Developing the Leader in You - Transforming Your STEM Career Through Leadership and Innovation - page 111

be a strain and over time it can drain you of your strength. Taking care of
yourself does not denote selfishness. Devotion to a cause is a great thing.
But if it becomes an obsession that deprives you of other things that provide
balance and quality in your life, you cannot be a good leader. Your unique
style comes from your multifaceted personality and your mental and physical
attitudes. Do not neglect your mental and physical state; you are your own
best friend.
Be Creative in Our Approaches
The basic condition for a creative act is to combine known elements into new
combinations or perspectives that have never before been considered [7] . There-
fore, as we endeavor to be creative in our approach we need to consider all
of our resources, options, and perspective but combine them in different and
unique ways to address the challenge.
In examining common practices that get in the way of creativity and inno-
vation, Klemm lists six common factors or “blinders” that inhibit creative-
ness and innovation in leaders. Some of these factors will look familiar as
antonyms of favorable leadership characteristics. These factors include the
following: [7]
1. Resistance to change
2. Reliance on rules and conformance
3. Fear and self-doubt
4. Overreliance on logic and precision
5. Black and white thinking
6. Overreliance on practicality or the status quo.
My grandfather once told me that there were two kinds of people: those who do the work
and those who take the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group. There is much
less competition.
Indira Gandhi
The challenge for STEM professionals is that we have been “taught” to base
our decisions on at least four (2, 4, 5, and 6) of these six barriers to creativity in
our education, research, and applications. Thus, we must “unlearn” these and
other historically acceptable behaviors to truly engage our creative energies.
To create an organization mindset that manages well through change, Hickman
and Silva suggest actions for individual leaders and subordinates [8] . These
actions, when taken by the individual, reduce the likelihood of the manifesta-
tion of uncreative behaviors in an organization. These suggestions have been
adapted and are listed below:
1. Set a personal quota of at least one new idea a day.
2. Pick an organizational rule that gets in the way and break it (in a benign way
that won't harm you or the organization).