I have a friend who is a wonderful leader. One of his strengths is drawing people into the process of collaboration. I have watched him do this dozens of times. When an idea is submitted for team consideration, he always asks if anyone would like to take a shot at ‘plussing’ the idea. By that, he means adding to, or building upon, the original submission.
It is interesting to me how phrasing it that way seems to make the person who originally stated the idea feel validated. It also seems to take the pressure off of the other team members who might be a little too timid to want to participate. In this positive climate, each member is encouraged to give their take on ‘plussing’ the idea. Their attempt might or might not be good. They are only trying to ‘plus’ it. It feels like a win/win for everyone.
Great leaders encourage people to solve big problems. It can be done with a heavy hand, but I like my friend’s approach. Try it. Ask a group to help you ‘plus’ an idea. I bet you’ll get good participation. And, I bet you’ll get better results. When an idea is ‘plussed’ it becomes bigger. Bigger ideas lead to bigger solutions which always lead to a bigger life.
