“…do you remember how students reacted when someone in the exam always asked for supplements first?” he said.
This was during one of my role transitions. A new role is always exciting, ain't it? Especially for someone like me - a fixer. I’ve always loved spotting leaks, and the thrill of fixing them gives me a dopamine rush. So, when you step into a new job or role, your eyes light up at the fountain of leaks your predecessor may have missed - often due to blind spots or other reasons.
So I got to work - identifying leaks, calling out system & process inefficiencies, and tackling productivity hogs that needed fixing. But what followed was what usually happens when someone new steps in with a grand plan to turn things around: questions, objections, skepticism, and roadblocks from all directions. It was frustrating, but I stayed the course. Still, there came a point when I began to feel that things weren’t heading in the right direction.
Around that time, I had my year-end discussion with my boss - we talked about what went well and what could have been better. But the very next day, a calendar invite landed in my inbox titled “Year-End Catch-Up.” It was from my boss’s boss. It took him just five minutes to succinctly sum up what he thought my past year had been like - and then he said what I quoted above. He had sensed the unrest within me.
“Every individual is really good at a few things, decent at some, and needs to work on others,” he said, pausing to let the thought sink in. “Speed is your forte. But if you keep asking for supplement after supplement, some people may get uncomfortable or defensive. In school exams, it’s all about individual performance. But in the corporate world, most projects are team efforts, with dependencies across stakeholders. You won’t get very far if you’re fast but others can’t keep up. So slow down a little. Eventually, they’ll speed up a bit too and somewhere in the middle, you’ll find the pace to get where you want.” he added.
The thought stayed with me - long and deep. It reminded me of Herbie from The Goal by Eliyahu Goldratt. Herbie was the bottleneck that determined the pace of the entire group. But he wasn’t the problem - he was part of the team. His characteristics simply made him the natural limiter. I realized I’d encounter many Herbies in my work. Heck, I might even be a Herbie for someone else.
From then on, I decided to slow down my fixing crusade. Not stop - just slow down a little. I began trying to understand the Herbies and, where possible, nudge them to pace up a bit.
Is slowing down frustrating at times? Absolutely. But it’s still better than running around with your shirt on fire - spreading the fire.
