Today, I have one question I’d like to ask you.

It’s just going to take a bit of setup to get there.

Recently I’ve begun doing some research into the works of Max Weber. Though you may not know his name, he is widely considered to be “one of the three principal architects of modern social science” (to quote Wikipedia), along with Karl Marx and Émile Durkheim.

What’s most interesting to me about Weber’s work is his focus on bureaucracy. While this certainly isn’t a sexy topic, it’s pretty safe to say that it’s a subject which affects both me and you on a daily basis. From classic examples like the DMV (*collective sigh of exasperation*), to elected or campaigning politicians (*collective eye roll*), to the TSA line at the airport (*collective groan*) to the dreaded yearly performance review at work (*one more sigh*), we are all regular victims of these systems.

This is where our friend Max comes in. He says there are three ways to organize the power/authority in a society:

1. Charismatic,
2. Traditional , and
3. Legal-Rational.

They’re pretty much exactly what you think. Charismatic leaders get to lead because they are seen as charismatic or gifted. Traditional leaders are put in place because of a cultural tradition — think monarchies. Legal-Rational leaders are seen as authorities because the legal/bureaucratic system in place gives them the power and permission to do so. (For a bit more on these levels go here.) Weber saw these stages as a hierarchy of sorts, a kind of “tribe evolution”– an inevitable social growth pattern. Cultures that evolve will naturally advance from a Charismatic model towards a Legal-Rational one.

He also foresaw the negative effects of this growth: something he called “the shell as hard as steel.” A Legal-Rational model of power naturally creates something called bureaucracy, which in turn delivers an oligarchy where a few rule over the many. As this happens, it systematically generates a confining, dehumanizing society. (Sound like anything else I write about?) Also translated as “the iron cage,” this is the inescapable result of a Legal-Rational system.*

So, at long last, here’s the question:

What if there’s a #4…?

What if there’s something that’s more evolved than Legal-Rational?

I think there is, and I also think it’s on the way.

//

*Read more about the “iron cage” here. It’s worth your time.

//

There is a natural tension between the proponents of “experience” and those who tout “innovation.”

Experience sees the value in leveraging wisdom gained through years of learning and doesn’t want to repeat past mistakes.

Innovation recognizes the world isn’t the same as it used to be and therefore will require fresh, new solutions.

These things often feel like they are mutually exclusive, particularly in our companies.* Organizations are often good at one at the cost of the other — and generally our businesses tilt hard in favor of experience. Almost everything we measure (and measurement is a big freakin’ deal) slants the scales this direction, from our hiring requirements (“Must have… 9 years!“) to financial reports which compare to years past.

The problem is that experience just doesn’t mean as much as it used to.

In a world that moves as quickly as ours, we shouldn’t be afraid of the “next thing,” the incremental thing. We should be afraid of the other thing — the thing which completely disrupts the market and renders our product or service irrelevant.

//

*Of course, the thoughtful leader isn’t sucked into this false dichotomy, but sees value in both of these perspectives. They recognize that it’s not either/or, but both/and. The hard part is in resolving the tension. And that, of course, is a big part of why leaders make more money.

//

Once upon a time, there were three bricklayers.

When asked, “What are you doing?” the first bricklayer replied:

“I’m laying bricks.”

The second bricklayer was asked the same question. He answered:

“I’m putting up a wall.”

The third bricklayer, when asked the question “What are you doing?” responded, with pride in his voice:

“I’m building a cathedral.”

If you search for this story online you’ll find different variations, most including some sort of explanation about how it speaks to a person’s attitude and ability to see the big picture. While these things are true, and insightful, this story makes me wonder about something else.

Why is it that some companies seem to have an overwhelming amount of cathedral-builders?

Then on the other hand, why do other businesses seem to only contain hordes of bricklayers?

There is no question that a person’s individual perspective (attitude, big picture, etc.) is crucial. But the importance of the culture that individual is IN is often highly underestimated — even though a cultural explanation actually explains this conundrum much better.

If there is a group/culture/tribe component to our work — if there is something about the collective “we” that makes us better or worse as individuals — then this story isn’t just about a person’s mindset. (Also, as leaders we have very little direct control over how other people think, right?) BUT… if there’s something about the environment a person is in which can create more (or less) meaning in their work, then leaders are on the hook for something different. A work environment — unlike a person’s mentality — is something a leader has a HUGE amount of control over.

So then the next question is:

“As a leader, how do I create more cathedral-builders in my company… by building a better work environment?”

