The Power of Framing:

1. The Power of Framing: Creating the Language of Leadership Dr. Gail Fairhurst

2. Upon completion of the webinar you should� discover how leaders shape context through their framing. assess your framing style along with its strengths and challenges. learn three powerful techniques to improve your framing. Webinar Objectives

3. From David Foster Wallace For Wallace�s young fish, the most profound realities of life are those most difficult to see and talk about. One of those realities is the gift of human communication. Substitute �communication� for �water� and �What the hell is water� wonderfully describes many managers in organizations today who take their communications for granted. So let me begin by asking you a question�For Wallace�s young fish, the most profound realities of life are those most difficult to see and talk about. One of those realities is the gift of human communication. Substitute �communication� for �water� and �What the hell is water� wonderfully describes many managers in organizations today who take their communications for granted. So let me begin by asking you a question�

4. How do you think of communication? Communication Models: A. Simple Transmission B. Top down C. Meaning-Centered Do you think of Communication as a simple transmission? Is communication really about authority and who has the right to communicate to whom and when? Or do you think of communication as about the creation of meaning? If so, the concept of framing should come easily to you.Do you think of Communication as a simple transmission? Is communication really about authority and who has the right to communicate to whom and when? Or do you think of communication as about the creation of meaning? If so, the concept of framing should come easily to you.

5. �[The] dual capacity�to make sense of things and to put them into language meaningful to large numbers of people gives the person who has it enormous leverage.� Lou Pondy, 1978 Focus on sense-making Focus on language Framing is the skill that underlies all others! Communication as Meaning-Centered: One of my favorite quotes that demonstrates communication as about the creation of meaning comes from Lou Pondy who Even in 1978 was writing about leadership as a language game. He said:One of my favorite quotes that demonstrates communication as about the creation of meaning comes from Lou Pondy who Even in 1978 was writing about leadership as a language game. He said:

6. Tony Hayward CEO of BP �I want my life back� Hillary Clinton �My husband is not the Secretary of State. I am.� Two Examples of Framing Tony Hayward � Yachting during the crisis. Known as "Toxic Tony" around the Gulf of Mexico, Tony Hayward says, "There's no one who wants this thing over more than I do. I want my life back.� Hillary speaking to a young man in the Congo, 2010 visit to Africa. She was asked what �President Bill Clinton thought of the situation in the Congo� to which Clinton rather angrily replied� Her staff, at first, treated it as a mistake. But Clinton herself and the State Department let The comment stand on the record. It was a rare moment of emotional honesty in diplomatic dealings.Tony Hayward � Yachting during the crisis. Known as "Toxic Tony" around the Gulf of Mexico, Tony Hayward says, "There's no one who wants this thing over more than I do. I want my life back.� Hillary speaking to a young man in the Congo, 2010 visit to Africa. She was asked what �President Bill Clinton thought of the situation in the Congo� to which Clinton rather angrily replied� Her staff, at first, treated it as a mistake. But Clinton herself and the State Department let The comment stand on the record. It was a rare moment of emotional honesty in diplomatic dealings.

7. Which communication style do you use? A. Expressive B. Conventional C. Strategic Three Framing Personalities Some of you may have gone to this website (www.leadershipframing.com to already take the inventory. Those who have not can take it after the webinar. The inventory is based on the research of Dr. Barbara J. O�Keefe of Northwestern University. We learn from her research that there are three framing personalities. We also learn that there are positives and negatives associated with each of these styles, which I will point out to you. This inventory is based on the research of Dr. Barbara J. O�Keefe at Northwestern UniversitySome of you may have gone to this website (www.leadershipframing.com to already take the inventory. Those who have not can take it after the webinar. The inventory is based on the research of Dr. Barbara J. O�Keefe of Northwestern University. We learn from her research that there are three framing personalities. We also learn that there are positives and negatives associated with each of these styles, which I will point out to you. This inventory is based on the research of Dr. Barbara J. O�Keefe at Northwestern University

8. The Expressive

9. Expressive Do you know people who seem to lack an �edit� function? We�re shocked, amused, sometimes horrified at what they say. Rob: This looks mostly negative, is there an upside to being an expressive?Do you know people who seem to lack an �edit� function? We�re shocked, amused, sometimes horrified at what they say. Rob: This looks mostly negative, is there an upside to being an expressive?

