{"id":4718,"date":"2015-06-08T21:38:38","date_gmt":"2015-06-09T02:38:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.scottcochrane.com\/?p=4718"},"modified":"2015-06-08T21:38:38","modified_gmt":"2015-06-09T02:38:38","slug":"is-your-leadership-doing-90-on-empty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scottcochrane.com\/index.php\/2015\/06\/08\/is-your-leadership-doing-90-on-empty\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Your Leadership Doing ’90 on Empty’?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Updated from February 19, 2011 post
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In a recent executive team meeting here at the Willow Creek Association I witnessed a remarkable drama unfold.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Some data was presented that would help to inform an upcoming decision. And yet while each of us on the team were looking at the same pieces of information, we drew wildly different conclusions.<\/strong><\/p>\n

And I realized again that the way in which leaders arrive at decisions goes well beyond the data we’re provided. It’s as much about our inner wiring as it is about the information we process.<\/strong><\/p>\n

As I looked at what this principle means in my own leadership, my mind went back to an earlier post, when I reflected on this principle through the lens of a fascinating insight courtesy of Jerry Seinfeld…<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Jerry<\/em>\u201cMy parents had two constant arguments while they were driving, over how fast my\u00a0father was going or how much gas was left in the tank.” Seinfeld wrote in his book Seinlanguage.<\/p>\n

“My father had a standard\u00a0defense for either one of these. It was always, \u201cThat\u2019s because you\u2019re looking at it from an angle. If you were over here, you\u2019d see.<\/p>\n

From where you\u2019re sitting, it looks\u00a0like I\u2019m doing ninety on empty. But that\u2019s because you\u2019re over there. If you were over here, you\u2019d know I\u2019m in the driveway with a full tank.\u201d<\/p>\n

This dynamic plays itself out in leadership all the time.<\/p>\n

You look at data and say,\u201cWow; things are heading in the wrong direction.\u201d But someone else looks at the same information and says, \u201cThat\u2019s because you\u2019re looking at it from over there. From over\u00a0here<\/em>\u00a0things look just fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bottom line is that when you\u2019re looking at information, you need to know if you\u2019re doing ninety on empty, or actually sitting in the driveway with a full tank.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what I\u2019ve learned from effective leaders.<\/p>\n