Beware the Tornado of Chaos
(aka: tips for dealing with, and not becoming, a tasmanian devil leader)
While waiting for an Uber the other day, I met the producer for a well-known band, who I'll call D.
As we were talking, D shared that the production crew had been with the artist for a long time. He had been there for 15 years, another team member for 18, and another team member for 21. (This band has been around for awhile!)
I asked him if this was rare in the industry and what he attributed it to...was it due to the way the band members treat the production crew? To the culture of the team? Or to something else?
He said: we do have a really good culture within our crew.
And, none of that matters if the artist is a terror.
The same is true within our organizations.
We can do all of the culture building we want, but if we (as top level leaders) are terrors, the impact is limited.
The Tasmanian Devil Leader
My term for this is a "Tasmanian Devil Leader." We run around in our own little tornadoes, creating chaos for everyone we encounter.
I have never met anyone who *wants* to be a Tasmanian Devil Leader. Usually it's a product of being caught up in whatever is in front of us, without awareness of our impact on others. (This has certainly been the case in my own Tasmanian Devil Leader moments.)
If we find ourselves veering into Tasmanian Devil Leadership Territory, we can:
Pause.
Take a breath.
Feel our feet on the floor.
Consider (before acting or speaking): how do I want to respond in this moment?
Tips for Dealing with a Tasmanian Devil Leader
If you happen to have a copy of Expansive Impact, there are a lot of ideas within - from concepts to reflections/questions. Could you introduce any of these to the person you're dealing with? There's a story I share in the book about a Tasmanian Devil Leader I worked with – do you think this person could self-identify if they were to read this section? Or are they unaware of their impact/tendencies?
Another very pragmatic tip – if this person is often changing priorities, a suggestion would be to ask: how does this rank in the overall list of priorities? And if this is priority, what would you like me to de-prioritize?
Below you’ll find a little cheat sheet that has some tips for grounding/pausing in the moment versus tornado-ing around as a Tasmanian Devil leader. Perhaps you could share it with this person if you think they might be open to any of these types of tools.
** Please note: downloading the cheat sheet will automatically add you to our Friday Favorites emails which are a weekly reset filled with reflections, resources, and invitations for leadership and life, delivered to your inbox every Friday morning. If you do not enjoy them, you may simply hit the unsubscribe button at the bottom.
Reflection Questions
What do you think?
Do you have any Tasmanian Devil Leader moments that come to mind?
Ask yourself:
Where in my work or life might I be unintentionally showing up as a Tasmanian Devil Leader?
What could it look like to pause, breathe, feel my feet, and check in with myself before reacting?
What is one small practice that helps me to remain grounded and calm, even in stressful situations?
What is one practice that helps me to connect to myself, and to my steady center?
REAL-LIFE EXAMPLE
I got a question from someone in the Zing Collaborative community:
Hi Sarah! Thanks for your post today I needed it. I wonder what your perspective is when it’s a client that is acting in this way. I feel like I can’t share any of this since I risk it coming off wrong but I’m drowning in his fire drills and negativity! Ugh! I haven’t gotten to your book yet but maybe this will push me to read it finally over summer vacation if there’s a chapter I should read. Thanks!
Here was my response, in case it’s something you’re dealing with and might find helpful:
I'm so sorry that you're dealing with that via a client. That is tricky. I'm not sure the nature of the relationship/interactions, but one thing that my team member does with me which I LOVE is when I ask her to do something, she will often ask me, "how does this fit in the overall priority?" or "should this go above, or below XYZ?" This forces me (in a good way) to clearly articulate my perspective on priority and urgency. I'm not sure if there is a way to ask similar questions to/with your client?
I also wonder if there would be a way to do some sort of weekly huddle (or even daily standup, depending on how much volume there is), where there would be a set "container" in which he could communicate (versus sending as fire drills).
Finally: a question I like to ask is, "how can I be easier to work with?" I wonder if you asked him this question, if he too would ask it in return? Not sure if that is wishful thinking, but an idea. ;)
Also, could you directly but kindly let him know that more notice / fewer fire drills (using different language, perhaps) would help you to ultimately be a better partner to him?
Not sure if any of those resonate - but a few ideas. I am thinking of you!! I have had plenty of these Tasmanian Devil leaders and clients over the years and I empathize with the difficulty of this dynamic, particularly when combined with negativity.
If you're looking to create the type of culture that D described on his team, or some tools to shift away from Tasmanian Devil Leadership and into a more effective (and enjoyable) way of being, feel free to get in touch here.