10. Ted Turner (�Mouth from the South�) Bobby Knight, the basketball coach Linda Wachner, former CEO of Warnaco Examples? Ted Turner, CNN founder Bobby Knight, losing his temper routinely on the basketball court Linda Wachner, one of Fortune Magazine�s America�s Toughest Bosses�known to scream, swear, and use emasculating languageTed Turner, CNN founder Bobby Knight, losing his temper routinely on the basketball court Linda Wachner, one of Fortune Magazine�s America�s Toughest Bosses�known to scream, swear, and use emasculating language

11. Communication is cooperative and governed by social rules and customs. Language involves expression in terms of the social effect one wants to achieve, rather than the thoughts one has. Possible upside: Good sensitivity to �framing.� Possible downside: Merely reactive to context. The Conventional When you ask an Expressive, why did you say that? They say, �Because that�s what I was thinking� When you ask a Conventional, they say, �Because that�s what is appropriate.� Rob, there�s an upside and downside to being conventional. What�s your take?When you ask an Expressive, why did you say that? They say, �Because that�s what I was thinking� When you ask a Conventional, they say, �Because that�s what is appropriate.� Rob, there�s an upside and downside to being conventional. What�s your take?

12. Most managers Al Gore, Julia Gillard (Australian Prime Minister) George Pataki (former 9/11 NY Governor) Examples? Bush 41, �the vision thing� and �I�ll handle whatever comes up.� Al Gore during the 2000 presidential debates: gave himself over to handlers Compared to Giuliani, Gov. Pataki treated a 9/11 press conference like any other by thanking dignitaries and little else.Bush 41, �the vision thing� and �I�ll handle whatever comes up.� Al Gore during the 2000 presidential debates: gave himself over to handlers Compared to Giuliani, Gov. Pataki treated a 9/11 press conference like any other by thanking dignitaries and little else.

13. Conventional vs. Strategic

14. People and situations are not fixed; rather, they are created and negotiated through language. In difficult situations, the context and situation are redefined to be appropriate. Heightened sensitivity to language; the most sensitive to �framing.� Possible downside: Manipulators? The Strategic Rob, can you guess the downside of being a Strategic? Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky deposition: �It depends on the what the meaning of the word �is� is.� Perhaps only an attorney and former Rhodes scholar could have made such a statement�for which he was widely mocked in the press.Rob, can you guess the downside of being a Strategic? Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky deposition: �It depends on the what the meaning of the word �is� is.� Perhaps only an attorney and former Rhodes scholar could have made such a statement�for which he was widely mocked in the press.

15. Marc Andreessen, Founder of Netscape and Board Member of Facebook, tells the story of a �Strategic� with an idea that sounded a bit preposterous Wondered if social networking might help him defeat the overwhelming odds against him This was 2007, and the Strategic was� Example� Asked to meet a guy with a thin but impressive resume at the San Francisco airport late one night in 2007Asked to meet a guy with a thin but impressive resume at the San Francisco airport late one night in 2007

16. Andreessen: �It was like a guy in a garage who was thinking of taking on the biggest names in the business. What he was doing shouldn�t have been possible, but we see a lot of that out here (Silicon Valley) and then something clicks. He was clearly super-smart and very entrepreneurial, a person who saw the world and the status quo as malleable.� The �Strategic� was�Barack Obama Whatever your feelings toward Obama, he changed the face of modern political campaigns.Whatever your feelings toward Obama, he changed the face of modern political campaigns.

17. Bill Clinton Martin Luther King Jr. Steve Jobs Sarah Palin Other Strategics? My goal is to move you to become more strategic, BUT with a strong sense of ethics and moral accountability. My goal is to move you to become more strategic, BUT with a strong sense of ethics and moral accountability.

18. Effective framing is the ability to define �the situation here and now� in ways that connect with others. Through framing, we create the realities to which we must then respond. It is the ambiguity of �the situation here and now� that opens it up for interpretation�and thus an opportunity to emerge as a leader. STRATEGICS UNDERSTAND THAT� �Connecting with others� is the key phrase here. Our framing is diminished when we are unable to do this. Now this second point requires some clarification. If a plane crashes down outside your window, there is little that framing can do to alter the reality of a plane crash�or an earthquake, a market crash, and so on. However, framing surfaces where there is ambiguity or uncertainty�such as why the plane crash, whether it was �pilot error� or some other debatable reason. It�s worth noting that living and working, as we do, in turbulent and fast changing environments, there�s lots of ambiguity. There�s lots of uncertainty. Or, we should say, FAILING to emerge as a leader. Let�s revisit Tony Hayward. What framing stuck? Yachting during the crisis, Known as "Toxic Tony" around the Gulf of Mexico, "I want my life back.� He got his life back when he was asked to step down as CEO a few months after the oil spill �Connecting with others� is the key phrase here. Our framing is diminished when we are unable to do this. Now this second point requires some clarification. If a plane crashes down outside your window, there is little that framing can do to alter the reality of a plane crash�or an earthquake, a market crash, and so on. However, framing surfaces where there is ambiguity or uncertainty�such as why the plane crash, whether it was �pilot error� or some other debatable reason. It�s worth noting that living and working, as we do, in turbulent and fast changing environments, there�s lots of ambiguity. There�s lots of uncertainty. Or, we should say, FAILING to emerge as a leader. Let�s revisit Tony Hayward. What framing stuck? Yachting during the crisis, Known as "Toxic Tony" around the Gulf of Mexico, "I want my life back.� He got his life back when he was asked to step down as CEO a few months after the oil spill

