The medicine of chaos | Maria Carpenter | TEDxPretoria

TL;DR

By leveraging the concept of environment from stem cell research and studying the patterns of birds, the speaker shares her experience of transforming a chaotic digital team by changing the environment and cultivating a mindset of expectation for success.

Transcript

in 2018 I got a call out the blue to head a digital team for a large corporate in South Africa what made this really interesting was that at the time I was managing myself with my own consultancy there was one person I was managing and it was me this role would have me managing close to 100 people it was it was a really big difference but I still t... Read More

Key Insights

• 😤 Chaos within a team or personal life can be the catalyst for transformation and growth.
• ♻️ The environment and perspective of the environment significantly impact outcomes.
• ♻️ Belief and mindset are crucial in cultivating an environment of expectation.
• 😤 A leader's belief is contagious and can inspire teams to achieve extraordinary results.
• 💱 Chaos provides an opportunity for change and the creation of a better outcome.
• 😤 Leveraging the concept of environment from other fields, such as stem cell research and bird behavior, can provide valuable insights for transforming teams and individuals.
• ♻️ Transforming the environment and mindset requires consistent effort and communication from the leader.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did the speaker come across the idea of using environment to transform her digital team?

The speaker stumbled upon research on the impact of environment on stem cells, which sparked her curiosity about how it could apply to a team setting. She believed that if the environment could influence the development of cells, it might have a similar effect on individuals and teams.

Q: What were the challenges the speaker faced in transforming the chaotic team?

The team was plagued by finger-pointing, overtime, missed deadlines, and mass resignations. The members had a belief that they would likely lose and be blamed. Changing this mindset and creating an environment of expectation proved to be a significant challenge.

Q: How did the speaker change the team's mindset and belief?

The speaker consistently shared her belief in the team and gave them reasons to believe. She leveraged the chaos within the team, using it as an opportunity for change. By showing confidence in their abilities and providing support, she was able to shift their mindset and belief in their own capabilities.

Q: What were the results of transforming the team's environment and mindset?

The transformed team achieved levels of success previously unimaginable. They were able to accomplish more with less, built complex mobile apps and websites, and even played a significant role in developing South Africa's contact tracing app. The team's performance improved, and they developed a case study to share their learnings.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The speaker was tasked with managing a chaotic digital team and saw an opportunity to use the concept of environment from stem cell research to bring about positive change.

• She studied the patterns of birds, specifically murmurations, and found that their self-organizing behavior relied on an environment of expectation.

• By changing the belief and mindset of the team, she was able to transform their performance, leading to success and harmony within the team.