Once we start asking that question, we’re headed in the right direction.

//

You may be aware of the “Occupy Wall Street” movement that has begun. You may also be aware of the “99 Percenters” and how these two things are connected.

But, in case you weren’t aware — or if you don’t know what it’s all about — I wanted to do my part to spread the news.

(Frankly, I’m surprised an uprising took this long to get going.)

The Occupy Wall Street movement is a group of people who are fed up with the way things have been going in the U.S. They see their actions as a type of Arab Spring against the establishment. There are five basic themes of the movement, which are pretty well described in this summary article on Good (this article is politically slanted to the left, but their categories seem fair).

The overarching issues connecting the movement are:

1. Affordable health care
2. Jobs
3. Home stability, affordability & mortgage debt
4. Education not connecting to jobs
5. Debt (credit card, school, etc.)

I don’t think I have to belabor the pain of this — I have no doubt that you can personally relate to struggles/frustrations in at least one of these themes. What I want to point out is something else:

These all have to do with WORK.

1. The best health care in the U.S. is provided through employers we work for.
2. Jobs are obviously a pretty big part of work.
3. We can afford to live in a home because we work.
4. Education isn’t providing a direct path to meaningful work (or often, work of any kind).
5. Debt may be personal choice to a large degree, but there’s no question that for me, at least, if my work situation had been better throughout my twenties I would have a hell of a lot less debt today.

To me it seems pretty simple: Wall Street is being occupied because WE NEED A WORK REVOLUTION.

The challenging part is that this problem won’t likely be solved through government involvement. Are there things that government can do to help? Sure, but that’s not where the real power lies.

Now, more than ever before in human history, the power lies in the people.

If we, the people, can find a way to change the way we work, we will change everything.

We are fed up with these problems, are we not?

Work is where we fix them all.

What will you do to help the revolution?

//

Edwin Catmull is a thin man in his mid-sixties, with a Ph.D., wire-rim glasses, and graying beard. In interviews he comes across as soft-spoken, almost pensive, although one can read years of wisdom behind a kind expression. He is earnest and straightforward, talks patiently, and, in most every way, resembles your favorite college professor.

But Dr. Catmull is not a professor.

He is the President of two of the most powerful and well-respected companies in the world: Disney Animation Studios and Pixar, the company who literally created computer-generated animation.

On September 1, 2008, the Harvard Business Review published an article written by Dr. Catmull entitled How Pixar Fosters Collective Creativity. In this article, Catmull states some seemingly backward approaches to bringing in new talent to an organization:

“Successful organizations face two challenges when bringing in new people with fresh perspectives. One is well-known—the not-invented-here syndrome. The other—the awe-of-the-institution syndrome (an issue with young new hires)—is often overlooked. 

The bigger issue for us has been getting young new hires to have the confidence to speak up. To try to remedy this, I make it a practice to speak at the orientation sessions for new hires, where I talk about the mistakes we’ve made and the lessons we’ve learned. My intent is to persuade them that we haven’t gotten it all figured out and that we want everyone to question why we’re doing something that doesn’t seem to make sense to them. We do not want people to assume that because we are successful, everything we do is right.”

How many companies do you know who practice this philosophy? Where the President of the company, first of all, shows up at new employee orientations? And then he doesn’t just make an appearance or sit in the back, but stands up and tells stories about company screw-ups, to help reinforce a culture that respects ALL ideas, even if they come from a first-day-on-the-job newbie?

The list of organizations coming to my mind isn’t very long.

I watched the documentary film The Pixar Story this weekend (and highly recommend it). As you’re surely aware, there’s a certain magic about Pixar. What you may not know is that most of the fairy dust resides within their unique culture—and this is something they’ve fought very hard to protect.

There are so many things we can learn from an organization like Pixar, but for today that’s all I want to say: great company culture may emerge through serendipity, but it doesn’t stay great by accident. People—real people who care enough to put some skin in the game—have to get involved, stand up, get a little dirty. People like Ed need to do some “crazy” things.

Don’t kid yourself that a great workplace “just happens.” Like growing a garden, it requires a lot of work and a bit of mess. It takes time and effort—and this means having people who have enough time built in to their jobs to actually focus on it. There’s simply no other way to build an amazing work environment.

How many Dr. Catmull’s does your company have?

Are you one?

//

Ten years ago yesterday we watched, aghast, as unthinkable acts of hatred altered the American landscape. Skylines were altered. Stories were etched into the souls of thousands upon thousands of people. Some of our brothers and sisters didn’t see another sunrise. We were changed.

