An inspired mind is the gateway to future!

Session D: Connect the links

• One of the oddities of life is this: Even when we know what to do and how to do it, why are we often unsuccessful in sustaining a one time behavioral shift?
• Chris Argyris, the renowned professor Behavioral science at Harvard Business School , calls it 'Learned Ignorance.'
• the challenge is best explained by a metaphor:
• Imagine having the different pieces of the puzzle.
• These puzzles have been habitually pieced together in a particular fashion.
• By sheer chance, we managed to get it into a new pattern. Unfortunately, when we attempt to recreate the new pattern, the old program keeps getting into the act.
• Unless we completely dis-install the old routine and rewire the brain to accept  only the NEW program, as the default routine, we will end up confusing the brain.
  
• The purpose of session D is to dis-install the old 'ingrained program' until the new one becomes the default mode of behavior.
  

Install and rewire the new program:

Let us draw a parallel from a situation we may all be familiar with. You have passed the physical examination and also the theoretical test on recognition of traffic signals. You are granted the 'Learner's license' and given 90 days to practice before appearing for securing the permanent license.You drive on to the road and face three challenges:

Connection 1: Dynamics of the Outside-in:

• Assimilate the chaos of traffic in your mind and detect a pattern called the road. even if there are direction boards and lane markings, you can't drive according to those.
  

Connection 2: Dynamics of the Inside-out:

• You have to keep correcting the direction of movement of the vehicle through constant correction of the wheel !
  

Connection 3: Dynamics of the Inside-in:

• Regulation of the movement of the vehicle in accordance with the two above, demands synchronizing the thinking capacity of the driver through the response mechanism of engine train of the car.
  
• although all vehicles operate on the same principles, driving a tractor is different from driving a heavy duty truck. Seamless connection within the three links, the new program, is important!

Tarun is a classic Gen Y executive. He believes in playing hard and living well. After a few successful year, he has grown up to become an obsessive winner. He soon identified his problem as being a 'Vital Many champion'. He wanted to become a 'vital few professional.

Executing the Learning Transfer plan!

• DILTZ's Iceberg: With our help, he drew up his transformational agenda from his current state ( Yellow) to his proposed state ( Blue). Challenge: How to ingrain the Blue state as the default habit?

• Contingency alarms: Tarun developed a criteria list to classify all the decisions he was required to take into three categories. He stuck to this with an iron clad resolution never to violate.
  
• War time: Mission critical emergencies
  
• Peace time: Steady state activities required to delver to plans already made and committed
  
• Waste of time: At worst avoided and at best  postponed.
  

• Feed forward technique: He had attended one of the Programs by Marshall Goldsmith and decided to adopt the technique. It simply meant telling people in advance about his altered behavior and ask them to appreciate whenever he behaved according to his commitments.
  

• Coaching syndicate with peers and suppliers: Tarun identified the 'source' of repetitive crisis and negotiated in advance with his peers about the help he needed from them to live up to his new identity. It was not easy but was well worth the try.