timer
- Car engine temperature
- Odometer
- Fuel Gauge
Thermostat:
The NEST thermostat is a pretty cool device. It is a learning thermostat that learns your temperature patterns based on what you typically set your device at through different time windows during a day. For example, what types of cooling settings do you choose in the morning vs the afternoons vs evenings, and also weekends vs weekdays. The device is also capable of suggesting a eco-friendly temperature setting based on weather patterns in the area. The device calculates by wirelessly connecting with a central server that stores weather information for an area and the computes the best possible ambient temperatures for a home. It is capable of displaying temperatures in both Celsius and Fahrenheit. It has a rotary dial that allows for easy setting and unsetting of temperature during a day. It also has a color coded display that is either bright red or blue based on the function being performed (heating vs cooling). A space sensor is capable of detecting traffic in the area and turns off the compressor when the entire family is out for extended periods of time during the day.
Clock:
This is a pretty standard device that almost everyone uses. It is used to measure the amount of time that has passed during a day versus how much time remains relative to a nationally accepted baseline. This specific clock has a fun game visual that forces you to do some simple mathematical calculations to determine the actual time of the day. The clock is analog and has the three typical hands (minute, hour and second). The clock does not show divisions between standard 5 minute demarcations. For example, it relies on the user’s judgment to understand whether the time is exactly 8:53 vs 8:54.
Weighing Scale:
This is a digital weighing scale that is capable of displaying how much a person weighs in pounds and kgs. The scale requires someone to stand on the scale for about 5-7 seconds assuming the scale is placed on a flat stable surface (like tiled floors). The device first recalibrates and then displays that is ready to measure weights. The user than is required to stand on the scale. In a short period of time the scale displays the weight in a digital scale. The unit of measurement is also displayed.
Fuel Gauge:
This is a metric I refer to multiple times a day as I am driving across town. I drive almost a 100 miles everyday between clients. As I do so I am sometimes in parts of town I don’t want to stop and gas my car. The gauge is pretty standard. It have about 5 divisions between an empty tank to a full tank. The divisions are not labeled using numbers. They are more intuitive. A half tank is somewhere in between etc. The fuel gauge also feeds another dashboard metric that constantly shows how many miles you can drive on your current tank (based on you’re the speed you are driving at and the number of other operations you are performing like whether you have your stereo on etc.).
Gautam Muralidharan - 10/7/2013
A 6.2b
Warning Sign 1: Small transgressions are ok:
As I was reading through Chapter 4, I realized and learned a very valuable lesson that many of us take for granted. If you start taking short cuts, there is no coming back. While the author remarks how it is very unlikely you will find the culture exhibited by Stage 1 in any of the US corporations I would argue that much of what happened with the financial meltdown and before with companies like Enron starts with an unsupervised gang like mentality where it is ok to do some wrong sometimes as long as you can hide it. These minor transgressions eventually lead down a path where bigger mistakes are allowed, and then eventually it is fine to swindle people of their pensions and life savings. I think as a creative leader opting to never take these short cuts is the most important choice that someone as a leader can make for themselves and their organization. This is a lesson that has to be taught to the rest of the team as well. Often times, the leader is caught unaware of some of the mistakes their teams make and choices they have committed to. When there are signs of a culture where people are looking the other way when decisions of these types are being made, it is important to sense this as a warning bell
Warning Sign 2: Lack of motivation
This happens to all of us. We feel unmotivated and demoralized sometimes because we had a bad day. However, when a leader sees a continuing trend of unmotivated employees that is a more troubling sign. This eventually leads to a Stage 2 type team that is not ideal. As the author observes, this can be detected by personality traits like disconnected or disengaged people, meetings not producing desired outcomes, lack of decisive people or a culture that encourages water cooler type conversations as opposed to direct confrontation.
