On a long flight to Alaska from D.C. I read an article in a recent issue of Fast Company magazine about new Google CEO Larry Page and this quote got me thinking:  “..the engineers would get some data to back up their idea, and the amazing thing was that Larry was fine to be wrong.  As long as the data supported them, he was okay with it.  That was an incredibly morale-boosting interaction for engineers.”

Raise your hand if you work for a manager who is “fine” with being wrong?  When was the last time you had evidence that said he/she is wrong and they applauded you for finding it and speaking up?  Uh-huh….

This is really, really hard to do, but I’ll ask anyway.  Are you testing the theories of your manager?  How do you know what they say is true? The overall health of a company-- and you the employee by extension-- really depends on how willing you are to ask questions and how willing you are to deliver the results of your questions. 

You have to decide if your manager is open to suggestion.  I am.  My mentees are always looking for ways to challenge my assertions. I like when they push and the mentoring relationship grows in part because I don’t claim to know everything.

But you’re afraid to be labeled a “pain in the ass,” I know.  I’ve been called that.

There are three ways to respond:  One, stop doing it.  Two, keep doing it and lose your job.  Or three, work on your methods so that your professional testing has a tangible result where, in the long run, your manager is fine with being wrong. Those people are called "leaders" by the way.

If you choose #3 and you are still getting that aforementioned label, remind me why you work there.

doug@knowledgewebb.net

*Chantal de la Rionda edits this blog