Mindsets Are Better Than Processes. But Processes Build Mindsets.
...is the Agile community really divided - or do we just think so?
The Holy Grail (another symbol!) of organizational change is changing the mindsets of the people in an organization, which will in turn change the ways they act and so shift the behavior of the organization itself.
The problem, of course, is that we lack a Weasley’s Magic Mindset Changing Powder we can spread through the HVAC. So we have people tell stories about themselves, and we sit in circles a lot, and we ask them to read. I’m sure all these things have an impact on mindset, but when they’re done (and done, and done…) in the workplace, I’m guessing that the biggest short-term change is an increase in frustration and distrust.
Within the Agile Community, we see a deep conflict between ‘procedural’ agilists and ‘behavioral’ agilists; one group claims the other is just rearranging deck chairs, and one group claims the other is just peddling slideware and self-affirmation.
As I see it, mindsets are the most important thing; but we lack a coherent, repeatable process – or plan for a process – to help people move toward better mindsets in agile.
I read a lot and I talk to a lot of people, but it may be that I’m flat wrong here. If so, I’d love to be shown it.
There’s a lot of discussion about ‘mindset training’ – lots based on growth mindset, lots based on varying concepts of agile or collaborative mindsets. What I don’t see is a proven set of curriculums around mindset; what I don’t see are consistent batches of people who have come through that curriculum and adopted good mindsets.
There are absolutely individuals who do – just as there are individuals who come in the door with great mindsets.
But remember that what we’re here to do is democratize greatness.
We want to take the performance of exceptional leaders and exceptional teams and help less-exceptional leaders and teams reach toward them.
So what do we do? Do we build a ten-day, thousand-slide workshop? Do we run a deeply personal, soul-baring workshop designed to – as Simon Sinek describes – collectively “find our why?”
Maybe. I won’t discount those things.
But I want to suggest another approach, and one that may move our community toward reconciliation. I want to suggest that mindsets grow from habits; habits grow from behaviors; behaviors grow from environments; and environments grow from processes.
I’ll suggest that what we have here is a failure to connect.
On the procedural side we suggest – as SAFe does - that mindset changes come from organizational changes. But then we don’t bother building any ladders past the procedural changes to guide or ease people’s path toward mindset changes.
On the behavioral side we believe when we can unlock the right mindset, the organizational changes we need will follow. But we don’t see the clear record of organizations training people in mindsets and significant change following.
I’ll stand here and say that I think that neither approach to changing mindsets is working – and further, as a part of Team Procedural – that the work we do is too often stalling out as we get deeper into organizations because we’re held back by the behaviors driven by mindsets that don’t embrace agility.
So far, I’ve kicked sand on people and complained. That helps with my frustration, but not as much as actually pointing us in a positive direction might. So let’s try and do that.
Earlier, I suggested that “mindsets grow from habits; habits grow from behaviors; behaviors grow from environments; and environments grow from processes.” Where’d that come from?
In my experience, there are three classes of institutions that have institutionalized changing adult mindsets.
Martial arts;
The military;
and Organized religion.
If anyone here can think of others, please, please leave them in comments.
I’ve never served in the military, but two of my sons have, and a number of my friends have. I’ve practiced various martial arts for a long time (as I’ve said, I’m not dangerous or skilled, I’m just persistent). And while I’m not religious, my wife is and many of my dearest friends are.
And I see some common paths in each of these institutions:
A significant part of the institution is specifically focused on developing participant’s mindset
It takes time to develop mindsets – your relationship with the institution isn’t ‘one and done’
Leaders are largely selected based on demonstrating that they’ve internalized the institution’s mindset
Mindset is rooted in habits which the institution supports
Habits are rooted in behaviors which the institution teaches
Behaviors are driven by an environment that rewards them and punishes deviation;
The environment is built on well-defined processes / rituals.
If I’m right here, the path to the mindsets we want is through habits we build from behaviors we are taught by the environment we are in which is defined by processes within that environment.