A 6.2b
Warning Sign 1: Small transgressions are ok:
As I was reading through Chapter 4, I realized and learned a very valuable lesson that many of us take for granted. If you start taking short cuts, there is no coming back. While the author remarks how it is very unlikely you will find the culture exhibited by Stage 1 in any of the US corporations I would argue that much of what happened with the financial meltdown and before with companies like Enron starts with an unsupervised gang like mentality where it is ok to do some wrong sometimes as long as you can hide it. These minor transgressions eventually lead down a path where bigger mistakes are allowed, and then eventually it is fine to swindle people of their pensions and life savings. I think as a creative leader opting to never take these short cuts is the most important choice that someone as a leader can make for themselves and their organization. This is a lesson that has to be taught to the rest of the team as well. Often times, the leader is caught unaware of some of the mistakes their teams make and choices they have committed to. When there are signs of a culture where people are looking the other way when decisions of these types are being made, it is important to sense this as a warning bell
Warning Sign 2: Lack of motivation
This happens to all of us. We feel unmotivated and demoralized sometimes because we had a bad day. However, when a leader sees a continuing trend of unmotivated employees that is a more troubling sign. This eventually leads to a Stage 2 type team that is not ideal. As the author observes, this can be detected by personality traits like disconnected or disengaged people, meetings not producing desired outcomes, lack of decisive people or a culture that encourages water cooler type conversations as opposed to direct confrontation.
Gautam Muralidharan - 9/15/2013
A 3.3
9/15/2013: Updated 5 More Characteristics (Based on natural leader)
Share responsibilities and power: The flying geese teach us a valuable lesson about being secure enough to rotate responsibilities to other team members so that we do not have tired and overworked leaders.
Adapt: The swarms of organisms do not have a standard pattern to survive and evolve as their circumstances change. A creative leader should be able to do the change.
Context Sensitive: Like the Prides of Africa, a leader needs to realize that the context and geography of a situation, and adapt to what that situation demands. True creative leadership recognizes the dynamics of the context it is being applied in.
Cooperate and Compete: Natural instinct dictates that the big fish should swallow the smaller fish in the pond. However, nature dictates that communities that survive compete for resources but cooperate amongst each other at the same time. A creative leader needs to instill this value.
Return on engagement: Instead of focusing on the investment and rewarding the magnitude of investment, a creative leader like nature, rewards engagement.
Gautam Muralidharan - 9/8/2013
A 2.3
Characteristics of a Creative Leader:
1. Honest: This is basically something that demonstrates to the followers that the leader is someone they can trust. The metrics I would measure this trait by is by seeing if the person is truthful, ethical and principled
2. Forward-Looking: People expect leaders to have a sense of direction and a concern for the future of the organization. The metric therefore that could be used to measure this trait directly is the ability of the leader to clearly articulate the future and understand the risks/pros-cons of this vision.
3. Competent: This is basically that the leader is competent to lead us where we are headed. A metric here would be track record of getting things done.
4. Inspiring: We also expect our leaders to be enthusiastic, energetic and positive about the future. A good metric to measure this would be the leader’s ability to be able to communicate the future in ways that would inspire people.
5. Intelligent: The leader is able to demonstrate logic, abstract thought, understanding, self-awareness, communication, learning, having emotional knowledge, retaining, planning, and problem solving. This is a tougher one to measure. Credentials and IQ tests explain one dimensionally intelligence. However, track record once again may prove to measure this metric.
6. Fair-Minded: A leader has to be just. S/he should be able to objectively make decisions based on facts without prejudices. A good metric here would be feedback from reporting teams and track record
7. Broad-Minded: A leader has to be open to new ideas regardless of where they come from. Typically, leaders who foster this type of a culture allow for very flat team structures and strive to eliminate bureaucracy that could serve as a good metric to measure their commitment to this trait.
8. Supportive: A leader is invested in the success of his teams. An easy way to measure this trait is by detecting how many leaders this leader has developed.
9. Straightforward: A good leader speaks to the point and does not beat about the bush. This is a trait that is easily measured by just observing the leader’s communication style.
10. Dependable: A good leader is always there to take the fall if things go bad. This trait is measured in moments of crisis based on how the leader reacts.
Update (10 More Characteristics)
Empathy: I got this from Richard Branson's video. It is very important for a leader to be empathetic and understanding of his team members. This can be measured by how they treat their employees.
Humility: Desmond Tutu's video talks about a leader should be there to serve his followers and not vice versa. I think this trait can be measured by their willingness to serve than self glorify
Passion: They should really believe in the cause.
Patience: The Mandela to Obama video reiterated this trait that the leaders that displayed a sense of clam definitely had an advantage over the ones that didn't.
Broad-Mindedness: Mandela spent his time while imprisoned trying to understand the culture of his incarcerators, so that he could find common ground.
Certainty: A leader has to believe in something and follow through. While this may not always be a positive trait, a level of clarity of thought is very important.
