Here's part 2 on mental maps from Hay Group's Rick Lash:
Last week, we talked
about mental maps – what they are, how we build them and the necessity of
updating mental maps to match our professional development.
about mental maps – what they are, how we build them and the necessity of
updating mental maps to match our professional development.
Our mental maps help us to navigate society by
allowing us to build experience-based expectations of the world. We learn to
predict the likes and dislikes of spouses, whether or not we can depend on a
coworker to get a job done right and what constitutes acceptable behavior at
cocktail parties.
allowing us to build experience-based expectations of the world. We learn to
predict the likes and dislikes of spouses, whether or not we can depend on a
coworker to get a job done right and what constitutes acceptable behavior at
cocktail parties.
But perhaps the most important and complex
mental map we have in our heads is our self-image map: how we see ourselves in
our mind’s eye. Self image can include memories of key life events, what
motivates or engages us, and our deeply held beliefs about the traits and
characteristics that define who we are. Our self-image, along with other social
mental maps, enables us to test out courses of action and predict the likeliest
outcomes in our interaction with others.
mental map we have in our heads is our self-image map: how we see ourselves in
our mind’s eye. Self image can include memories of key life events, what
motivates or engages us, and our deeply held beliefs about the traits and
characteristics that define who we are. Our self-image, along with other social
mental maps, enables us to test out courses of action and predict the likeliest
outcomes in our interaction with others.
You can think of these projections as
resembling an endless game of chess that we are constantly playing in our heads
every time we step into a meeting, have a discussion with the boss, make a
presentation or reprimand someone. The most important chess piece is
you.
resembling an endless game of chess that we are constantly playing in our heads
every time we step into a meeting, have a discussion with the boss, make a
presentation or reprimand someone. The most important chess piece is
you.
Our self-image map can determine success or
failure in the world. But our self-image tends to lag behind when the
social environment changes, like when we get a promotion, transition to a new
organization or experience some other major life event like getting married or having
children. We are usually unaware of how an outdated self-image map may be
wreaking havoc in our internal game of social chess and keeping us stuck in old
patterns of behavior.
failure in the world. But our self-image tends to lag behind when the
social environment changes, like when we get a promotion, transition to a new
organization or experience some other major life event like getting married or having
children. We are usually unaware of how an outdated self-image map may be
wreaking havoc in our internal game of social chess and keeping us stuck in old
patterns of behavior.
So how do we nurture and develop a more up to
date self-image map when we need to see ourselves in a different way? In
our experience, people have the greatest success in redrawing their mental maps
three important ways:
date self-image map when we need to see ourselves in a different way? In
our experience, people have the greatest success in redrawing their mental maps
three important ways:
1.
Change Your Thinking: Ingrained old self images frequently serve as
stumbling blocks when people are trying to rewrite their mental maps. For
example, on a recent Hay Group project with a hospital client, we worked with
an excellent nurse who was struggling after having been promoted to nurse
manager. It turned out that she still had a very active mental self-image of
being a bedside nurse, which made it very difficult for her to hold others
accountable or engage in the confrontational discussions that are sometimes
painful, but necessary for managers. It was only when she broadened her
self-image from ‘nurse’ to ‘nurse leader’ by deepening her understanding of
what her leadership role really required that she was able to perform to
expectations in the nurse manager position. Here are two techniques that you
can use to redraw your self-image map:
Change Your Thinking: Ingrained old self images frequently serve as
stumbling blocks when people are trying to rewrite their mental maps. For
example, on a recent Hay Group project with a hospital client, we worked with
an excellent nurse who was struggling after having been promoted to nurse
manager. It turned out that she still had a very active mental self-image of
being a bedside nurse, which made it very difficult for her to hold others
accountable or engage in the confrontational discussions that are sometimes
painful, but necessary for managers. It was only when she broadened her
self-image from ‘nurse’ to ‘nurse leader’ by deepening her understanding of
