Radical Candour
‘Care personally whilst challenging directly’ – surely this is a mantra that everyone should be following in both personal and work guises. No beating around the bush and feeling frustrated when people “don’t really get it,” but always done from a position of love.
Kim Scott has taken this idea and called it ‘Radical Cando[u]r’ and turned it into a movement (as well as a best selling book and podcast). The book is one that I recommend to anyone who is learning to manage people or situations and is one I return to frequently. It gives tangible examples of how (not) to give feedback in a way that sticks with the aim of becoming a “kick-ass boss without losing your humanity.”
The important thing to remember is that you can’t do one aspect without the other – so however good you feel you are at ‘caring personally’, if you tiptoe around an issue without ‘challenging directly’ then you aren’t doing noone any favours. (And vice versa – that feeling of direct feedback from someone who you know doesn’t have your back, is awful). You can’t just hope that people can read the subtext of what you were (or intentionally weren’t) saying, nor can you deliver feedback that is going to land well to someone you have first talked to as they walk into your office for a dressing down! So now, before I ever need to give any difficult feedback, I remember to set my stall out with regards to how I do care about the person but then don’t beat around the bush.
The other part of the book that I found fascinating – and is an area that I think gets forgotten in the various discussions around this movement – is about performance management (a topic to be explored more elsewhere). The fundamental idea espoused is that leaders should help those that report to them to build the skills that are going to benefit the individual in their career aspirations – regardless of whether or not these career aspirations are within the company or not. My favourite example is of someone who is in ad sales but wants to own and operate a spirulina farm in the future… she and her boss work through both roles to see where the potential overlaps are – and land on being a better manager. She then is encouraged to focus on this area of her job – which benefits her current company (whilst also allowing her to feel she is gaining valuable skills for her future dream job). This all came from a radically candid conversation which wasn’t limited to the role that the person was doing in that company at that moment but instead looked at the much larger picture and everyone ended up being the winner.
A fascinating book that I hope has helped me lead better and challenge those I work with (and those I am friends with) in a way that creates lasting benefits for all