Flexibility: Through contradictory to the previous point, this trait allows a leader to reach across the aisle and form teams in collaboratively achieving objectives
Stage Presence: Good leaders tend to be good communicators
Ability to listen: Mandela hardly opens his mouth during team meetings and finally reinforces decisions and key points. It is important to listen to your team and understand priorities
Remembering your roots and past: The ability to be able to connect the dots is key in being able to marry your past experiences and shaping yourself into the person you are today.
A 3.3
9/15/2013: Updated 5 More Characteristics (Based on natural leader)
Share responsibilities and power: The flying geese teach us a valuable lesson about being secure enough to rotate responsibilities to other team members so that we do not have tired and overworked leaders.
Adapt: The swarms of organisms do not have a standard pattern to survive and evolve as their circumstances change. A creative leader should be able to do the change.
Context Sensitive: Like the Prides of Africa, a leader needs to realize that the context and geography of a situation, and adapt to what that situation demands. True creative leadership recognizes the dynamics of the context it is being applied in.
Cooperate and Compete: Natural instinct dictates that the big fish should swallow the smaller fish in the pond. However, nature dictates that communities that survive compete for resources but cooperate amongst each other at the same time. A creative leader needs to instill this value.
Return on engagement: Instead of focusing on the investment and rewarding the magnitude of investment, a creative leader like nature, rewards engagement.
Gautam Muralidharan - 9/8/2013
A 2.3
Characteristics of a Creative Leader:
1. Honest: This is basically something that demonstrates to the followers that the leader is someone they can trust. The metrics I would measure this trait by is by seeing if the person is truthful, ethical and principled
2. Forward-Looking: People expect leaders to have a sense of direction and a concern for the future of the organization. The metric therefore that could be used to measure this trait directly is the ability of the leader to clearly articulate the future and understand the risks/pros-cons of this vision.
3. Competent: This is basically that the leader is competent to lead us where we are headed. A metric here would be track record of getting things done.
4. Inspiring: We also expect our leaders to be enthusiastic, energetic and positive about the future. A good metric to measure this would be the leader’s ability to be able to communicate the future in ways that would inspire people.
5. Intelligent: The leader is able to demonstrate logic, abstract thought, understanding, self-awareness, communication, learning, having emotional knowledge, retaining, planning, and problem solving. This is a tougher one to measure. Credentials and IQ tests explain one dimensionally intelligence. However, track record once again may prove to measure this metric.
6. Fair-Minded: A leader has to be just. S/he should be able to objectively make decisions based on facts without prejudices. A good metric here would be feedback from reporting teams and track record
7. Broad-Minded: A leader has to be open to new ideas regardless of where they come from. Typically, leaders who foster this type of a culture allow for very flat team structures and strive to eliminate bureaucracy that could serve as a good metric to measure their commitment to this trait.
8. Supportive: A leader is invested in the success of his teams. An easy way to measure this trait is by detecting how many leaders this leader has developed.
9. Straightforward: A good leader speaks to the point and does not beat about the bush. This is a trait that is easily measured by just observing the leader’s communication style.
10. Dependable: A good leader is always there to take the fall if things go bad. This trait is measured in moments of crisis based on how the leader reacts.
Update (10 More Characteristics)
Empathy: I got this from Richard Branson's video. It is very important for a leader to be empathetic and understanding of his team members. This can be measured by how they treat their employees.
Humility: Desmond Tutu's video talks about a leader should be there to serve his followers and not vice versa. I think this trait can be measured by their willingness to serve than self glorify
Passion: They should really believe in the cause.
Patience: The Mandela to Obama video reiterated this trait that the leaders that displayed a sense of clam definitely had an advantage over the ones that didn't.
Broad-Mindedness: Mandela spent his time while imprisoned trying to understand the culture of his incarcerators, so that he could find common ground.
Certainty: A leader has to believe in something and follow through. While this may not always be a positive trait, a level of clarity of thought is very important.
Flexibility: Through contradictory to the previous point, this trait allows a leader to reach across the aisle and form teams in collaboratively achieving objectives
Stage Presence: Good leaders tend to be good communicators
Ability to listen: Mandela hardly opens his mouth during team meetings and finally reinforces decisions and key points. It is important to listen to your team and understand priorities
Remembering your roots and past: The ability to be able to connect the dots is key in being able to marry your past experiences and shaping yourself into the person you are today.