Apr 20, 2022

Traps.

By Mary Trigiani • Issue #1092 • View online

Niceness is up for interpretation. In some companies, niceness is the equivalent of giving in to something that might be ineffective, or even wrong, just so you’ll be perceived as a team player or to rack up IOUs for something you’ll want farther down the line. Companies that nurture this definition of niceness send a signal that mediocrity is just fine. It can get worse. Under the cover of niceness, satisfaction with mediocrity creates the perfect condition for treachery. Better to blend candor with compassion, encouraging everyone to learn to take no for an answer. That’s nice.

Chief | Is Niceness the New Red Flag for a Toxic Culture?

Since women started climbing the corporate ladder, they’ve had to walk the tightrope of balancing the double bind: be dominant and tough like a man in order to be seen as a competent leader, but then be punished for acting outside of their expected gendered role of ‘nurturer.’ Studies show women leaders who deliver critical feedback are more harshly judged as “unlikable” than when men give feedback. This then causes women executives in particular to fall into the likability trap, becoming prey to second guessing themselves and overcompensating with niceness.

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It’s not enough for CEOs to empathize with employees

Hougaard would have leaders add a dose of reality to this equation by practicing what he calls wise compassion. Wisdom is the ability to see reality clearly and act accordingly. Compassion is the intention to be of benefit to others.

Research conducted by Potential Project, including data from 15,000 leaders and 150,000 employees in 5,000 companies around the world, has established a direct correlation between wise compassion and leadership rank.

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Author Talks: Laura Watkins on the performance curve and problem-solving | McKinsey

When we’re not taking the time to recharge, our brains are more likely to be in a protect state, which is a fight-or-flight state where our prefrontal cortex—the part of our brain that brings our most human, highest forms of thinking—isn’t going to be working as well, so we’re not going to be bringing our best thinking to the problems. Over the longer term, when the brain is constantly in that fight-or-flight state and we’re feeling stress, it affects the structure and the functioning of the brain.

www.mckinsey.com • Share

NACD BoardTalk | How Compensation Committees Are Battling Uncertainty, Talent Woes

One of my boards would go to operating locations a couple times a year before COVID to visit locations. The board had opportunities to interact with employees. One of the trips, we had a picnic and we invited all employees. Any employee could walk up to a board member and ask any questions and vice versa. That open environment gives the board a chance to directly see how the organization is truly living and breathing the company’s value and purpose, and feel the company’s culture deeper down in the organization.

blog.nacdonline.org • Share

10 rules for starting a business, according to start-up founders

We asked the founders of 17 start-ups to share their most valuable advice for other self-starters. This is what we learned.

www.siliconrepublic.com • Share

Visual Guide To The Differences Between A Psychopath And A Sociopath | Daily Infographic

An October 2013 article in “Psychology Today” describes this difference between sociopaths and psychopaths as the difference between people who are bad versus those who are mad. This distinction is important because it helps determine treatment options for sociopaths. While there isn’t yet a cure for psychopathy, some sociopaths can learn coping skills that help them lead more productive lives.

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Want to understand Web3? Start with these 32 terms - Technical.ly

…we took the liberty of rounding up the terms we’ve seen the most that will hopefully clarify at least some of what’s going on in this new frontier for the internet.

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The Book of Kells Is Free to Explore Online in High Resolution

If a trip to Dublin is not in your budget, you are in luck. Transparencies of the 680 pages (340 folios, or leaves) have been rescanned in high resolution so you can zoom and scroll to your heart’s delight. If you would like to know more about the Book of Kells, check out this free online course from Trinity College Dublin on the Irish masterpiece.

mymodernmet.com • Share

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By Mary Trigiani

The Newsbrief features items Mary clips from the news.

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