what her leadership role really required that she was able to perform to
expectations in the nurse manager position. Here are two techniques that you
can use to redraw your self-image map:
-
Rewrite
your story: Your
self-image mental map is continuously reinforced by the story you continually
tell yourself about who you are. This constant narrative lies just below your level
of awareness. Any self-image story is usually defined by a central theme
and may be more rooted in the past, present or future. For example, in
director Steven Spielberg’s self image story, the central theme is one of being
an outsider. As a child he had trouble
fitting in, experienced anti-Semitism and was bullied. These early difficult
experiences defined how Spielberg saw himself growing up and influenced his
career as a revolutionary filmmaker and the characters he created. Winston
Churchill’s self-image story was defined by a sense of his own grand
destiny. If your self-image story needs a rewrite, try taking a piece of
paper and drawing a timeline of your career – chart the ups and downs beginning
at the start and ending today. What patterns do you see? When were
you most engaged? When did you feel most miserable? What values were with
you throughout and helped you navigate those changes? What is the theme
that defines who you are in your career in five words or less? Now, think
about how your story needs to change or expand to meet the challenges you will
face over the next few years. It can be helpful to study the lives of
great leaders, read their biographies and seek inspiration from real or
fictional characters from the past and present who embody the values and
behaviors that you admire.
Rewrite
your story: Your
self-image mental map is continuously reinforced by the story you continually
tell yourself about who you are. This constant narrative lies just below your level
of awareness. Any self-image story is usually defined by a central theme
and may be more rooted in the past, present or future. For example, in
director Steven Spielberg’s self image story, the central theme is one of being
an outsider. As a child he had trouble
fitting in, experienced anti-Semitism and was bullied. These early difficult
experiences defined how Spielberg saw himself growing up and influenced his
career as a revolutionary filmmaker and the characters he created. Winston
Churchill’s self-image story was defined by a sense of his own grand
destiny. If your self-image story needs a rewrite, try taking a piece of
paper and drawing a timeline of your career – chart the ups and downs beginning
at the start and ending today. What patterns do you see? When were
you most engaged? When did you feel most miserable? What values were with
you throughout and helped you navigate those changes? What is the theme
that defines who you are in your career in five words or less? Now, think
about how your story needs to change or expand to meet the challenges you will
face over the next few years. It can be helpful to study the lives of
great leaders, read their biographies and seek inspiration from real or
fictional characters from the past and present who embody the values and
behaviors that you admire.
-
Understand
your role: Most of us
have a weak understanding of what a new role really requires. Ask any new
mother or father and they will tell you they were unprepared for the true
demands of parenthood despite having observed friends and relatives perform
parenting roles. The same thing happens when we move to a new business role and
find that our old mental maps have us bumping into roadblocks as we try to
navigate the requirements and responsibilities of our new position. One of
the best ways to update your mental map is to talk to your boss, direct
reports, and your peers to get their perspectives on what they expect from you
in your role. These conversations can give you a deeper sense of the true
demands of your role and what you need to do to fulfill them. Getting
feedback through multi-rater assessments can also be helpful by feeding you
important information on what you need to change to succeed.
Understand
your role: Most of us
have a weak understanding of what a new role really requires. Ask any new
mother or father and they will tell you they were unprepared for the true
demands of parenthood despite having observed friends and relatives perform
parenting roles. The same thing happens when we move to a new business role and
find that our old mental maps have us bumping into roadblocks as we try to
navigate the requirements and responsibilities of our new position. One of
the best ways to update your mental map is to talk to your boss, direct
reports, and your peers to get their perspectives on what they expect from you
in your role. These conversations can give you a deeper sense of the true
demands of your role and what you need to do to fulfill them. Getting
feedback through multi-rater assessments can also be helpful by feeding you
important information on what you need to change to succeed.