For awhile.

Like I’m sure it did for everyone else who was old enough to remember it, watching the footage and seeing the pictures of 9/11 brought me back to that day. But even more than that, it brought me back to the day after. And the day after that.

9/12.
9/13.

The grieving was sharp, piercing, but there was something else, too.

In the days after, we also discovered a newfound (old-and-re-found?) camaraderie. There was a… connectedness that happened.

Remember that?

We were deeply saddened by our loss — and the events of that day surely affected some of us more than others in terrible, tragic ways — but in many senses the hole that was left was a collective one. It was something that happened to all of us, and the sadness didn’t stick to Manhattan, but somehow snuck its way behind all our eyes. It belonged to all of us. And as the smoke began to clear, we found ourselves more unified. We remembered our need for each other. The deep sadness somehow melted a bit of the ice of our usual pretense. Though the means were monstrous, it softened us in some very good ways.

And then, we forgot.

We lost our sympathy and neglected the importance of our relationships. We forgot how much everything we do impacts everyone else.

I am glad that we took a day, yesterday, to remember. But I find myself wondering if we will forget again, all too quickly. If we will rush back into our petty rivalries and political squabbling. If pundits and producers will again clog newsfeeds with pointless nonsense. If, as quickly as we remembered, we will forget those things that really make America great.

I hope we don’t. That would be the real disgrace to yesterday.

//

P.S. This post was inspired by an article by Tom Brokaw. Read it here.

//

In the old world, we needed a lot of laborers. We needed a lot of people to take “this thing” and move it over to “that place.” We needed people to “push that button” all day. We needed people expend all sorts of energy doing a whole lot of things that we just don’t do anymore. We needed a lot of people to scale the work.

Now, it’s not that we don’t need those things anymore, it’s just that we don’t do them any longer. Increasingly, this kind of “assembly line” work is getting pushed further and further away, especially in the US, due to globalization and technology.

And yet, our organizations are still built to encourage button pushers.

How did we get here?

One of the best short explanations I’ve seen comes from a fabulous book called Tribal Leadership.* Here’s an excerpt/summary:

Between 1890 and 1920, 80 percent of the rural population moved to the city to take millions of new factory jobs, and they brought their children with them. On the farm, many children meant many helpers, but in the factory, many children meant many accidents and acts of exploitation. Children’s welfare and child labor practices became the issue of the age, and most people felt that something had to be done to protect and train the children while mom and dad worked in the factory.

The solution was to train a new generation of workers by teaching them inside a system that looked a lot like a factory. In school, bell rings, go to class; bell rings, recess; bell rings, go back to class; bell rings, eat lunch; bell rings, go home. At school, children with the “right” answer get a gold star, then an A. A star pupil is one who does the homework and has the right answers. This new system undid the classic liberal education, which said that the value was in the well-designed question, and this shift in focus made the worker exploitable, often consigning him to a Stage Two or Three career.** In between bell rings, children learned what they needed to become effective workers, and that amounted to reading, writing, and math. The system didn’t emphasize creative thinking, strategizing, leadership, or innovation. Stars were smart conformists, and people who stuck to the pattern became model students.

When children come of age, they find a familiar model. Whistle blows, go to work; whistle blows, take a break; whistle blows, go back to work; whistle blows, eat lunch; whistle blows, go home. A star employee is one who knows the right answer to a factory problem, obeys the rules and doesn’t make waves.

The current incarnation of our schools were created to serve the old world. They teach students how to stay in line and push buttons and follow orders.

But those aren’t the things the world needs anymore. In basic economic terms, the demand for assembly line workers is plummeting. And on the other side, the need for more people who can do creative, connective, collaborative, complex work — instead of just “pushing the button” — has grown much higher than the supply of them.

We’re churning out button pushers into a world that doesn’t have buttons.

Because of this disastrously outdated system, we’ve got a job crises that goes much deeper than just having (or not having) a “job.” We’ve got a full-blown work epidemic, and it’s going to take a whole lot of us working together to fix it.

//

* I honestly can’t recommend this book highly enough. Please buy it. And read it. At least once.

** This will make sense when you read the book.

UPDATE 9/5/11: Here’s a great post on this topic today from Seth Godin.

//

I’ve always wanted to know “Why?” (God bless my saintly parents). I reason that if we can understand why things are happening — if we can figure out what’s hiding in the background motivating people or systems or organizations — it’s easier to make sense of things and figure out how to respond.

