FRICTION: How Smart Leaders Make the Right Things Easier (with Adam Grant & Bob Sutton)
Jun 20, 2024
auto_awesome
Renowned organizational psychologist Adam Grant and author Bob Sutton discuss making the right things easier for effective leadership. They explore the importance of friction, hands-on leadership, balancing inquiry and advocacy, leadership decisions, prioritizing health, problem-solving, and eliminating negative friction in organizations.
Good friction can streamline processes and enhance efficiency in organizations.
Leaders should gain diverse experiences within an organization to drive innovation.
Maintaining a balance between advocating and inquiring leads to more effective leadership.
Deep dives
The importance of impactful work in organizations
Bob Sutton, a leading organizational psychologist, discusses the responsibility academics have to make workplaces more effective. Sutton highlights the need to have an impact and improve people's lives by addressing broken workplaces and focusing on meaningful contributions.
The significance of managing friction in organizations
Sutton emphasizes the concept of friction in organizations, distinguishing between bad friction that impedes progress and good friction that can be beneficial. He provides examples where imposing deliberate friction helped streamline processes and enhance efficiency.
Leadership lessons on experiencing different roles
Sutton and Grant discuss the importance of leaders gaining diverse experiences in different roles within an organization. They highlight the value of understanding various functions to be more effective leaders and drive innovation.
Nurturing a balanced approach to feedback and engagement
Sutton and Grant emphasize the need for leaders to maintain a balance between advocating and inquiring in conversations. They suggest auditing the ratio of questions to statements to foster more nuanced discussions and engage employees effectively.
Addressing the challenge of impact vs. recognition in organizations
Sutton shares insights on the challenges of translating knowledge into practice. He discusses the importance of leaders focusing on meaningful actions rather than seeking validation, highlighting the gap between knowing and implementing effective strategies in organizations.
Today, Adam Grant and Bob Sutton, two legends of organizational psychology, discuss Bob’s new book, “The Friction Project: How Smart Leaders Make the Right Things Easier and the Wrong Things Harder.”
🎙️ This interview first appeared on Adam’s podcast, “ReThinking.” Follow it now on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
📱 If you love the show, the best way to let us know is by becoming a Next Big Idea Club member. Learn more at https://nextbigideaclub.com/ and use code PODCAST to get 20% off your subscription.
Get the Snipd podcast app
Unlock the knowledge in podcasts with the podcast player of the future.
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode
Save any moment
Hear something you like? Tap your headphones to save it with AI-generated key takeaways
Share & Export
Send highlights to Twitter, WhatsApp or export them to Notion, Readwise & more
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode