Tag Archives: extraordinary results

Ordinary People

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“My team is a bunch of idiots,” Paula started. “They can’t get anything right. Everything they touch turns to rust.”

“Oh, really?” I replied. “When did this start?”

“Always been this way,” she said.

I nodded. “Before you were promoted to manager, weren’t you a member of this team? Were they idiots then? Were you one of the idiots?”

“Okay, okay,” Paula agreed. “Maybe I was an idiot, back then. It’s just so frustrating being a manager. I wish I could get better people on my team.”

“Why would that make a difference?” I asked.

“If I had better people, I could get better results,” she pursed her lips with a defiant look in her eyes.

“So, you think you would get extraordinary results if you had extraordinary people?” I prodded.

“Yes, absolutely,” Paula sat up straight.

“What if I told you there were not that many extraordinary people out there. That most people are just like you and me, more ordinary than brilliant. Your challenge, as a manager, is to get extraordinary results from ordinary people. If that were true, what would you do? What would you work on? By the way, if you WERE able to get extraordinary results from ordinary people, maybe your team wouldn’t look so ordinary.”

Mediocre vs Extraordinary Results

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“I think the Board will like this plan,” Kylie said. “It’s a variation on the plan from last year. I upped the percentage increase in sales, added some resources. I think it will get support.”

“Why do you think it will get support?” I asked.

“Well, it’s similar to last year’s plan, and I got unanimous support for last year’s plan, so I expect the same support for this year’s plan,” Kylie replied.

“So, no one is going to challenge it? You like it because this thinking got support last year, including you, and it’s the same Board, who won’t push back because it fits the narrative, the same story. Your plan assumes nothing has changed. How could someone object to something similar that they did not object to last year?”

Kylie shifted uncomfortably in her chair. “Look, I need to present something that will get approved without a lot of resistance.”

“It’s the same plan with the same thinking that got mediocre success this past year. If you keep thinking the same way, you are going to get the same results. If you want extraordinary results, you have to think in a new way.”