MODERN LEADERSHIP
soft skills that are the backbone of
all business relationships. Technical
expertise, experience and results
focus are highly valued skillsets.
However, being strong in analytical
skills doesn’t necessarily translate
into also being good with people.
The question is can you have
both? While research has shown
this to remain a rare commodity,
exceptional leaders have the
capacity to alternate rapidly between
analytical thought and social skills.
Better still this skillset can be
learned.
SAFETY FIRST: THE HUMAN
COST OF BUSINESS.
The brain’s primary function is to
keep us safe. Our very survival has
depended on being alert to any
potential danger in our environment
and then taking the appropriate
action to either move away (quickly!)
or towards that place that looks
as if it will provide us safety or
reward in the shape of food, shelter
or a mate. In the workplace this
is about providing a brain safe
environment to enable us to do
our work well. While sabre tooth
tigers are no longer a threat, the
modern day equivalent is manifest
as the increased complexities of
work being performed and the
hours worked. This coupled with
economic uncertainty and global
geopolitical events have contributed
to the spiralling levels of stress,
stress related illness, mental health
issues, high staff turnover and
presenteeism.
Increasing efficiency and
effectiveness requires examining
current workplace practices to
determine whether tasks are being
undertaken in a brain friendly
manner that will minimise a threat
response and promote a reward
state. When we feel safe, we are
more relaxed, more focused, more
collaborative and open to new
ways of doing things, and less
likely to engage in conflict that
result from misunderstanding or
misinterpretation.
WORKING WITH THE SOCIAL
BRAIN.
Maslow’s hierarchy states we depend
on having air, food and shelter to
sustain us. This thinking has now
being challenged by those working
in social cognitive neuroscience who
believe our ability to connect socially
is as important to our survival.
As humans we are hard wired to
connect. We have a fundamental
drive to “belong” because being part
of the “in-crowd” makes us feel safe.
Exclusion causes us social pain,
shown by studies to hurt as much
as physical pain, because they share
common neural pathways. Research
has shown how taking Tylenol (a
common painkiller) reduces social
pain. While this is not suggesting
that analgesia is all that is required
to numb the pain of feeling rejected,
ostracized or bullied, it underpins
how important the role of social
and emotional intelligence is to
the health and wellbeing of any
workplace. There are six elements
that leaders can use in every social
interaction to minimize a threat
response in themselves or others
and boost effectiveness.
TRUST
Trust is the foundation of every
interpersonal relationship. You
build trust by developing your
trustworthiness as demonstrated by
your actions and interactions with
others. When we are with someone
we trust, levels of oxytocin (the ‘trust
hormone’) are elevated, so we feel
safe and more relaxed. This leads
to more open, deeper and more
meaning conversations. A trusting
relationship doesn’t hold back, we
smile, interact and collaborate more.
RESPECT
Feeling respected for who you are,
regardless of your position in the
pecking order provides a sense
of knowing who you are, and your
capability. The problem is it can
be very easy to inadvertently show
disrespect, which immediately puts
that person in a state of threat.
Being overlooked for an invitation to
a team meeting, witnessing an ‘eye
roll’ while putting across your point
of view, or not being acknowledged
when entering a room rapidly
diminishes self confidence and self
esteem. Maintaining respect starts
with things as simple as using a
person’s (correct) name and always
giving credit where it is due.
AUTONOMY
Choice matters. Having a sense of
self-direction or choice has been
shown not just to be important for
motivation and sense of purpose;
it’s linked to health and wellbeing,
even to the level of determining how
long we live. Studies have shown
how a lack of autonomy is linked to
a 30% higher risk of heart disease
as well as being demotivating.
Providing choice, even if it just a
perception, reduces threat, keeps us
well, builds resilience and promotes
a willingness to step up to new
challenges.
IMPARTIALITY
Playing fair extends far beyond the
nets of the local tennis club. The
‘Old Boys Network’, favouritism or
bullying is a very strong threat that
October 2016
ModernBusiness
43