Cocktails with Carl
Context versus Control
What does your organization need to establish before it can successfully operate under a context versus control philosophy?
We’ve all been there before; working/playing/learning from a boss/coach/teacher that insisted on having 100% control over everything.
Steve Jobs was notorious for his desire to control each and every detail at Apple, right down to how a retail transaction would be processed at an Apple Store.
Urban Meyer needed to dictate every single minute of his football practices, stepping in and belittling his assistant coaches-then taking over when they weren’t running drills exactly the way he wanted.
Jobs eventually relented some, but not until after he burned through a number of talented managers, exhausting himself, getting sick, and dying at the early age of 56.
Meyer was fired after 1 season with the Jacksonville Jaguars, losing credibility with many in the football community and leaving his football coaching legacy in a state of uncertainty.
The lesson here is that it’s hard to be a successful control freak. The countless hours doing, worrying, wondering, and second guessing. It’s all debilitating work and eventually takes its toll.
Same too for those working under a control freak. It’s demoralizing to be questioned all the time, knowing that you will never live up to the expectations that have been set. You’ll eventually have no choice but to leave the organization.
This is the definition of a lose, lose scenario.
As leaders, it seems obvious that resisting the urge to control everything we’d like to is imperative for both our personal health and the health of our organizations. If that is the case, then moving forward what must we establish in order to implement a context vs control philosophy that gives us the best chance at success? At June Co, I am specifically focused on the 5 things listed below.
Team chemistry-Without the right mix of experience, talent and energy, providing context alone won’t matter. Find internal leaders that take ownership and have a history of executing given context vs control-then support them with smart, enthusiastic, and open minded team members.
Relationships based on trust-Last year I wrote an entire post on building trust to develop strong relationships- https://www.junecostudio.com/blog/cocktails-with-carl-3 . In an environment that emphasizes context over control, it is a requirement that you trust others to execute at a high level. Without it, the entire system breaks down.
Accountability-Autonomy cannot exist without accountability. When operating under a context vs control philosophy, you are inherently giving your team the space and flexibility to make decisions and execute independently. In exchange, they’ll need to own their decisions and take responsibility for their results.
Effective communication and physical presence-Since providing context is, in essence, sharing loose parameters and/or circumstances/conditions around a certain idea, it is going to be necessary to communicate as often and as clearly as possible. And yes, most of that communication is going to automatically be much more effective if it takes place face to face.
Curiosity-As a company, we’ve been talking about curiosity a lot lately. Since June Co is very entrepreneurial in spirit, we don’t have a ton of rules and rigid processes to guide each and every step (remember, we aren’t micromanagers hungry for control). Therefore, we need people that are willing to ask a ton of questions and/or invest the time and energy to research and learn something new related to our business.
So…..where are you at with your organization in terms of operating philosophy? If you are still trying to control everything, especially post pandemic, it’s probably not working very well. Stress will set in for you, team morale will be low, and you can expect some poor results. I’m recommending making a shift to an operating philosophy based on providing context. To do that you may need to think deeply about your company culture and existing value system. Most likely, something is going to need to change. Figuring out what that is and communicating it to your team is step one. From there, make sure you have the right people in place to execute.
Good Luck!
Cocktail Recipe: The Yellowhammer Slammer
Football season is underway-which means tailgating! Try this popular drink from a bar at the University of Alabama for your next football pre-party.
2 ozs. Vodka
2 ozs. Rum
1 oz. Amaretto
4 ozs Orange Juice
7 ozs Pineapple Juice
Ice
Pineapple Wedge or Orange Slice Garnish
Pour all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake to combine. Pour over a 20 oz cup filled with ice and garnish with either pineapple or orange. Have fun!
