This is so good Jeff!!! I have a similar framework called the third hat. But my goodness, your zoo is not only accurate (as I reflect on my clients I coach) but really clever.
Read this and caught myself doing the math on which animal I am. I’ve got the Sloth’s pace in one place, a fixed anchor routine I won’t rush no matter what’s on fire, but the Giraffe’s restlessness everywhere else, always scanning for a better system before the current one’s even settled. And underneath both, a little Dog: hard to leave anything alone once I’ve spotted a way to improve it. Wondering if the real tell isn’t which animal you are, but which one shows up depending on what’s actually at stake.
As you described the animals you are, I completely saw myself in the same way. And I think you're right. It's not about which animal you are -because most of us aren't just one of them - but which one shows up at what time. It's my belief that a lot of people who get criticized for not being an effective leader are sometimes using the right animal but at the wrong time.
The animal isn’t the variable most leaders manage, the trigger is. Sloth pace works fine until the moment calls for Giraffe scanning and both fire at once, and now two good instincts are competing for the same five minutes. I’ve sat across from leaders whose real failure wasn’t the wrong instinct. It was having no signal for which one the moment actually needed.
This is so good Jeff!!! I have a similar framework called the third hat. But my goodness, your zoo is not only accurate (as I reflect on my clients I coach) but really clever.
So glad you like it David! Have you written about your Third Hat framework? I'd love to read about it.
If so, put the link here.
I commend the extraordinary and detailed insight on developing/assembling great teams. Also engaged in IDing my teams and myself. Bravo!
So glad you liked this Yvonne. And thank you for commenting!
Read this and caught myself doing the math on which animal I am. I’ve got the Sloth’s pace in one place, a fixed anchor routine I won’t rush no matter what’s on fire, but the Giraffe’s restlessness everywhere else, always scanning for a better system before the current one’s even settled. And underneath both, a little Dog: hard to leave anything alone once I’ve spotted a way to improve it. Wondering if the real tell isn’t which animal you are, but which one shows up depending on what’s actually at stake.
As you described the animals you are, I completely saw myself in the same way. And I think you're right. It's not about which animal you are -because most of us aren't just one of them - but which one shows up at what time. It's my belief that a lot of people who get criticized for not being an effective leader are sometimes using the right animal but at the wrong time.
The animal isn’t the variable most leaders manage, the trigger is. Sloth pace works fine until the moment calls for Giraffe scanning and both fire at once, and now two good instincts are competing for the same five minutes. I’ve sat across from leaders whose real failure wasn’t the wrong instinct. It was having no signal for which one the moment actually needed.