The Art of Framing: Managing the Language of Leadership PDF
Preview The Art of Framing: Managing the Language of Leadership
P. W . fin UNc £333 Managing the Language I of leadership GAIL T. FAIRHURST . m The Art of Framing The Art of Framing Managing the Language of Leadership ,, 44 5/ Gail T. Fairhurst 5:3 ’5. ’/ Robert A Sarr _ {5335 'bjf) ~37" n / / w F Jossey-Bass Publishers 0 San Francisco ?:>Ub\-j R-' e.-a\_ -"hK “ W.t 0‘ _;-- -'- .--5- Copyright 0 1996 byjoucan Inc.. Publishers. 350 Sansome Street. San Francisco, California 94104. Copyright under International, Pan Amefican. and Universal Copyright Conventions. All right: reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form- except for brief quotation (not to exceed 1,000 words) in a review or professional work— without penniuion in uniting from the publishers. Substantial discounts on bulk quantities ofjouey-Bau books are available to corpomtions, professional associations, and other organindom. For details and discount information, contact the special sales department atjoucy-Bau Inc.. Publishers (415) 433-1740; Fax (800) 605—2665. For sales outside the United States. please contact your local Simon 8: Schuwer Intemational Office. Mgnufacmred in the United Sm ofAmeria on Lyons Falls Pathfinder debook. This paper is acid-flee and 100 percent totally chlorine-flee. morWWMMD-n Fail-hunt. Gail Them. date- Thcmofframingznnnagingthelmguageofleadcuhip [Gail'li Fail-hunt. RobenA. Sm: - 13:. ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-7879-0181-4 1. Leadership. 2. Communiation in management. 3. Interpersonal communication. 1. San. Robert A. date. 11. Title. HDS7.7.F355 1996 658.4'092—dc20 95—37020 .. cm FIRST EDITION . mmngmgs'zssqszl mun-mm _ _.— o.-u ' fi fi ‘ 9 4 2 Contents Preface The Authors Framing: Seizing Leadership Moments in Everyday Conversations From the Inside Out: How Your Own View of Reality Shapes Communication Goals 23 Vision-Based Framing: Enabling People to See the World You See Context Sensitivity: Recognizing Opportunities and Constraints 80 Tools for Framing: Metaphor, Jargon, Contrast, Spin, and Stories 100 Avoiding Mixed Messages 127 Preparing Yourself to Frame Spontaneously 143 Establishing Credibility: What You Flame, How You Frame, and How Others Frame You 170 Epilogue: Framing in Action 197 References 201 ' Index ‘ 207 Preface Leadership is a language game. So said management scholars Louis Pondy and Jefi‘rcy Pfcfl'er in the seventies when they asserted that leadership's true impact is on human sentiment and under- standing rather than on the bottom line. [cadets operate in uncer- min, sometimes chaotic environments that are partly of their own creation: while leaders do not control events, they do influence how events are seen and understood. They are movers and shak- ers of their organizations, and their most important tools are sym- bolic and linguistic. . Leadership is a language game, one that many do not know they are playing. Even though most leadcrs spend nearly 70 per- cent of their time communicating, they pay relatively little atten- tion to how they use language as a tool of influence. Technically grounded managers may talk a good game on technical matters. Trained in the knowledge and versed in the jargon of a particular field, they easily produce words and sentences that others seem to understand. But the ease with which they speak causes listeners to miss .the fact that language cloaks, scdatcs, even scduccs people into believing that many of the so—callcd facts of our world are objectively rather than socially created. No other reason can explain why the same market fluctuations are seen as problems for some opportunities for others. No other reason can explain Vand why new visions and programs become future realities in some companies and remain as pipe dreams in others. No other reason can explain why the same uttered words are treated as gospel com- ing from one leader but hot air coming from another. The Art qmmz‘ng treats leaders as managers of the meanings for their world. In this book, we introduce the skill of framing: a quality of communimfion that causes others to accept one mean- ing over another. It is a skill with profound consequences for XMACE behavior that influences how we and others respond to the world in which we live. It is a skill that great leaders possess and one that most readers will readily recognize, yet it is a skill that is not often taught. Many believe that you either have framing skills or you don’t. Not so. You can learn to manage meaning through flaming; this book can teach you how. Psychologists, pastors, advertisers, and politicians make their living framing the realities they want their clients and constituents to accept. These professionals recognize the power of framing to influence how others see and interpret reality. Those of us who lead and participate in organizations should also recognize the power of this skill. This book provides a wealth of information that will give leaders new freedom—and new responsibility—in every- day communication, both inside and outside the organization. Our Research into Framing Our research into the subject of framing first began in 1987 when Gail Fairhm'st took up residence in the organization for which Bob Sarr worked. The organization was an inviting place to spend a uni- versity sabbatical because it had a reputation for hiring the best and brightest and was a consistent blue-chip performer in the con- sumer products field nationally and internationally. Known for its leading-edge work in the field of organizational development, it was one of the first to institute self-managing team-based systems, to wrestle with issues of empowerment and diversity, and to adopt the Tatal Quality Management (TQM) philosophy of W. Edwards Deming. The company was in the midst ‘of TQM adoption at the time of our study. What better place to study how communication contributes to a high-performance organization? We talked with countless leaders and their direct reports throughout the manufacturing arm of this organization and asked them to complete questionnaires. We tape-recorded many of their actual work conversations; our analyses of these conversations form one part of the research base of this book. Many of the conversations are valuable teaching tools, which is why we have chosen to include them. Those who spoke on tape expressed their views freely, proba- bly because the conversations were tape-recorded in their own work settings without our presence and were not structured in any way. Puma: xi Willing participants were simply toldjust to turn on the recorder the next lime they expected a conversation to last more than a few min- utes. In two separate data gatherings, we collected over two hundred conversation: of approximately thirty minutes in length. In spite of the sophistication of the company and the high level of professional training of its managers, the vast majority of the conversations were hit-or-miss when it came to constructing the right context or frames for management initiatives. Lost opportu- nities were frequent and apparent. It was in this astonishing dis- covery that we came to appreciate how leadership is realized in the everyday and routine aspects of the job—in a succession of mo- ments rather than in landmark decisions. Leaders repeatedly appeared oblivious to golden opportunities to help others make sense out of events, to explain the why and wherefore of company decisions, and to secure commitment and buy-in from employees. Repeatedly, they missed opportunities to flame or rcfiame the neg- ative framing practiced so skillfully by those who resist change. Since our initial research in 1987, we have observed and spo- ken about framing communications and interviewed leaders and other professionals in a variety of Olganizafions both in the United States and Europe. From these observations and conversations, we are convinced that our initial experience was not unique. [cadets everywhere can be numbed by the pressures and routines of their jobs. Or, because of their appreciation for framing everyday work issues, they can understand the power that lies within those rou- tines. We are convinced that conversations like the ones we recorded and like those we have heard so many times are taking place in just about any company you could name. Our research also included an intensive survey of the man- agement and communication literature, focusing heavily on case studies, for examples of great and not-so-great flaming by leaders. These case studies provided us with some flaming examples that were highly creative. Finally, we looked beyond the management environment and the business pages and sought great examples of framing from the worlds of politics, sports, literature, entertain- ment, and rcligion. These too provided us with useful insights. We think that after reading The Art ofFraming, you will start to do your own research on framing because, like us, you wiil notice framing in every aspect of your life.
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