Fear is often expressed in
terms of external phenomena – but in reality it is an entirely internal
crisis. A person may be reluctant to
make outdoor plans because they fear it will rain, even without checking the
weather report or performing a rational assessment of the probability that rain
will occur. It is not the climate’s
fault that a person is inhibited by their fear.
Likewise, many business
plans are scuttled because of irrational fear: it is feared that the market
will not react as expected, that competitors will outmaneuver the firm, that
regulators will interfere, that suppliers and partners will not cooperate, and
so on. When this is based on a careful
and rational analysis of the probability of misfortune and the degree of
impact, it is risk management – and risk management typically results in
contingency plans in case obstacles arise.
When it is an emotional reaction without any research, it is fear – and
fear merely causes paralysis and abandonment.
Very often, the fear that
prevents action from being taken in a timely manner has nothing to do with
practical matters, but is more psychological in nature: an individual fears
social embarrassment for failure. In
organizations, a manager fears the disappointment of his superiors, the
derision of his rivals, and the loss of esteem of his followers that result
from failure.
Concerns that are logical
and rational may be addressed, but those that are psychological and irrational
often cannot – no amount of evidence will convince a person that they should
not be afraid. Their tendency is to cling to their fear, disputing or even
denying the very existence of evidence that their fear is unfounded.
The immediate consequence
of fear is stress: an individual is driven for their desire for achievement,
but this desire is at odds with the fear that the outcome will not be achieved
and that additional damage will be incurred in its pursuit.
A secondary consequence of
fear is paralysis, very often “paralysis by analysis” in which an individual
refuses to take action until they can do further research, which they then
either delay or avoid which causes further delays in hopes that the plans will
be forgotten or become obsolete.
And the final consequence
of fear is to achieve the very failure that was feared in the first place. That is, the fearful man feared that his
goals will not be achieved – and by failing to take any action, he ensures that
they are not.
Thus considered, any
planning effort must consider the reaction of fear, first in the planning
staff, and then in the stakeholders whose support must be enlisted to act upon
the plan. Failure to do so will
practically guarantee the failure of the plan – if not as a consequence of misfortune,
then as a consequence of inaction for fear of misfortune.
No comments:
Post a Comment