Lateral Thinking is Tactical Leading

Pick up football was a lifesaver for me during my growing up years. Most call

them developmental years, but I call them growing up years because some of us are

put in positions requiring us to grow up quickly. During preteen and teen years, with little

control while living in an unstable and ever-changing environment, we are forced to

make life altering decisions in an instant. Pick up football provided me a clear field of

play and a rules-based environment where I excelled. Perhaps that is why I spent thirty-

three plus years in the military, but that’s a story for another time.

Back to football! On the field of play, I learned several leadership lessons, like the

power of planning and the art of team play to name a few, that would serve me well

during my leadership career. Another of those lessons involves dealing with obstacles,

and more specifically how to move or to move around obstacles through the practice of

learning to think laterally, detour thinking, if you will.

As a leader you will face several obstacles, some expected, but most

unexpected. These obstacles always serve a barrier to successfully reaching the

desired end state. First, an obstacle can cause you to lose sight of the vision and lose

momentum toward mission accomplishments. Second, obstacles can cause a leader to

give frustration, fatigue, and fear of failure a foothold. Authentic leaders hold to this

truth, “Success is not a suggestion, it’s an end state.” (Thomsen)

The difference between ordinary and extraordinary leaders is found in the

practice of lateral thinking. Authentic leaders will always keep their eyes on the end

state, while thinking laterally or practicing detour thinking to maneuver around, over, and

sometimes under in order to move the obstacle out of the way whatever the obstacle

(verb or noun) may be. Ordinary leaders see an obstacle and that is all they see, They

usually say, “Oh no! How can I do this” while extraordinary leaders who’ve learned to

think laterally say, “I can do this and here’s how.” Which leader best describes you?