And isn’t is incredibly difficult to do. It’s not like anyone is exempt from these regressive emotions when we are under stress. We are all together in the struggle to find the gold in the midst of dross. And your words are cheering as we all try to be our best selves, and to pick ourselves up time and again when we are not….

Thanks for this post!

I love each point you make. Silos and protectionism is personal and feeds one person not the company. Knocking down the walls, collaborating and learning to work toward the win of the company will be the best thing a person can do. Perhaps companies can learn a paradigm switch in performance measurement to include some of the positives you mention.

Great post – should be hung on the bulletin boards of every company!

@cmusciano (Chuck) Your point that the little things really matter is an important one. Doing those little things that create forward momentum consistently build trust in your commitment and reliability especially when the going is tough.

@aaron Compensation models certainly affect behavior. There are good models and bad, just as there are people who implement those models well and people who do not. Although I would say that a paycheck is a direct benefit and one that today many people appreciate. Whether it is enough to motivate the right kind of behavior in the end is up to the individual.

@juergenB Thanks for the great examples of where protectionist (and even entitlement) attitudes have been costly. Let us know when your post is up!

@knealemann Thanks for the great insights on sharing. Effective sharing is not a mechanical process. It is less about sharing content and more about collaborating.

Perhaps another way of saying “Are you offering a drill or a solution?” in the context of today’s knowledge economy could be “are you offering “the” answer or are you offering your thinking?” There are few simple answers these days. Besides engaging in thinking together actually builds relationship, too.

@brucecarlson Great point that the context for protectionism is scarcity. And it does affect people’s health and even their physical appearance.

@mikehenrysr “We are measured by what we contribute not what we collect” – excellent point Mike

@henie particularly when we are upset it can be hard to remember to challenge the thinking and not the person but it makes a huge difference when we do

@lisahickey There really is no where to hide try as we might. Thanks for your encouraging words Lisa!

There is no shortage of chatter and articles on “sharing” and “relationships” but the deeper I dig, the more I realize that this requires much more finesse than simply sending an email or making a phone call or exchanging tweets.

It takes time and commitment – from both parties.

An old sales’ axiom states you are not selling a drill, but rather a solution to put a hole in the wall so they can hang their favorite picture.

The world – and we are share blame – has taught us to be guarded but reality (not “new reality) states that if you want their stuff for free then you must expect they want yours for free as well.

It’s been interesting to offer help to others and watch how quickly they pull out their sales pitch – no thanks.

“Win/Win” is not a cute phrase tossed around in presentations – it is a human need. Without it, we may as well go back to pitching our wares on street corners to strangers and hope for the best.

Are you offering a drill or a solution?

@knealemann

I feel that this same protectionist attitude has proliferated in many areas, and I’d love to extent the metaphors you raise past individuals to organizations as a whole:

I’ll use a Sports example, where when the “old guard” of historically winning sport franchises start to experience difficulties, they are often at a loss on how to prevent the downward spiral.

In Formula One Racing, usually dominant Ferrari and McLaren/Mercedes are off to their worst start in decades. The smaller and more nimble teams have adapted better to changes in regulations, are able to make more out of lower budgets and have been more innovative.

What strikes me is that the strategies and attitude of Ferrari and McLaren are ill equipped to deal with their failure and setbacks so far this season: They exhibit a sense of infuriating entitlement, lack of foresight, disbelief in the fact that they are not winning, no sharing or partnering skills, reliance on legal maneuvers, and very little humility in recognizing that in a flattened world they could learn from the smaller players.

Other examples are the US car industry as a whole. Or how about the GOP?

All would benefit from the START portions of your post’s recommendations…

I feel my own POLYMASH blog post on this coming on to explore a little more…

When an employee is empowered to see a direct benefit to their own bottom line that isn’t tied to the subjective opinion of a middle manager who is rewarded for keeping costs to a minimum, that will inspire employees to produce more and better DESPITE their immediate superior.

The problem is that reviews and financials are closed books. No ability for the employee to audit what’s happening, whether the upper management is an old-boy’s network and planning to get their golden parachutes within the next year by maximizing profits for the next few quarters.

If boards of directors and CEOs would openly publicize the incentive carrots and the benefits they’d pay to accomplish those goals, they’d find more inspired workers.

We make a mistake by pitting shareholding management against salaried staff.