Why leaders need to be more open minded

Once in an interview, TVS Motor Company CMD Venu Srinivasan said that TVS missed the infotech bus. Ideally, they could have been at least $1 billion business in the knowledge sector. It takes real guts and a true spirit of awareness to admit where one has gone wrong. Sometimes, one can correct mistakes but mostly, they are lost causes. The basic realisation that one cannot be right about everything is crucial.

A Harvard research says that most leaders start their speech by addressing their teams as, "I may not be totally correct but thought of sharing with you..." At one go, this kind of beginning puts people at ease, eliminating fears of being witch-hunted or taken to task. It also helps the speaker by opening them to more ideas and better listening.

Good leaders learn to be flexible and allow others to express. That's the first step of being open-minded. Now, what to do if you are not holding a leadership position but are a solo entrepreneur or a professional? Well, every human being has to learn to be open minded. It is equally applicable to parents of teenage children and to kindergarten teachers.

But is it really possible to become open-minded easily? It is actually a simple, step-wise plan and the only rule here is to keep reminding oneself about staying on the course.

Everyone has a viewpoint: Each person has an opinion and it may not always resonate with yours. Isn't that is what makes the world a better place? If everyone thought and acted in the exactly same way, the growth of humankind would have been dead. It is the same way that in any organisation. It's a bad idea to get a "Yes Boss" team. People need to align to the bigger picture, not necessarily consent to everything.

Overconfidence versus smartness: Good presentation skills, better technical knowledge and at times, just being in the same organisation for a long time gives a false sense of "I know it all." Just because you are doing the same thing for 10 years does not make you best in that work. What it does is to increase familiarity with the daily process.

Pause before snapping: People in higher positions often make a mistake. They instantly snap on people who point out their faltering. It may be as simple as missing out on reading an email or forgetting to respond to a call. Once the 'Big Gun' gets loaded, everyone starts looking for a shelter. This kind of reaction is very evident to others but the person in question actually fails to see that. The easiest way to overcome it is to take a deep breath and ask, "Ok, what did I miss? Update me again." If you are uncomfortable with this step, think of the embarrassment of finding out that facts were different than you perceived them to be.

Honesty and tact: This step needs to be worked between teams and leaders simultaneously. 360-degree appraisals have failed miserably in many organisations. Despite most people and seniors asking for upfront candid feedback, they are unable to handle negative comments. This may be difficult but it is very important to see blind spots for oneself. You need to coach people to speak the truth without being vindictive, and with tact. I have seen people making good suggestions and getting boomeranged only because the fact was not laced with diplomacy. Ask people to come up with suggestions and encourage free speaking with clarity that every opinion is important but may not be implementable.

We live in a world that is constantly busy and multitasking. Every aspect of technology evolves every nanosecond. Now having an open mind can be a total bliss. It empowers you to relate to others without being harsh. Being neutral and developing the habit of gathering facts as well as looking at things from different perspectives helps. It may not be needed to change your values or thoughts always. It just means accepting others as smart humans as you are.

The writer is strategic advisor and premium educator with Harvard Business Publishing