

DIY Sabotage: Lick The Cookie
Jul 19, 2017
Rebecca Hinds, a Manager at Dropbox and contributor to 'Scaling Up Excellence,' joins Stanford Professor Bob Sutton to explore the notion of organizational sabotage. They humorously connect childhood antics, like licking an Oreo, to adult behaviors that disrupt productivity. The conversation highlights insights from a WWII sabotage manual, revealing how both intentional and unintentional actions can undermine team dynamics. They also discuss the inefficacy of traditional Monday meetings and share strategies for focusing on key areas to enhance workplace efficiency.
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Everyday Sabotage Causes Friction
- Sabotage in workplaces can be done by ordinary employees without special equipment.
- It often manifests unintentionally or intentionally as friction through meetings and emails.
Licking The Cookie Explains Bottlenecks
- "Licking the cookie" means claiming ownership of work without actually doing it.
- This blocks others from acting, causing bottlenecks and frustration.
Set Clear Meeting Rules
- Set hard, clear rules for meetings and make them visible to participants.
- This reduces wasting time on irrelevant issues and word haggle in meetings.