Let me give an example:
Bruce Lee is probably one of the best-known figures in modern martial arts, even though he’s been dead for almost 50 years. There’s a famous (in the martial arts world) interview he gave on mindset-based ‘no style’ martial arts. I use it in teaching agile mindset, and it’s worth a few minutes of your time – you can watch it here:
At the time of this interview (late in his career) he was a master of multiple forms of martial arts and the founder of his own style. This is a master’s approach, not a beginner’s.
What’s it like to be a beginner martial artist? Do you sit in circles and watch Bruce lee talk about ‘no style’? Not so much. Having taught a bunch of beginner martial artists, what they are taught is
How to dress (how the school uniform is worn)
How to enter the studio
How to address the instructor and senior students
How to line up
Basic stances (how to position your feet, body, and arms)
…and from there an increasingly complex set of moves – processes – which are defined by the ‘school’ or art you are part of.
Eventually you have learned enough of these that you get pads and go try them on each other – at first in ‘one step sparring,’ eventually in free sparring.
At each step, there are lessons in mindset; some people get them, some don’t. Some come in the door with them. Eventually, the ones who don’t fall away, and most – maybe not all – the ones left at the senior-most ranks have the mindset the art projects (and every art projects a different one).
So what we see (and I’ll suggest what we see echoed in the military and religion) is a mindset-changing process that has some common characteristics:
It takes place both intentionally during training and over time by embedding people in a group that values and embodies (at least superficially) the mindset;
The beginning steps are all procedural, and make little effort to engage the student’s mindset – except through the act of walking in the door;
The procedural steps are explicitly designed the lead the student along a path that stacks simple habits into more complex behaviors;
Some of the teaching is explicit – but much of it is tacit and modelled through the behavior of more senior members of the community.
In terms of the OP – the question of the division in the Agile community between practitioners of procedural agile and of behavioral agile – I’ll offer a suggestion. Maybe we need both; and maybe we should be structuring procedural agile practices in a way that offers a stairway to mindsets, and behavioral agile in a way that is grounded in – and transcends – process.
Excellent examples offered here Marc!
@Grant I have a multi-generational family of veterans and clergy and would like to offer a different frame.
Reza Aslan has this great quote, "most religious people say 'my faith forms my values', when in truth we shape our religions to match our deepest convictions. It's more true to say 'my values define my faith'
So, YES, there are some core beliefs that ATTRACT people to an institution, AND the institution will inundate its acolytes with structures, policies, practices in order to shape them into a new mold.
YES, the Military may attract the bad boy, rough neck AND it counters that in boot camp with 'YOU are nothing. WE are everything'
YES, the martial arts may attract the bad boy, rough neck AND it counters that ego with patient practice
YES, I grew up in an evangelical church and also felt it made sense to vote republican as an early adult AND the deeper I got into church tradition, and finding mysticism, the more expansive I saw the universe where I am more likely to vote democrat these days.
What's also interesting is the personal path that's woven in all of these. I know several vets coming back from combat proud of their service, and others become much more ponderous and philosophical about war, and yet they all went through the same routines, practices, and policies.
Fascinating.
Thanks for the post & comment.
Marc- I wonder about the military changing mindsets. I might be confused on the term "mindset"- but I tend to think of mindsets as complex frames with which people use to make sense of the world. They run incoming perceptions through the frame and that results in a model of the world inside our brains that helps us deal with complexity. That model- as all models are- is flawed and highly influenced by our frame- which is biased towards our internal propensities (5 factor psychological model for a simplistic example).
So, the military experience might make a few minor changes to our mindsets, but, for the most part we will not change our mindset all that much, but, instead incorporate the military experience within our mindset. The military experience would change behavior, but not necessarily mindsets. So- for instance- Liberals don't go through Basic and then start voting Republican all of a sudden. We might change some of our behavior - but that can be from the motivation to avoid punishment vice a change in mindset.
I'm not really sure I've read anything or experienced anything that led me to believe that adults can change their mindset much more than a few degrees. We can definitely see evidence where processes changed behavior- but I'm not sure behavior necessarily changes how people think.