Today I wanted to share with you a few ideas that I’ve found interesting and valuable. They should also help explain why I think the way I do about the world. These first two are excerpts from the 2009 Deloitte Shift Index (you can get the whole report here if you feel so inclined).

Why does passion matter? Because staying competitive in the newly globalized labor market requires all of us to constantly renew and update our professional skills and capabilities. The effort required to increase our rate of professional development is difficult to muster unless we are passionately engaged with our professional activities. (p. 70)

I’m part of a tremendous tribe of people over at the Management Innovation eXchange — or MIX — who are discussing this idea in depth right now, particularly how to create communities of passion (get a taste here).

Trends set in motion decades ago are fundamentally altering the global landscape… Clearly, there is a fundamental disconnect between the mind-set and practices of companies and the environment in which they compete… These findings suggest a fundamental re-thinking of the way we do business is in order. (p. 81-82)

I drastically shortened this quote; the whole two pages it comes from are a great read if you have time. The marketplace is shifting in completely unprecedented ways. Fortunately, we have better tools than ever before (i.e. collective global brainpower) to help us understand what’s going on.

The next thing I want to share is a video from TED called “When Ideas Have Sex” — turns out it’s much less bawdry than you might hope, but still incredibly brilliant.

//

What makes America great is not our endless preoccupation with liberty or freedom (those things are great, but they’re more effects than than they are causes).

It’s not our military force or our Constitution (impressive creations, perhaps, but still not the source of greatness).

It’s not our our radical inclusiveness or endless diversity (again, more of an outcome — though I must say I am very proud of those things when we do them right).

Like most things (true for organizations and leaders, for example), it’s the WHY that makes America great.

It is the underlying motivation of our founders — WHY this country exists, in the first place — that has made it a great place to live for many years.

At its core, America was founded on the idea that certain ways of treating other human beings are NOT OK. Our architects rebelled under a banner that said, “If people are not being treated rightly, it is up to us to speak up and change it.”

What makes America great is our fundamental passion to challenge the nature of societal entropy. It’s an internal fire that makes us stand up and shout, “THAT IS NOT OK!” — and then, even more importantly, to DO something to change it.

What makes America great is our desire to grow, to evolve, to become something better than we were. And because this started with our founders, this catalytic energy is somehow baked into our DNA.

To be sure, we make (and have made) our share of mistakes, but greatness isn’t defined by the fact that we do stupid things, but that we FIX them and don’t repeat them. That we now recognize the equality of different genders and races, for example, and that we’ve changed our systems to reflect this new way of thinking.

Why am I bringing all this up?

Because a moment very similar to 1776 is upon us again. But this time, the threat is not an oppressive country “out there,” but the institutional systems we built, right here.

At this very moment, far too Americans are suffering at the hands of a economic system that is tragically unjust and unfair. It is unsustainable at best and will be our complete undoing at worst.

It is NOT OK for corporate profits to be soaring while so many people remain un- or under-employed.

It is NOT OK for incomes to be this disparate.

It is NOT OK for jobs to pay so much less than what people need to live.

It is NOT OK for 82% of our people to not be passionate about the work they do. (82%!?)

It is NOT OK for people to die making our gadgets (this may happen overseas, but these are our companies).

It is NOT OK.

As Americans, we have a duty to do something to change the status quo.

Those in power have no reason to change. But that is the very reason revolutions happen.

Will you stand up? Will you do something?

America is great today because a fiery group of rebels believed SO STRONGLY that they could create a better life that they went to war with the greatest empire on earth. I do not believe today’s revolution is one of violence, but it will take the same spirit.

Do we believe in a better life that much?

What will it take to upset you enough to do something?

//

P.S. Today marks the 43rd anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination. In honor of his life and activism, GOOD posted a terrific article today that is along the lines of this post. Check it out here.

//

Further recommended reading:
Dutch bankers’ bonuses axed by people power from The Observer
Vietnam by Bob Lefsetz
Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1% from Vanity Fair

//

Quite possibly my favorite commercial ever. (From TBWA\Chiat\Day’s Think Different campaign in 1997.)

Here’s to the crazy ones.

The misfits.
The rebels.
The troublemakers.
The round pegs in the square holes.
The ones who see things differently.

They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo.

You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward.

And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius.

Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.

Love.

//

P.S. For any other Apple fans out there, there’s a fun Easter egg related to this campaign that can still be found in your Mac OS. Want a hint? Look at your TextEdit icon… I mean REALLY look…

//