Business Link

by Carey-Lyn Kurten

“Cognitive scientists are finding that people’s mental maps, their theories, expectations, and attitudes, play a more central role in human perception than was previously understood.” Jeffrey Schwartz- Neuroscientist

Two individuals working on the same customer service telephone line could hold different mental maps of the same customer. The first, seeing customers only as troubled children, would hear only complaints that needed to be allayed; the second, seeing them as busy but intelligent professionals, would hear valuable suggestions for improving a product or service. Do you and your people have the same mental maps of your customers?

Brain Basics:
People experience what they expect to experience. The placebo effect demonstrates the impact that mental maps can have on behaviour. Donald Price of the University of Florida has shown that the mental expectation of pain relief accounts for a change in pain perception. When the brain expects to receive pain relief, the deepest pain centers show systematic changes consistent with changes in experienced pain. Thinking the pain is going, can actually result in the pain going without having medication.

The brain can shape our reality.
This is a very powerful, and scientifically proven reality for business leaders.

What can you do with it? Consider how you would use this to facilitate a change in staff behaviour? Focusing on their behavior, the DO part, may result in small scale changes. Many companies spend a lot of time and energy…which translates into money…on trying to change the DO part. Telling people how they ought to behave. However, the key to effective change lies in the mental maps. A large scale behavioural change requires a large scale change in mental maps.

Begin with challenging your own mental maps. Ask yourself: “What are my expectations of my customers and of the people who work with me? What am I seeing?

As you begin your 2010 business year, check your organizations mental maps and make sure you are creating the future reality you want for your business.

“Organisations are perfectly designed for the results they achieve.” Paul Gustavson

Carey-Lyn Kurten is a skilled and energized facilitator who will assist
ou with a simple tool to stamp out negativity and improve the quality of your organizations decision making and problem solving.

For more information contact her on 083 248 0018 or via email on mila@eln.co.za