Have you ever felt like you’re using the wrong tool for the job?
Story
A client sat across the table and told us a story about a brilliant manager who is a nightmare to work with.
“We’ve tried everything,” he said. “Coaching, training, meetings, instructions. We even sent him to get an MBA. But nothing helped. He’s very good, but needs to change and just won’t.”
This was a classic case of trying to use “technical” solutions to an “adaptive” problem.
So what’s the difference?
Adaptive vs. Technical
If you’re hammering a screw into a board, it might go a little way in. But ultimately, you’re using the wrong tool for that situation. That’s why it’s so important to know the difference between “adaptive” and “technical” problems.
As you can see, there’s no video online explaining how to solve that second list of problems. That’s how you know you’re in adaptive challenge territory. Here’s how the patron saint of Adaptive Leadership puts it:
“Technical problems…can be resolved through the application of authoritative expertise and through the organization’s current ways of doing things. Adaptive challenges can only be addressed through changes in people’s priorities, beliefs, habits, and loyalties. Making progress requires going beyond any authoritative expertise to mobilize discovery, shedding certain entrenched ways, tolerating losses, and generating the new capacity to thrive anew.”
Ronald Heifetz, The Practice of Adaptive Leadership, 2009
With our clients, we often deal with both. Technical skills are necessary to have as a firm foundation. But Adaptive skills are where we really see people thrive. It affects every aspect of our complex lives and not just the workplace.
The Payoff
One client recently reflected on her adaptive challenge: delegate more. It’s not that she didn’t know “how” to delegate, she didn’t know how to bring herself to delegate. But with a little adaptive coaching she minimized the terror (we think that’s not too strong a word) and risk to a safe level and was actually able to do it.
The direct result she said was “my team is now making our company much more money,” which was funny to hear put in such direct terms. But the indirect result was freeing her up for more strategic thinking, new client relationships, and supporting that now (much busier) team.
But here’s the really indirect result: she feels great having conquered an adaptive challenge.
When we master a new technical skill (like when one of our coaches learned to pilot a helicopter as a mid-life challenge to herself), that feels really great. For a while. But we move on (she doesn’t fly helicopters as much any more) or move into circles where the technical skill is common place (the helicopter pilots club?).
Not so with adaptive challenges. When we make a breakthrough, like learning how I can bring myself to face something difficult, that feels really good for a long time. We may have setbacks because these are really difficult things to change. But the feeling of accomplishment is not on the same level as technical mastery.
Oh, and it also happens to help the business in a huge way too. We don’t forget that easily either.
And the really good news: we can help you do it, because we’ve helped thousands of leaders do it over and over again!
What Ever Happened…
To that leader with the MBA. We did a Developmental Sprint® and he uncovered the hidden barriers blocking his change. In only 4 weeks he was operating in totally new ways at work, and his colleagues noticed. “We didn’t think this was possible,” they said. “I didn’t either,” he replied.
Next Steps?
What’s your next adaptive challenge?
Book a free 20-minute call with one of our coaches to discuss how we can support you you to make your next big breakthrough (even if it feels impossible right now).
Note: Our Adaptive Leaders team works across more than 15 industries, in multiple countries, and often deals with highly confidential information. The examples and case studies in these stories have been modified slightly to protect the identities of the clients.
