Category: Confrontation/Conflict

Confront the Brutal Facts

The third principle from the book Good to Great, by Jim Collins, is that companies/organizations which move from good to great, and stay there, are willing to confront the brutal facts of their environment/cultural/abilities, yet not lose faith. “The good-to-great companies displayed two distinctive forms of disciplined thought. The first, … is that they infused the entire process with the brutal facts of reality. The second, . . . is that they developed a simple, yet deeply insightful, fame of reference for all decisions. . . . You absolutely cannot make a series of good decisions without first confronting the brutal facts.” (69,70)

The focus of this principle is to not allow or accept a tepid evaluation which denies reality. By that I mean to continue to say how wonderful we are or how well things are going, when in reality there are indications that things are not going so well. Most would call this “rocking the boat.” This type of willingness to confront the brutal truths of the organization and it’s environment/culture/abilities and not loose faith is a rare commodity. The ability to stick one’s head into the sand and ignore the obvious negatives has allowed many organizations to quietly drift into a stagnant, placid pond.

Collins writes: ” In confronting the brutal facts, the good-to-great companies left themselves stronger and more resilient, not weaker and more dispirited. There is a sense of exhilaration that comes in facing head-on the hard truths and saying. ‘We will never give up. We will never capitulate. It might take a long time, but we will find a way to prevail.'” (81)

This principle is one of the most difficult for many leaders to accept. The resistance either stems from the unwillingness to admit that some part of what has been implemented is simply not working, or the inability to even see the negatives. Both are caused by pride. Confronting the brutal truth takes a certain amount of humility.

Confrontation Without Purpose = EGO

So, I was talking with a friend, who was basically lied to by his boss about why a certain component of his salary package could not be offered, only to find out it had been offered to the previous person to hold the same position. He was understandably upset. Because the boss was out of town for a couple of days he couldn’t storm into his office to confront him as he wanted to do. To say he was FRUSTRATED would be an understatement.

I asked him what he wanted as a result of the confrontation. He said that he wanted the boss to promise to be truthful in the future. I shared with him the story of the scorpion and the frog and suggested that a promise from a scorpion is worth exactly nothing if it runs contrary to the nature of the scorpion. So, now what do you want from the confrontation; an apology? an increase in your salary package? what. 

The bottom line is that confrontation without a clear purpose is usually a matter of salving the ego as much as it is about justice. And if it is about ego, then one has to examine one’s motive for the work. If your motive is because this is your calling – then confrontation only has value as it secures justice, not just to make you feel like you stood up for yourself. This is not a philosophy for the individual with insecurity issues. Can you rise above your own ego to pursue the best path for the organization? Yet, even in calling there is a line where one cannot turn away from situations which require a stand to be made. How one makes that stand, however, IS within your power and many do not take into account the power of their words, nor the long term effect of a hastily spoken word. Judgment as to another’s motives is always risky at best, and often puts you in the position of the pot calling the kettle black. Thank you very much Mr. Pot. You are welcome, Mr. Kettle. 

However, if your motive for being at the organization is NOT a calling but merely a step toward a personal goal, confrontation may be of greater necessity, yet again, the choice of the wording is crucial to a satisfactory resolution. It seems that some people have an uncanny knack of selecting words which cause others to respond with anger and a desire to hurt back. 

Coming back to the issue cited at the beginning of this post. Integrity in leadership cannot be overstated. Say what you mean, mean what you say, and let what you say be the truth.