4 Issues &Observations

ago.) Decide what developmental expe- riences the leaders of the year 2000 could benefit from.

Besides the traditional emphasis on skills and business training for young man- agers, conduct symposia on the significant events and major learnings of successful executives. These symposia should be small, informal, and conducted by the ex- ecutives themselves.

Many organizations have coaching and counseling programs for managers. Organizations could benefit from an ex- ecutive mentoring program as well. Assign each management recruit to a mentor who meets with the recruit a t least once a month for lunch. Ask the mentor to ad- vise the recruit on the recruit’s most press- ing problems, at the same time injecting top management’s perspective into the dis- cussions. Besides getting advice, recruits may be able to learn the business more quickly and understand how successful managers attack problems.

Give young managers who have lightly-regarded bosses a chance to work with an effective role model at least part of the time.

Before deciding that some managers don’t have it, answer the question, “Have they ever been in a position where thev could show it?”

None of these suggestions will produce miracles. Nor will thev create wheat from chaff. They may, however, produce some pleasant surprises. --- (Reprints of this article are available at a cost of $.25 each for orders of 10 (minimum order) ro 99, $.20 for 100 or more copies. Please send your check or money order to: Publications, Center for Creative Leadership, P. 0. Box P-1, Greensboro, NC 27402-166C.)

INQUIRY In Quest of the Real World Ann M. Morrison Manager of Research Projects I have heard a number of references to the “the real world” lately, and have begun to wonder what the phrase means to people who use i t . Since it is frequently used to make a point by way of example or con- trast, its full meaning eludes me. From what I have been hearing, I know that the real world is viewed as a critical standard to be met, but the standard seems to be in- terpreted according ro individual perspec- tives. In quest of the truth about the real world, I have been asking around.

Many people are aware of the real world, and the general consensus is that it does indeed exist. Most of us first learned of it as youngsters when, after a brief pe- riod of “let children lie children,” our parents and teachers began to prepare us for the real world. Their remarks often ended in “wait until you get out into the real world,” and were prefaced by such phrases as, “If you think this is tough. . . .” This approach was used afier the threat of Sanra’s coals could no longer trick us into behaving ourselves or finishing our home- work. The message in these early admoni- tions was that survival in the real world requires discipline and sacrifices because serious consequences will follow our choices and actions.

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Parts of this message form the two views of the real world that I have encoun- tered during my quest. One view empha- sizes the consequences while the other centers more on the requirements.

To some, the real world is where the ac- tion is, where people make and acr on de- cisions that have a far-reaching impact on the world. It is a world in which risks are taken for high stakes and, in many cases, headlines announce the consequences of those decisions. One scenario is built aroung mingling with busy, well-known public figures in New York City or Washington, DC, but i t could be any place where the pace and complexity create a tension that suggests the impor- tance of what goes on there and the pres- sures that feed into it. Another person described this view as “operating an airline versus making cookies,” implying that the demands and consequences of something like making cookies fall short of real-world importance.

The other, perhaps more philosophical, view is of a real world where “things are how they are, not how we’d like them to be.” This view deals mostly with what is required of us to face the disappointments, frustrations, and nuisances of everyday life. It emphasizes the rationality of com- promise, the need to make sacrifices for gains, and the role of discipline in preserv- ing the order of things. This view can sim- ply refer to the world each of us is accustomed to - an array of people, places, and events that is reasonably famil- iar, understandable, and yet taxing be- cause it includes the bad with the good.

These two views are not necessarily in- compatible. Each view seems to highlight one aspect of the real world that can be ex- tended into the other. The second view presents the setting and the requirements needed to create the significant outcomes presented in the first view. If we can as- sume from the second view that the “way things are” is a common ground familiar to many of us, and assume from the for- mer view that important or consequential events can cover a broad spectrum (and can perhaps even be interpreted in a more purely relative sense), then we can com- bine the two into one real world view.

The gist of this composite view, if we turn it around a bit, is that we musc accept the world as i t is to have a significant im- pact o n it. And we discipline ourselves to accept the compromises and sacrifices day after day because we believe they are nec- essary to achieve something significant. Thus, the real world is not merely a neces- sary evil, bur rather it has meaning, pur- pose, and value.

world” is so revered. The remarks I have heard criticize ideas that “wouldn’t work

Perhaps [his is the reason that the “real

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Issues & Observations 5

i l l the real world,” or discount people who “jon’t operate in the real world,” or dis- iniss experiences that “didn’t happen in the real world.” These ideas, people, and expe- riences are considered part of a dreamland or fantasy world which is idealistic, insu- lated, or illusionary; as such, they are rele- gated to a substandard category that doesn’t meet the criteria of the real world.

There is pressure on people to be a part of the real world and to do well in it. O n the whole, I can’t argue that the real world isn’t or shouldn’t be an important part of our lives. But there are some dangers in re- garding it as the ultimate place to be, to the exclusion of any other.

