Make Every Day A Learning Opportunity

When I arrived in Iowa for the first time, I was very far outside my comfort zone. I grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia. We learned about farms in books and on film strips. We went to the zoo to see farm animals. And then, one day I was on an Iowa farm, visiting my girl friend, who latter became my wife. 

One of my first adventures beside going haying in shorts was to work with her father in the hog lots. He put on his work boots and I put on my hiking boots. His was a pair of well worn Red Wing farm boots. Mine were a pair of hiking boots with Vibram soles, designed for hiking over rocky trails and steep ascents. 

At the end of the morning, he wiped his boots on the grass and they were clean. My hiking boots, on the hand, with their deeply grooved soles were packed with hog manure. I had to take them off and with a stick dig out all of the manure. It took a long time. Shortly, after that I went out and bought myself a pair of Red Wing farm boots. Having the right clothes and the right boots always help.

On another visit to the farm, my future father-in-law and I had to move pigs from one part of the farm to a new part so the hog lots could be cleaned. Before starting, he explained to me that I needed to “think like a pig.” I just smiled at him and said “I have no idea how to do that.”

So first, he explained to me that pigs do not like to be alone. They find safety in numbers. Second, rather than push them to move, we need to create open space so they could choose to move in the right direction.

And with that, he opened a gate into a new section of the farm lots. Then, he and I went to the side furtherest from that open gate and shouted. All the pigs lifted their heads and rushed to the open space. When the last pig had gone through the open gate, he walked over and closed it. Then, he turned to me and said “Thinking like a pig makes all the difference.”

Reflecting on these early farm adventures, I think it is time that we as leaders need to “think like a follower.” We need look at the world through their eyes and to understand the challenges they are experiencing in the midst of this global pandemic. When we hold this perspective in mind, we will, over time, make better decisions, both operationally and strategically. 

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.” The two ideas for this winter into spring is to think like a leader and to think like a follower. The result will be a more holistic understanding of what is happening. When we do this, we will make every day a learning opportunity that results in better clarity, collaboration and focus.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257