Stop Solving the Wrong Problem

A symptom is not the problem but a warning light worth listening to.

Our Jobs Are Full of Red Lights

Ignoring one small warning light almost killed the revolutionary idea of self-organization even before it was born.

When a “Low Voltage” light came on, Brian Robertson, the creator of Holacracy, was a student pilot shortly into a solo flight. He checked all other instruments. Everything was OK. So he decided to ignore the “Low Voltage” warning. After he landed, he realized what a bad decision he’d made. That little light was indicative of a major failure, he later learned from the mechanics. He had been pretty close to crashing the plane.

Our daily jobs are full of warning lights. And our natural tendency is to silence them. Because we pay more attention to the sensors indicating that everything is OK. The warning light is wrong.

Ignoring the warning lights can crash your team.

Don’t Silence the Symptom. Listen.

The symptom is not the problem. But there’s a problem behind the symptom. Whatever warning light turns on at your organization, listen to it.

What is …