What Would Indiana Jones Do? 08 Dec 2007

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Dan
 
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Here’s a snip from a recent meeting I had with one university’s senior leaders:

Person A
I agree things need to change. We should form a committee to discuss it.
Person B
But who would we invite?
Person C
Well, we definitely need X to be there.
Person B
Sure, but if we’re going to invite X, we should also invite the CIO.
Person A
Hey, I think they’ve done something similar — we should ask them to present!
Person B
Great idea! No wait, hold on, do we have a mission statement?  Before they present, we’ll need a mission statement.
Person A
Of course, a mission statement, definitely.
Person C
Whoa whoa whoa, guys. We’re getting way ahead of ourselves. Before we define a mission statement, what’s our vision?

At this point, disgusted, I shouted, “If you keep going like this, it will take at least a year to accomplish anything!”

To which one of them replied, “Hey, a year! That’s pretty good!”

And another quipped, “I hope it takes five years, ’cause I’ll be gone by then,” while the others laughed and nodded.

Keep in mind: these were senior administration officials, men and women who had developed and now were expected to realize the institution’s long-term goals.  Ostensibly, leaders.  But not.

A Lesson from Dr. Jones

I was reminded of the classic scene where a giant boulder is chasing after Indiana Jones. With no way out and the boulder approaching fast, there were only 5 possible actions our hero could take:

  1. Ignore It: “What’s that rumbling?  Must be nothing.”
  2. Protest It: “Can we do this next year?  Right now just doesn’t work for me.”
  3. Hide From It: “Maybe if I squeeze into the corner, it will roll past me.”
  4. Attack It: “My punches are legendary. I’ll destroy it before it destroys me.”

Or he could do what he did.

Most people say he ran from the boulder.  That’s one perspective. 

Instead, I would say that he got out in front of it…and ran in the same direction.

The boulder, obviously, is change.  When it comes, you have 5 options.  You can ignore it, you can protest it, you can hide from it, and you can fight it.

But all those responses will fail — you will most definitely end up crushed.

The only viable response to change is to get in front of it and run in the same direction.