19. LEADERS WHO UNDERSTAND THEIR WORLD CAN EXPLAIN THEIR WORLD. TECHNIQUE #1: DEVELOP YOUR MENTAL MODELS Many of you, I�m sure, have heard the term �mental model� before. But for those who haven�t, it�s about the pictures in our heads. Peter Senge defines mental models as �deeply held images of how the world works�. These mental models can be a fuzzy mental picture of something or someone, such as when you meet a person for the first time�or a very well developed model, such as the mental model you hold for yourself. (For example, I would describe myself as a Type A personality due to more than a few nuns in my background who knew how to crack the whip!) The bottom line is that we hold mental models for virtually every aspect of world, including our jobs and leadership. Let�s try out a few examples. Many of you, I�m sure, have heard the term �mental model� before. But for those who haven�t, it�s about the pictures in our heads. Peter Senge defines mental models as �deeply held images of how the world works�. These mental models can be a fuzzy mental picture of something or someone, such as when you meet a person for the first time�or a very well developed model, such as the mental model you hold for yourself. (For example, I would describe myself as a Type A personality due to more than a few nuns in my background who knew how to crack the whip!) The bottom line is that we hold mental models for virtually every aspect of world, including our jobs and leadership. Let�s try out a few examples.

20. Develop Your Mental Models From Fr. Graham, XU President: �Dr. King is typically remembered in a kind of soft and fuzzy way that tends to blunt his message, effectively domesticating him and, for many, making his memory less troublesome and easier to bear.� Read quote. What was a white, middle-aged, male Catholic university president from America�s heartland doing by suggesting that King�s message had been softened, blunted, and domesticated? Was there not a touch of irony, or least surprise, that he was underscoring Dr King�s more radical agenda of structural, big picture issues? We can surmise that Fr. Graham�s mental model for Dr. King�s �dream for this country� was much more developed than the others, which is why they created rather expected soundbites�and Fr. Graham created a memorable message.Read quote. What was a white, middle-aged, male Catholic university president from America�s heartland doing by suggesting that King�s message had been softened, blunted, and domesticated? Was there not a touch of irony, or least surprise, that he was underscoring Dr King�s more radical agenda of structural, big picture issues? We can surmise that Fr. Graham�s mental model for Dr. King�s �dream for this country� was much more developed than the others, which is why they created rather expected soundbites�and Fr. Graham created a memorable message.

21. How we frame is a window into our ethics Bruce Klatsky: �Did they deserve their fate? No they didn�t deserve their fate. Those were terrific people. I�m scared to death for them� That�s why I don�t sleep as well as I used to.� Develop Your Mental Models How we frame is a window into our ethics any time that we act in a leadership capacity. Dunlap, now deceased former executive of Scott Paper and Sunbeam Klatsky former CEO now Board member of Phillips-Van Heusen Several years ago, they appeared in the same documentary on corporate downsizing that remains terribly relevant today. Their message was basically the same�we have to eliminate the few in order to save the many�but Dunlap�s mental model didn�t go beyond thinking about himself. It was not well developed. Klatsy�s mental model was very well developed based on his ability to understand the plight of the downsized�not just to see them as numbers that might contribute to a bottom line that an executive like Dunlap could boast about. How we frame is a window into our ethics any time that we act in a leadership capacity. Dunlap, now deceased former executive of Scott Paper and Sunbeam Klatsky former CEO now Board member of Phillips-Van Heusen Several years ago, they appeared in the same documentary on corporate downsizing that remains terribly relevant today. Their message was basically the same�we have to eliminate the few in order to save the many�but Dunlap�s mental model didn�t go beyond thinking about himself. It was not well developed. Klatsy�s mental model was very well developed based on his ability to understand the plight of the downsized�not just to see them as numbers that might contribute to a bottom line that an executive like Dunlap could boast about.

