#191 surprise

The notion of "surprise" is top of mind lately as we have been going through a round of interviews for our chief financial officer position.  All of the candidates have asked what it is like working for our boss, and one of the first responses my colleagues give is that she does not like surprises. 

Surprises often infer unhappy surprises -- learning that something bad has happened or a crisis has emerged.  Why don't we think of surprises as being good things -- we had more people come than expected; a donor made a large contribution or a customer a large purchase; revenue was up; someone wrote an unsolicited testimonial; a project was approved when we did not expect it to be; a grant was funded; your true love unexpectedly popped the question.

When we experience no surprises, I suspect it is because we aren't taking enough risks or generating enough initiatives.  Change is replete with elements of surprise -- some not so good, of course, but not all surprises mean negative things.  Take steps in your work to ensure that catastrophic elements are minimized or eliminated to the extent that is possible. I also encourage you to develop a comfort level with the unknown.

Yes, you want to be informed about what may be coming down the pike so you can prepare as much as possible.  Just remember that good things may pop around the corner too.

-- beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
@leadershipdots
leadershipdots@gmail.com