Trapped in Amber
Have you ever seen those blobs of amber with some hapless insect trapped inside? There it is, frozen in time, forever locked in a golden prison in whatever position it happened to be in at the fatal moment. That really must suck.
Seriously though, I think that in some metaphorical way I have some idea how that insect must have felt. One minute able to move freely, even to fly, and the next, unable to move a muscle or flex a wing. Often times I join organizations as an outsider. I’m there to provide help in some small way. On my good days I might even be able to help bring about meaningful change. It’s on those days that I feel like I can fly. I’m able to move through the organizational matrix freely, perhaps even dance a little along the way.
So, with the usual qualifications, I consider myself to be reasonably adept at moving through the organization. However, I recently found myself in a very different situation. It was in a simulation. An exercise as part of a recent training. I was supposed to be an executive in a large company. I work with these guys all the time. I knew the rules of the game before it even started. I was going to crush this.
So, we started the simulation and I dove into it with enthusiasm. I played by the rules and tried to do the right thing. As I was doing this, I could hear a little voice in my head saying, “OK, big guy, start dancing.” But for some reason I couldn’t. I was working within the system. I was stuck. Frozen.
It really did suck.
I think this happens in a lot of organizations to a lot of people. You’re bright, creative, and motivated. Yet, somehow the rules of the system are configured such that you don’t feel like you have the power or ability to make any big moves. Everything feels constrained. Trapped in amber. There are many things that can contribute to this. Perhaps a rigid organizational hierarchy. Maybe a risk averse culture that doesn’t support new ideas. Or even explicit processes and rules that make any sort of change difficult. It might even be work overload. It could be one or many of these factors that come into play. All of them can lead to a state of ineffectiveness. An inability to move.
So how do you get out of this trap? Assuming you don’t want to end up some fossilized specimen, how do you escape these constraints?
Here are a few thoughts:
Wait– That’s right, just wait. Sometimes when we face something new, when the pressure is really high, we tend to short circuit a bit as we come to understand the new challenge. Once we have oriented ourselves, we find our confidence and our ability to move returns. This is what happened to me in that simulation. Once I had a little time to absorb the new stimuli, I found I was able to move again with confidence.
Pause and Take a Break – Sometimes we get so absorbed in the day-to-day that we just need a break. Removing yourself for just a bit from the pressure can give you the break you need to start thinking clearly again and see a way to move forward.
Leave– You may find that you simply have yourself in a situation where there is no winning. There is no meaningful solution. In which case, it may be time to move on. It’s unfortunate, but it happens.
Peer Support– It’s very likely that if you feel unable to move, your peers probably feel the same way. If so, perhaps it’s time to talk to each other. Maybe working together, providing support to one another, you can help each other out.
Mentor or Coach– Sometimes an outside perspective is what you need. Someone who has been there and understands what it’s like but isn’t living under that pressure in the moment. Someone who can provide guidance to help you get moving again.
Interested in Learning More?
I provide innovative agile coaching, training, and facilitation to help organizations transform to deliver breakthrough products and performance. I do this by achieving a deep understanding of the business and by enabling the emergence of self-organizing teams and unleashing individual passion.
To learn more about the services that I offer or to arrange for an initial consultation, please see thomasperryllc.com