22. The plastic human brain: Use it or lose it! Priming: conscious recall leaves an unconscious imprint We vastly underestimate the value of priming because we don�t do it systematically: Practiced golf swing Speech rehearsal Studying for a test TECHNIQUE #2: PRIME FOR SPONTANEITY This second technique focuses on controlling our �spontaneous� communications. Does that sound like a contradiction in terms? It�s not, really, when you consider what brain science is teaching us these days. For instance, it is teaching us that the brain is a a muscle and very plastic. This dispels earlier views that we are �hard-wired.� And, as a muscle, we must use it or it atrophies. Brain Science also teaches us about �priming.� We usually think of priming as in �priming a pump.� Here I always think about an apple farm I visit every Fall where older children always gather around an old pump where they must work the pump for several seconds before a rush of water comes spilling out. That�s the basic principle. But a better example is to think about the last time you were asked about a restaurant you visited and you could not think of it�s name. It was on the tip-of-your-tongue. Then, the name pops into your mind the next day in the shower or driving to work. What just happened? You have primed your unconscious�it was working even when your conscious mind was elsewhere. Psycholinguists actually do many �tip-of-the-tongue� experiments where priming involves conscious recall or thinking about some content at Time 1 that leaves an unconscious imprint for use at Time 2. We can do the same with a moment of conscious recall sometime prior to communicating in order to exert the unconscious control when we�re about to communicate. Brain scientists say we vastly underestimate the value of priming because we don�t do it systematically.This second technique focuses on controlling our �spontaneous� communications. Does that sound like a contradiction in terms? It�s not, really, when you consider what brain science is teaching us these days. For instance, it is teaching us that the brain is a a muscle and very plastic. This dispels earlier views that we are �hard-wired.� And, as a muscle, we must use it or it atrophies. Brain Science also teaches us about �priming.� We usually think of priming as in �priming a pump.� Here I always think about an apple farm I visit every Fall where older children always gather around an old pump where they must work the pump for several seconds before a rush of water comes spilling out. That�s the basic principle. But a better example is to think about the last time you were asked about a restaurant you visited and you could not think of it�s name. It was on the tip-of-your-tongue. Then, the name pops into your mind the next day in the shower or driving to work. What just happened? You have primed your unconscious�it was working even when your conscious mind was elsewhere. Psycholinguists actually do many �tip-of-the-tongue� experiments where priming involves conscious recall or thinking about some content at Time 1 that leaves an unconscious imprint for use at Time 2. We can do the same with a moment of conscious recall sometime prior to communicating in order to exert the unconscious control when we�re about to communicate. Brain scientists say we vastly underestimate the value of priming because we don�t do it systematically.

23. Marin Alsop Boston Symphony Orchestra Told: �be the music� by Leonard Bernstein �Felt like a massage!� Prime for Spontaneity

24. Framing is not achieved by verbal means alone. Humans have a tendency to mimic the expressions and emotions of others. High energy framing is instrumental to positive emotional contagion. TECHNIQUE #3: USE POSITIVE EMOTIONAL CONTAGION All �emotional contagion� means is �contagious emotions� When we talk about communication skills, there�s a tendency to focus too much on language because we can be so precise. But we would be remiss if we didn�t also talk about what our bodies communicate. Brain science is also teaching us that we have mirror neurons that prompt us to actually mimic the expressions and emotions of others. A good example of this is when you find that another�s yawning triggers you to yawn. This tendency to mimic is an important insight we are just now learning more about. You know, I used to work with a guy who has very flat affect�almost no expression on his face. For the first year I worked with him, I thought he was mad at me and could not understand why. I now understand that my mirror neurons�that is, my desire to mimic�were being blocked and that�s what made him so difficult to understand and interpret. Words weren�t enough. The implications for framing are profound because high energy framing is absolutely instrumental to positive emotional contagion. People want to be around leaders who are positive�and it�s not only your words that sell this message, your body does�posture, facial expressions, movement, how you dress�all of those things play a role. After you leave us today, think about what your body is communicating to reinforce to work against the words you speak.All �emotional contagion� means is �contagious emotions� When we talk about communication skills, there�s a tendency to focus too much on language because we can be so precise. But we would be remiss if we didn�t also talk about what our bodies communicate. Brain science is also teaching us that we have mirror neurons that prompt us to actually mimic the expressions and emotions of others. A good example of this is when you find that another�s yawning triggers you to yawn. This tendency to mimic is an important insight we are just now learning more about. You know, I used to work with a guy who has very flat affect�almost no expression on his face. For the first year I worked with him, I thought he was mad at me and could not understand why. I now understand that my mirror neurons�that is, my desire to mimic�were being blocked and that�s what made him so difficult to understand and interpret. Words weren�t enough. The implications for framing are profound because high energy framing is absolutely instrumental to positive emotional contagion. People want to be around leaders who are positive�and it�s not only your words that sell this message, your body does�posture, facial expressions, movement, how you dress�all of those things play a role. After you leave us today, think about what your body is communicating to reinforce to work against the words you speak.

25. Develop Your Mental Models Prime for Spontaneity Use Positive Emotional Contagion Three Key Framing Techniques: Leaders who understand their words can explain their worlds Conscious recall leaves an unconscious imprint High energy framing is the key to positive emotional contagion Leaders who understand their words can explain their worlds Conscious recall leaves an unconscious imprint High energy framing is the key to positive emotional contagion

26. Opportunities for structured reflection Downloadable framing tools Glossary of terms PowerPoint slides for training Other Things from the Book

27. Do you see the water?