How can the Butterfly Effect help organizations?
- An approach to workflow enhancement
- The butterfly effect as a mental model
- How it influences leadership
- Enter Six Sigma
In the Philippines, Six Sigma Training can be found offered by many companies. However, as great of an undertaking that is, often it can be supplemented by other leadership mindsets.
There are different kinds of philosophies and mindsets that can facilitate one’s growth. One of the more popular ones include the butterfly effect and the Japanese improvement philosophy known as Kaizen. Today, we will be focusing on at the butterfly effect and how it can help improve a leader’s overall capability to lead a team and an entire organization towards continuous growth.
The Butterfly Effect
the Butterfly effect explains how the smallest factors can result in large impacts on any given output. The metaphor itself pertains to a small butterfly flapping its wings strong enough to create typhoons; not necessarily something that can literally happen, the fact that small events can still serve as catalysts to start grand heights remains.
This catalytic action can result in different kinds of conditions for organizations— and it will always boil down to being either a positive or negative outcome. Although you can’t fully control how a situation can transpire, subtle influences can go a long way.
The butterfly effect can lead to some desirable outcomes. Positive effects include improvements in processes, smoothening of workflows, and enhancements of team environments. Negative effects result in unwanted changes—those that can harm relationships and business processes. It is important that you prevent or eliminate these effects as soon as possible and try to replace them with more positive conditions.
The Butterfly Effect as a Mental Model
By incorporating the Butterfly Effect mindset, you get to be more aware of how the smallest of efforts can breed the greatest of changes— good or bad. You also begin to home in on the bigger picture. You will no longer focus on a hectic present-day mindset but rather have the foresight to think a few steps ahead.
You’ll begin to think of issues differently—often identifying and debating on the implications of your actions in the future.
A good example can be taken from your everyday finances. You can decide whether or not to keep track of everything you buy in order to make doing your taxes easier. If you don’t, then you’ll have a hard time crunching numbers as you procrastinate. If you do, however, you’ll just need a few minutes of concentration and processing what you’ve tracked.
The Butterfly Effect doesn’t just happen through your actions but through your decisions.
How it Influences Leadership
As leaders, one of your primary tasks is to bring out the best from your teammates. You are one of the primary pillars of your organization. In the midst of tens and sometimes hundreds of team members, what you say and what you do can have great impacts.
Even with just a few words of encouragement or reassurance can result in the transformation of individuals into something more such as future leaders.
Think of the people you influence and those who rely on you—those who believe in your perspective. You hold a certain level of authority over them. And the simplest of actions can change that immensely.
In the context of business, you must take into consideration not just your people, but also the processes all around. Applying the Butterfly Effect on business operations and workflow is easier, however, the importance of your influence stays the same.
You are the leader. You can bring change and it’s up to you to ensure that it’s positive all around.
Enter Six Sigma
When the Butterfly Effect is embedded in your mindset, you begin to see objectives from a more systematic perspective. And as great as it is for leading your team, it’s also great for uncovering and optimizing business processes.
This mindset is most optimal when paired with the techniques, tools, and ideas such as Six Sigma. Through Six Sigma, you can help your organization’s business processes eliminate errors, improve workflow quality, and ensure compliance.
By applying the Butterfly Effect mental model with the concepts in Six Sigma, you can become a leader with enough foresight to help your organization in even the most technical of ways.
When combined, these two concepts will tremendously increase your leadership capabilities. With mastery of both a broad perspective and a systematic point of view, you can improve your whole company.
Key Takeaway
Great techniques, strategies, and tools are nothing without the proper mindset. Even the best six sigma training in the Philippines will be for naught if you don’t have the right perspective in mind. The Butterfly Effect, though simple and a bit arbitrary, fosters a great mental attitude that can greatly supplement the ideologies of Six Sigma.