How practicing leaders can manage paradox, dilemma and polarity

James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras in their book Built to Last talk about how leaders get caught in what they call “The Tyranny of the Or,” the belief that you cannot live with two seemingly contradictory ideas at the same time, that you can have change or stability, you can be conservative or bold, you can have low costs or high quality, but you can never have both. They found that successful, visionary companies all operate in what they call “The Genius of the And,” the ferocious insistence that they can and must have both at once. They discuss this their book saying that:

“The Tyranny of the OR pushes people to believe that things must be either A OR B, but not both. Instead of being oppressed by the Tyranny of OR, highly visionary companies liberate them-selves with the Genius of the AND the ability embrace both extremes of a number of dimensions at the same time. Instead of choosing between A B, they figure out a way to have both A AND B.”

Visionary Leaders Find Ways to Embrace Paradox

This concept of duality has been around for many years. The concept of Yin and Yang is found in ancient Chinese philosophy, which describes “two primal opposing but complementary forces found in all things in the universe.” Wikipedia sumarises the concept of Yin and Yang as consisting of the following principles:

• Yin and Yang are opposites. Everything has its opposite-although this is never absolute, only relative. No one thing is completely Yin or completely Yang. Each contains the seed of its opposite. For example, winter can turn into summer; “what goes up must come down”.
• Yin and Yang are interdependent. One cannot exist without the other. For example, day cannot exist without night. Light cannot exist without darkness.
• Yin and Yang can be further subdivided into Yin and Yang.
• Yin and Yang consume and support each other. Yin and Yang are usually held in balance-as one increases, the other decreases. However, imbalances can occur.
• Yin and Yang can transform into one another. At a particular stage, Yin can transform into Yang and vice versa.
• Part of Yin is in Yang and part of Yang is in Yin.

Yin and Yang is symbolised by the following image:

The dots in each serve:

• … as a reminder that there are always traces of one in the other. For example, there is always light within the dark (e.g., the stars at night); these qualities are never completely one or the other.
• … as a reminder that absolute extreme side transforms instantly into the opposite, or that the labels Yin and Yang are conditioned by an observer’s point of view. For example, the hardest stone is easiest to break. This can show that absolute discrimination between the two is artificial.

James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras go on to say:

“A visionary company doesn’t seek to balance between short-term and long-term. It seeks to do very well in the short term and very well in the long term… it doesn’t simply balance between a tightly held core ideology and stimulating vigorous change and movement; it does both to an extreme….Rare? Yes. Difficult? Absolutely. But as F. Scott Fitzgerald pointed out, ‘The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.,’ This is exactly what the visionary companies are able to do.”

For leaders who embrace it, paradox becomes a place of insight…..

The Nature of Problems and Polarity

The opposites as expressed by the Chinese as Yin and Yang, are often referred to in the western world as a paradox, a dilemma or a polarity. Barry Johnson author of the book Polarity Management has studied paradoxes for a number of years and developed a method to successfully describing and managing them.

As leaders we’re often face most situations as problems to be solved. This default thinking traps us into “The Tyranny of the Or” resulting in “either/or” thinking. In these situations we tend to find one solution that we consider as being either the “best” or the “right” way to go. This is because we have been taught that problems can only have one right answer. But, paradoxes or polarities, as Barry Johnson calls them, can never be solved, they have to be managed, they require a “both/and” solution! When we try to solve a polarity as we would a problem the results are usually worse.

A polarity is different from a problem. Polarities have two or more “right” answers which are interdependent. Some examples of typical polarities that leaders face are:

• cost vs quality
• individual vs team
• focus vs flexibility
• planning vs action
• idealistic vs pragmatic
• action vs reflection
• effective vs efficient
• stability vs change
• centralised vs decentralised

Where Leaders Go Wrong

A problem solving approach is a natural an important part of leadership. Our education system and organisations reward good problem solving skills. The result is we face most situations with a problem solving orientation, looking for the one right answer. But, not all the situations we face are problems to be solved. Some situations require a new set of tools and and a different thinking style. Where leaders go wrong, is that they tend to automatically focus on challenges as problems to be solve. Let’s look at the difference between problems and polarities.

The characteristic of problems are:

• Problems are usually independent and therefore they can be solved.
• Once problems are solved they tend to go away, they don’t re-occur over time.
• There is a definite end point where you can say that the problem is solved.
• Problems are easily isolated and stand alone.
• The solution to the problem usually contains no alternatives. It’s clear that the solution solves the problem.

Problems have one right answer that provides a solution

The characteristic of polarities are:

• Polarities have interdependent alternatives.
• Polarities, over time, tend to be ongoing and oscillate.
• There is no definitive end point to solving the problem.
• Polarities are not solvable, they have to be managed.
• Alternatives are required to optimise and manage the situation over time.

Polarities have two answers that are interdependent, therefore they cannot be solved and have to be managed.