2. Change Your Behavior: An accumulating body of evidence shows that
real-world actions can have an impact on brain processes and by extension, on
mental maps. Stroke victims with partial paralysis who force themselves to use
their weaker sides are sometimes able to regain significant control and movement
in their limbs. Brain scans of these stroke patients show that mental
connections that were destroyed in one part of the brain have been rebuilt in
other undamaged parts of the brain. There are many other examples of this same
sort of phenomenon. London taxi drivers who must memorize a vast amount of
information about their city tend to have an enlarged hippocampus, the portion
of the brain devoted to spatial memory and navigation. Playing the piano – or
even visualizing playing the piano – seems to boost the size of a portion of
the cortex, an outer layer of the brain responsible for higher brain functions
including the voluntary hand muscle movements used by pianists.
real-world actions can have an impact on brain processes and by extension, on
mental maps. Stroke victims with partial paralysis who force themselves to use
their weaker sides are sometimes able to regain significant control and movement
in their limbs. Brain scans of these stroke patients show that mental
connections that were destroyed in one part of the brain have been rebuilt in
other undamaged parts of the brain. There are many other examples of this same
sort of phenomenon. London taxi drivers who must memorize a vast amount of
information about their city tend to have an enlarged hippocampus, the portion
of the brain devoted to spatial memory and navigation. Playing the piano – or
even visualizing playing the piano – seems to boost the size of a portion of
the cortex, an outer layer of the brain responsible for higher brain functions
including the voluntary hand muscle movements used by pianists.
The
idea here is simply that something new can seem very uncomfortable at first. In our previous blog post introducing mental maps, we gave the analogy
of a toboggan rider who builds a mental map by taking the same route over and
over again. In this analogy, trying to change your behavior would be like
asking the tobogganist to leave the smooth track and forge a new trail – there
are sure to be some bumps and maybe even some spills along the way. Over time,
new tracks are built and the way gets easier.
idea here is simply that something new can seem very uncomfortable at first. In our previous blog post introducing mental maps, we gave the analogy
of a toboggan rider who builds a mental map by taking the same route over and
over again. In this analogy, trying to change your behavior would be like
asking the tobogganist to leave the smooth track and forge a new trail – there
are sure to be some bumps and maybe even some spills along the way. Over time,
new tracks are built and the way gets easier.
Reprimanding an underperforming nurse might have seemed painful
to the reluctant nurse manager the first time she tried it, but the second time
was probably easier. After five or ten difficult discussions, the nurse manager
would most likely have become more comfortable with that aspect of her role.
She would have built a mental map that would guide her through the situation
and its possible permutations. How can you take a concrete step toward
changing your mental map?
to the reluctant nurse manager the first time she tried it, but the second time
was probably easier. After five or ten difficult discussions, the nurse manager
would most likely have become more comfortable with that aspect of her role.
She would have built a mental map that would guide her through the situation
and its possible permutations. How can you take a concrete step toward
changing your mental map?
-
Pick
one thing: A
single drip of water over time can carve a hole in a rock. It’s all about
focus. Which behavior would have the biggest impact on your leadership if
you could change or strengthen that behavior? Benjamin Franklin pioneered this
method for self-improvement. Write down the behavior you want to develop
or change. Be specific, as if you were giving directions to someone else.
Each day look at the behavior to remind yourself of what you need to do.
Track how often you demonstrated the behavior and when you failed to do
so. At the end of each week, and for a period of three weeks, monitor how
you are doing and commit to increasing the frequency of the desired
behavior. Soon, the new mental wiring will take over and the new behavior
will become an integral part of you.
Pick
one thing: A
single drip of water over time can carve a hole in a rock. It’s all about
focus. Which behavior would have the biggest impact on your leadership if
you could change or strengthen that behavior? Benjamin Franklin pioneered this
method for self-improvement. Write down the behavior you want to develop
or change. Be specific, as if you were giving directions to someone else.
Each day look at the behavior to remind yourself of what you need to do.
Track how often you demonstrated the behavior and when you failed to do
so. At the end of each week, and for a period of three weeks, monitor how
you are doing and commit to increasing the frequency of the desired
behavior. Soon, the new mental wiring will take over and the new behavior
will become an integral part of you.
