Tag: Infinite minded leaders

As a LEADER are you looking for a MASTERCLASS on INFINITE MINDEDNESS?CVS Caremark is your point of reference..

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Adopted from the following great insight shared by Simon Sinek from his book The Infinite Game

CVS Caremark in Feb 2014 , declared that it would stop selling cigarettes in all its stores.This was in line with the broader health care commitment it had embarked on.

For many Wall street pundits this seemed a suicidal move  that would cost it revenues to the tune of billions of dollars.

But what transpired was magical.All those who predicted that cigarette sales from CVS would shift to other local stores were taken by surprise.

The move by the infinite minded player CVS had a lasting impact on the population who started reducing cigarette consumption and hence instead of shift in revenue due to sale of cigarettes the cigarette consumption itself drastically reduced.

After a initial setback due to fall in share prices , as a result of this move , the share prices of CVS recovered since this was taken in a very positive manner by the employees and population in general.

In line with its infinite minded vision CVS Caremark changed its named to CVS Health in Sep 2014.

This proves beyond doubt that an infinite minded vision is always for the long run and the risk taken proves its worth in the long run.

These are the components an INFINITE MINDED leader considers in the INFINITE GAME of business

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Adopted from the following great insight shared by Simon Sinek from his book The Infinite Game

These are the five necessary ingredients of a JUST CAUSE

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A JUST CAUSE is espoused by a visionary leader and acts as a guiding star for motivating more and more followers.

In essence a JUST CAUSE has these 5 essential ingredients:

  1. It must be FOR SOMETHING , meaning that it must be affirmative and optimistic for something better in the near future
  2. It must be INCLUSIVE – To embrace more and more followers who would like to be motivated
  3. Service Oriented meaning thereby it should be for the primary benefit & SERVICE of others
  4. Resilient and should be able to ensure political , technological and cultural changes
  5. Idealistic – Should be asymptotic and though big and bold should be ultimately un-achievable

Adopted from Simon Sinek’s book The Infinite Game

These are the 5 practices followed by an Infinite Minded Leader

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An infinite minded leader who adopts an infinite mindset in order to play the infinite game of business must follow the following 5 practices:

  1. Advance a Just CAUSE which acts as a GUIDING STAR for motivating followers.
  2. Build Trusting teams where people psychologically safe with each other in order to be high performing
  3. Respect , study and be prepared to learn from Worthy Rivals to keep playing the infinite game more effectively
  4. Prepare for Existential Flex which is run time disruption at a time things are going well.This is done to ensure that disruptive players do not make the organization extinct.
  5. Demonstrate the Courage to Lead

Adopted from Simon Sinek’s book The Infinite Game

This is how Great Leaders arrest ethical fading

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Ethical Fading is a term that relates to ethical lapses that individuals resort to when pitted against each other in a culture that promotes short term thinking and goals.

It is an irony that when we resort to a finite mindset in an environment where already “Ethical Fading” exists , we get more of it.

Hence the need of an infinite mindset to handle such situations.These are leaders who believe that creating a conducive culture to reverse effects of “Ethical Fading” need huge patience and hard work.

They acknowledge the fact that this requires a devotion to a JUST CAUSE , a bias for WILL over RESOURCES and the ability to nurture TRUSTING TEAMS.

Adopted from Simon Sinek’s book The Infinite Game

Great leaders use these techniques to shower praise the right way

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The following subtle techniques are used by Great Leaders to shower praise to result in the most desired impact

  1. Praise effort and strategy and not intelligence
  2. Make praise specific
  3. Praise in private
  4. Offer praise only when there is a good reason for it

Adopted from Daniel Pink’s book Drive

Great leaders practice these three things to Give Up Control

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Intrinsically motivated Type I leaders practice giving up control to give more autonomy to employees to unleash creativity and make innovation happen.

These are the three techniques used by them to accomplish the same:

  1. Involve people in goal setting
  2. Use noncontrolling language
  3. Hold office hours and meet people face to face

Adopted from Daniel Pink’s book Drive

We humans are born to be “players” and NOT “pawns”

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Right from the caveman times we are born to be autonomous individuals , not individual automatons.

Our brains are wired to be intrinsically motivated and hence we are inherently “Type I ” individuals.

Outside forces including the very idea that we need to be managed have conspired from time to time to change our default setting and turn us into “extrinsically motivated” Type X individuals.

To return us from Type X to Type I where we are out our autonomous best just needs infinite minded leadership and creation of a conducive environment built on trust.

Adopted from Daniel Pink’ book Drive and Simon Sinek’s book The Infinite Game

Major difference between a “finite” minded and an “infinite” minded player

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The following quote from Simon Sinek aptly highlights the difference in mindset between an infinite minded and a finite minded player.

“Where a FINITE MINDED player FEARS things that are NEW or DISRUPTIVE , the INFINITE MINDED player REVELS in them.”

This quote aptly highlights the difference between “finite” & “infinite” minded leaders

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Infinite minded leaders are never worried about challenging the STATUS QUO and bringing in DISRUPTION.

The following quote from Simon Sinek , aptly highlights the difference:

“Where a FINITE minded player FEARS things that are NEW or DISRUPTIVE , the INFINITE MINDED player REVELS in them.”