Part 4 of 7 By Al Mills
Six Types of Working Genius: Discernment
The Six Types of Working Genius uses the acronym WIDGET. Widget represents six categories of work that are necessary for almost any type of project. Usually, people discover that two of those categories really inspire and energize them. Read on to learn about the first category, Discernment.
Discerners are a vital part of any team activity because they are the ones to help us decide if our ideas are workable, sellable, and functional. One of the products that is living in infamy is the Apple Magic Mouse. The rechargeable version is a fantastic advance, especially for those of us that remember wired mice with physical tracking balls in them. But the Magic Mouse has a reviled feature; in order to charge it, it must be plugged in through the bottom of the mouse and is therefore non-functional while it’s charging. So, if your mouse runs out of battery mid-project, you either need a replacement mouse on standby, or you are sitting on your hands while it charges enough for you to be productive with it again.
One can’t help but wonder what may have happened at Apple while they developed this mouse. On the one hand, engineers may have seen no other alternative to making the rechargeable mouse work, after all the working surface of the mouse is a complex device. At the same time, any Discerners on the team must have been gnashing their teeth as they knew this was not a great idea, and would be pretty unpopular among users.
Organizations that are missing Discerners have a tendency to produce products and services that miss the mark. It could be as simple as a poor colour choice for a product, an inaccessible design, or services that answer a question that no one is asking.
Discerners provide insight and experience to the Inventor’s innovation. Discerners are called upon to make judgements as to the workability of a product or service. Sometimes pointing out great features, other times pointing out likely failures, or designs that may prove disastrous.
While your Genius may be Discernment, this Genius should be accompanied by an overarching concern for the progress of the organization. Discerners should not be cast in a role of hyper-criticism, or simply shooting things down on a constant basis. Of course, one of the major components that a Discerner contributes to an organization is the prevention of creating products or services that are profoundly flawed. Yet, a Discerner who is not team and organization oriented can create havoc if their motivations in applying discernment become political. This is why other programs such as The Five Dysfunctions of a Team are so crucially engaged in conjunction with The Six Types of Working Genius. Well-functioning teams within a healthy culture bring about the best results, and in order to achieve that organizations need to have the right people in the right roles so that trust and healthy conflict can abound. This is a powerful combination in the art and science of the Discerner’s role.
Discerners represent broad value to an organization. If your company engages your discernment gift in multiple areas, it provides the best of your motivation to the company. Essentially, while you are energized by this type of work, the company also gets the best from you in multiple applications, which of course is best for the overall organization.
If you can, live in your Genius as much as you can…it will prevent burnout, and bring the best you have to your organization.
Next: Galvanizing
Al Mills is the lead consultant and founder of The Advantage Mill, a company dedicated to bringing out the best in the workplace. You can find the website at www.theadvantagemill.com.