3. Change Your Context – A physician friend of mine got some
good advice. She had recently been promoted to a leadership role in her
hospital. Three months later she approached her supervisor complaining
that none of her peers would talk to her anymore because of the difficult
decisions she had to take in the department. Her supervisor told her to
get new friends. This advice sounds harsh, but newly promoted executives
may in fact wish to broaden their circle of associates in order to have a
better chance of successfully redrawing their mental maps.
good advice. She had recently been promoted to a leadership role in her
hospital. Three months later she approached her supervisor complaining
that none of her peers would talk to her anymore because of the difficult
decisions she had to take in the department. Her supervisor told her to
get new friends. This advice sounds harsh, but newly promoted executives
may in fact wish to broaden their circle of associates in order to have a
better chance of successfully redrawing their mental maps.
Why
should we make new friends when we take on new jobs? The problem here is that
we all carry around mental maps not only to guide our own behavior, but also to
anticipate how the people around us will act in a given situation. As we get to
know people, we develop experienced-based predictions for how they are likely
to act in a variety of circumstances.
should we make new friends when we take on new jobs? The problem here is that
we all carry around mental maps not only to guide our own behavior, but also to
anticipate how the people around us will act in a given situation. As we get to
know people, we develop experienced-based predictions for how they are likely
to act in a variety of circumstances.
People tend to reinforce or reflect back at us
the self image that we project outward. In normal circumstances, this is often
healthy and beneficial. But problems can arise when one person tries to evolve
professionally – changing how she thinks of her own self image, acting
differently to change behavioral-based mental maps – and then has coffee, lunch
or drinks with former co-workers who can undercut all that change progress by
mirroring back an old, outdated self-image. Such interactions can erase much
progress made toward changing the mental map – like an artist who paints a
canvas with one hand and hurriedly scrapes off all the paint with his other
hand.
the self image that we project outward. In normal circumstances, this is often
healthy and beneficial. But problems can arise when one person tries to evolve
professionally – changing how she thinks of her own self image, acting
differently to change behavioral-based mental maps – and then has coffee, lunch
or drinks with former co-workers who can undercut all that change progress by
mirroring back an old, outdated self-image. Such interactions can erase much
progress made toward changing the mental map – like an artist who paints a
canvas with one hand and hurriedly scrapes off all the paint with his other
hand.
We are not suggesting
that professionals who are promoted should jettison former friends and
colleagues. We are saying simply that it is vital for executives to expand their
network so that it includes people who have no preconceived notions of a
person’s mental map and can thus start from scratch and assemble a mental map
that corresponds with existing behaviors.
that professionals who are promoted should jettison former friends and
colleagues. We are saying simply that it is vital for executives to expand their
network so that it includes people who have no preconceived notions of a
person’s mental map and can thus start from scratch and assemble a mental map
that corresponds with existing behaviors.
Thinking about self-image and changing our mental maps is critical both for
someone getting promoted to a new executive position as well as anyone
who still has his or her existing job, but whose company has changed its
strategic priorities, gotten acquired or completed a spin-off.
Trying to navigate unfamiliar business terrain
with an outdated self-image would be like to trying to make one’s way over
rough territory with old GPS data. It may be possible, but you are likely to
reach your destination more quickly and successfully by updating your mental
map to a version that helps you accurately find the most promising path to
success and satisfaction.
with an outdated self-image would be like to trying to make one’s way over
rough territory with old GPS data. It may be possible, but you are likely to
reach your destination more quickly and successfully by updating your mental
map to a version that helps you accurately find the most promising path to
success and satisfaction.
Rick Lash, Director of Hay Group’s Leadership & Talent Practice in Canada and co-leader of the annual Hay Group Best Companies for Leadership study. Rick works with executives to build the leadership capabilities needed to execute their organizational strategy. He specializes in organizational change, succession planning and leadership development; working with leaders and senior teams to refine their capabilities and create lasting change and improved performance.
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