Something is not right!
While shaking a salt shaker the head waiter proved the customer right. The clogged salt shaker was nothing more than a useless maraca, which the more it was shaken, the less it fulfilled its function of giving flavour to the world. It was then that he concluded philosophically: "something is not right". As we left the restaurant, I kept saying to myself: where have I seen this before?
It was in our house. Because all organisations have clogged salt shakers. The recipes that stubbornly fail to produce results, but which continue to be served at the table to spice up disjointed processes. And why do we insist so much on tired recipes?
Because we are stubborn. We have a tragic inclination, typical of southern peoples, to play it safe. For old problems, the usual solutions jump right out of our pockets. Because that's how we were taught. To respect our elders. To uphold traditions. To take few risks when our safety is at risk. And where does this stubbornness get us?
Nowhere. We stay in the same place, marking time until the dust of oblivion settles. Example: when we want to solve a problem we pass the ball to our team-mate. By e-mail, of course. With the knowledge of third parties so that we can have witnesses at the trial. Then what happens?
The colleague does not answer. The reasons are directly proportional to the complexity of the problem, but they are always longer than a parade on the avenue of Liberty. At the head of the procession is always the lack of time. Soon followed by workload, priorities, the unexpected, defensive procrastination. And what about the message?
In cod waters. Floating in the immense lake of the portfolio of those received, with no passage in the matters to be dealt with and increasingly far from resting in peace in the drawer of the matters dealt with. At this point we get the salt shaker of authority and energetically shake the hand that punches the table. Practical result?
Days of work lost. The hours wasted justifying the lack of response. The meetings to settle misplaced disputes. The stones in the shoe that slow down the pace and motivation. The clients who keep on going. The problems that remain unsolved. But must it always be like this?
Only if we want it that way. A healthy organisational culture cannot do without the salt of humility. Nor keep the salt shaker of trust clogged. It has to "unpack" the problem, opening the suitcase and searching, piece by piece, the reasons that determine this culture of deadlock. It is not easy to do difficult things, but with humility it is possible to put all that laundry out to dry on the rope of recognition. And if we can't?
We ask for help. There are those who can see on the outside the knots that we cannot untie on the inside. We can't just wait for things to change and watch time go by. If the salt shaker is still covered, after so much shaking, it is because, in the end, it has to be replaced by a piece that works. Because if "something is not right" there is no point in persevering with the same mistake to reach a good solution.
