Stress and discomfort

In the volume world, wherever you find it, the tolerance for variation and chaos diminish. It’s all about efficiency and effectiveness and getting everyone to perform at a tolerable level of excellence. So goes volume manufacturing. So goes volume retail. So goes volume travel. So goes volume everything. Volume demands order. No edges.

For the rest of us – from the lone actors to the ones building new structures, from the ones pushing boundaries to the ones bringing new things into the world – tolerating, embracing and leaning in on variation and chaos is the order or the day. Living on the edge.

Problems come when the variation engine gets plugged into the steady state nation. Whether that’s inside the organisation or outside – the connection of opposing mindsets causes stress and discomfort on both sides.

The only option: notice it, name it, deal with it.

Skippy strategy: Respect the edge and the middle.

Get a daily nudge by subscribing to email updates.

Category:
Teams