Multipliers Book Notes

How the best leaders make everyone smarter by Liz Wiseman

I got this book for free from Andy Woods, the Operations Manager at Cedar Bayou. It’s one of his favorite leadership books so I needed to read and find out why/what good insights it has. See my notes/highlights below:

Preface

Leaders don’t know/direct; they ask/unleash the capabilities of others

Efficiency requires collaboration, you can’t work in silos

Too many orgs are overmanaged & underled

“You can’t change people, but can change your response”

The multiplier effect

“I’m counting on you, and so are your shipmates”, then was calm/inquisitive with a watchful eye. Establish the goal but let the individuals flourish.

Bad Leaders focus on their own intelligence and resolve to be the smartest in the room. Instead think about intelligence as a tool, not a weapon.

“Growth mindset”

Multipliers assume people are smart and will figure it out. This reminds me of Brad Jurgensmeier who never seems phased when issues arise.

Build the environment that is “comfortable and intense” where you have permission to think. This also applies to investing in the people to succeed

Multipliers constantly challenge themselves and others to push beyond

Multipliers don’t take themselves too seriously (great sense of humor)

The talent magnet

Get to know each person on the team, understand the capabilities. Determine what they are naturally good at and find a way to use that!

Ask “what’s the next challenge for you?" or “what would be a stretch assignment?”.

Ask “What is getting in the way of your being successful?” to help them

A-players can either become A+ or A-/B+ players. This is how you spiral up or down the team

Look for talent everywhere, find genius, use people to their fullest, remove the blockers

How to find genius

• What do they do better than anything else they do

• what do they do better than the people around them

• what do they do without effort

• what do they do without being asked

• what do they do readily without being paid

You find it where they say, “doesn’t everyone?” or “it’s not a big deal”

The liberator

A leader’s job is to put other people onstage.

Be hard on issues but easy on people. don’t lash out at folks, but we will get it solved

Be a ferocious listener. Feed your hunger for knowledge, learn what they know, add it to your reservoir of knowledge.

Tell stories about your mistakes. it makes it safe for others to take risks.

Have a desire to grow yourself and get better, it rubs off on the team to share improvements.

The challenger

Set a bar, one at what you know you can achieve and then a higher one of what’s possible

Know-it-all vs challenger. Be a challenger

Ask “what do you think might go wrong” or “how can we solve this problem”. Tell less and ask more. This reminds me of “pre-mortems”. where before we start get the team to list all the ways it can fail so you can plan accordingly.

The debate maker

Be capable of making decisions, but you make better decisions as a team. Everyone has an obligation to speak up.

Frame the issue, spark the debate, and drive sound decisions. Framing is stating “what decision, why, who will be involved, how will it be decided”

Your employees should say “I’ve never gotten in trouble telling my manager what I think”. This doesn’t mean you do what they say, but they should always feel able to voice their view.

Be willing to argue to counterpoint. This is where I enjoy being contrarian and fighting against group think.

The investor

“How would I coach if I could never step out on the playing field?” This is exactly what my dad taught me during my Eagle Scout project. You don’t touch a tool; you are there to lead others.

Don’t “show & tell,” teach and coach. Don’t state the solution, tease out the answer.

When you overprotect/shelter people, you stunt their learning.

Your legacy starts after you leave. how good a leader you are is ensuring successive generations of leaders.

The accidental diminisher

You can’t always be “growth mindset” how hard can it be? Sometimes you need to say what we are doing is actually really hard and acknowledge that.

“How might I be diminishing the ideas/actions of others?” Your “strengths” can be weaknesses.

Dealing with diminishers

Inspire others to accomplish “the what”, not dictate “how”.

Celebrate the small wins, even little attempts.

How you lead people impacts their lives outside the office (stress, confidence, etc.)

Micromanaging is a concern something won’t get completed fully or correctly.

Genuinely listen. “Do you mind if I take some notes? I like to go back and think about what you said.”

Admit mistakes, share your learning. Remember, people can’t change others, only themselves.

Leadership does not only come from the top; radiates from the middle and ascends from the bottom.

Becoming a multiplier

A mentor is someone who’s been there before, made the mistakes and learned from it.

Leaders aren’t good at everything, master a few skills and then be free on show-stopping weaknesses. To develop your leadership either neutralize a weakness or top off a strength.

To change the culture, you need to change the conversation and add new words.

There is a short shelf life on inspiration without action. You gotta go do it! The flywheel doesn’t keep spinning without effort.

Multiplier work best “middle out”, pockets of success spur more success. That’s easier to change than top down “waterfall”