As leaders we need to learn to recognise and identify the difference between problems to solve and polarities to manage. Problems as issues that can be solved. Polarities are different, they need to be managed.

How to Create a Polarity Map to Manage Polarities

Barry Johnson developed the polarity map used to describe polarities. A polarity map helps to make polarities explicit so that they can be effectively communicated, understood and managed.

Click here to see a zoomed view of the picture…

A polarity map, as illustrated above, is constructed in the following way:

• Using a two-by-two matrix create two “neutral” boxes at either end of the central, horizontal axis, each containing a label of one of the poles of the polarity.
• The boxes above horizontal axis contains a description of the the positive affects you get from focusing on each of the poles.
• The boxes below horizontal axis contains a description of the the negative affects you get from focusing on each of the poles.
• The box at the top of the matrix contains the “Upside” or “The Higher Outcome”. This is the answer to the question, “Why invest in managing this polarity?”
• The box at the bottom of the matrix contains the “Downside” or “The Lower Outcome”. This is the opposite to the Upside and represents the worse case situation if this polarity is not managed.

Once the polarity has bee created it’s important to understand the dynamics of the polarity and how it change over time. It’s necessary to understand the dynamics of a polarity before it can be effectively managed.

The Dynamics of Polarities over Time

Polarities are a set of opposites that cannot function independently over time. They function as that results of tension created by the two poles. Given that polarities are interdependent there is a natural tension that exists between them. This tension creates a natural flow from the positive affects of one pole to the positive affects of the other. As the system moves towards the upside of one pole, over a period of time the system will begin to feel the negative affects of that pole. This creates a natural tension that pressures the system to move back towards the positive affects of the opposite pole. This natural flow, back and forth over time, represents an infinity loop, which cannot be solved and therefore needs to be managed.

The dynamics of the polarities are created by the natural tension that exists between two forces that shift from one pole to the other, one side is the increasing negative affects of one pole and the other is the increasing attractiveness of the positive affects of the opposite pole. Examples of completed polarity map are illustrated below.

Click here to see a zoomed view of the picture or download the “Should organizations focus on Preserving Stability or Stimulating Change?” (800K DOC) another example is “Should individuals focus on their Work Life or Home Life?” (800K DOC)

The illustration shows how the infinite loop, cycles around the two polarities and how the downside of one pole drives you towards the upside of the other pole. So the infinite loop cycles back and forth over time.

“what is good is not yoi or yang but the dynamic balance between the two” – Fritjof Capra, The Turning Point: Science, Society, and the Rising Culture

When managing polarities it’s important to understand that each polar opposite depends on the other. Each pole is involved in the balancing process. In this way, they’re interdependent upon each other.

How to Manage Polarities over Time

As mentioned previously, to effectively manage a polarity requires a change in thinking, from “either/or” to “both/and” thinking. The goal of managing polarities is to gain the advantages of both upsides and minimize both of the downsides. A well managed polarity is one where you benefit from the tensions that exists between the two poles and get the advantages from the synergy between both the two poles and achieve the higher purpose. A badly managed polarity occurs when you over focus on one pole, neglecting the other. When trying to manage a polarity, if you focus on one pole at the expense of the other, results in the negative aspects of the one pole.

To effectively manage the polarity requires us to see the whole picture, to understand the whole map, to understand the dynamics that creates the tension, and to accept, that the tension inherent within the polarity needs to be managed over time.

The Process of Defining and Managing a Polarity

The first step in defining and managing a polarity is to first find out if you have a problem to solve or a polarity to manage. Remember, the key difference between the two is that a polarity is differentiated by the interdependence of the parts you’re working with. The following questions may help to separate a polarity from a problem:

• Is this a problem to be solved, or is it an ongoing polarity that needs to be managed?
• Are the poles opposites that depend on each other over time?
• Is the one pole dependent upon the other pole for it’s sustainability over time?

Polarities are best defined by engaging with a group, in discussion including those who are directly affected by the polarity. The group can then explore the polarity and create their own polarity map using these steps:

1. Create a group of diverse individuals to define the polarity in group discussion.
2. Define the challenge that the organisation is dealing with.
3. Identify names for each extreme.
4. Gain clarity about the purpose and consequences of managing the tension well or badly.
5. Identify the upside and downside of each extreme.
6. Map the challenge into a polarity map.
7. Discuss the dynamic of the polarity to gain an understanding of how it works.
8. Identify ways in which one pole can be gained whilst the other is maintained.
9. Identify the indicators when the pole is being over-emphasised and deciding what action to take when it happens.
10. Produce a list of red flag indicators, a polarity alarm indicator, for both poles to alert you if you’re over-emphasising one pole at the expense of the other.
11. Assess, monitor and course correct over time as you consciously manage the polarity.

Remember that polarities are interdependent opposites and they work best when they’re both present to balance each other. One last piece of advice: Avoid turning everything into a polarity. Polarity management complements our either/or problem solving skills and providing a set of additional set of tools.

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Tagged as: Change, Paradox