One danger is that we can fail to pro- tect ourselves from it. It’s important to re- treat from the real world from time to time because the tension can literally kill us. Our escapes give us a chance to recover, relax, and build up our strength to face another round. Yet these escapes are often seen as signs of weakness or as periods of useless activity, so we resist indulging in them.

Another danger is that we accept only the trappings of the real world as evidence of being part of it. We may be lured into gauging ourselves and others by the ap- pearance of real-world surroundings and a real-world lifestyle without considering the point of it all. The purpose behind the sacrifices and compromises we make and the results of our frenzied activity some- times become obscure, and need to be re- examined. Otherwise we end up merely going through the motions while losing sight of what the motions accomplish.

The biggest danger may be that we will become unwilling or unable to incor- porate our dreams and ideals into the real world. The real world, however imperfect, is shaped by what were once dreams. We need to keep our own dreams alive be- cause they not only provide us a reprieve from the real world; they also give us our purpose in coping with it.

The pressure is on us to be realistic, to get things done with a sense of urgency, and to accept the limits that present them- selves to us daily. We often feel guilty about escaping from our responsibilities, about shedding the practiced discipline in our thinking and behavior, about dream- ing of possibilities that have no sacrifices associated with them. We may be tempted to compress our ideals and fantasies into a separate, smaller compartment, or worse, to begin letting them die.

When this happens, the real world be- comes something we sleep off night after night and our performance in it becomes a poor substitute for a dream.

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IMPRINTS E H. Freeman Librarian

There is a magazine for every purpose un- der heaven. Whatever your job, whatever your life’s caIling, whatever your interests, someone publishes a monthly grab bag of news, articles, and reviews just for you. By subscribing to Bee World you will find, I suspect, all the ways to get more honey for less money. After a hard day at the ranch, professional cowboys relax with Rodeo News. If you’re a corporate manager by profession, n o doubt you could paper the executive washroom with all the subscrip- tion ads you get from the scores of busi- ness and management magazines competing for our readership.

That management magazines exist in such numbers is no fluke. They provide background information for decision mak- ing, suggest new methods for strategic planning, and in general do a serviceable job of keeping executives informed. What they do less well, however, is stimulate the creative component of executive work. Aside from an occasional plea for more in- novation in our organizations, there is lit- tle excirement within these pages. If you feel a need now and then for a fresh perspec- tive, for new ideas far removed from con- ventional managerial wisdom, try reading a magazine designed to tweak your world view a little.

OMNI. This is a monthly spread of stri- kingly illustrated science fact and fu- turism. Its flavor is optimistic: “OMNI is for people who sense that somewhere within the range of mankind’s capabilities lie solutions to the problems we face.” (OMNI, Subscription Department, P 0. Box 908, Farmingdale, NY 11737)

The Tanyrown Letter. Margaret Mead hnd Robert Schwartz co-founded this monthly newsletter “for people who are excited by change, rather than confused and confounded by it.” A recent article, “Of Minds and Men,” explored parallels between the human-potential movement in the United States and some current Russian psychological research. Another piece aired the views of outspoken economist Hazel Henderson. (7% Tarrytown Letter, Tarrytown Conference Center, East Sunnyside Lane, Tarrytown, NY 10591)

Bruin-Mind Bulletin. The territory of this once-every-three-weeks newsletter is

the frontier of cognitive research, theory, and practice. Though not consistently ob- jective, the articles and news items are stimulating, and as a whole reflect the statement of Sir James Jeans that “The universe begins to look more like a great thought than a great machine.” Content ranges from acupuncture research to stress reduction to parapsychology. (Bruin-Mind Bulletin, Interface Press, PO. Box 4221 1, Los Angeles, CA 90042)

Snence 82. Published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, this glittering magazine was de- signed to appeal to the dormant scientist in us all. It is authoritative, blessedly read- able, and full of spectacular photography. (Science 82, 1515 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20005)

Magazines like these speak of possibili- ties instead of constraints. Though they are not the daily bread of managerial work, they may well spark the uncommon associations that are essential to creative problem solving in organizations.

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LETTERS Editor :

I found Dr. Gryskiewicz’s article, “Restruc- turing for Innovation,” in your Volume 1, Number 4, issue quite stimulating. Dr. Gryskiewicz makes many excellent points and, from my point of view, says many of the right things except for one thing. The article treats creativity and innovation synonymously, and I believe that is the reason for a fundamental misunderstand- ing among psychologists, among business executives, and between the two. . . .

[In his letter, Dr. Fine goes on to ex- plain his association with the Dictionary ofOccupationa1 Titles, for which he devel- oped the occupational classification sys- tem. From the current version of the Scale of Worker Functions he quotes his own definitions of Innovating and Synthesiz- ing. -Ed.]

Innovating: Modifies, alters, and/or adapts existing designs, procedures, or methods to meet unique specifications,