Mental Models October 2009

Written by: Craig Twombly

Published: October 2009

Mental Models

After reading Ralph’s latest article, I found myself pondering many things.  During the last economic growth wave, the struggle was to not only retain employees but to retain the most talented employees. As a young manager I remember a day when I left an interview with an employment candidate, whom I thought was dressed inappropriately. As I walked away I thought, “Why would I hire someone dressed like that?  Do people really think they can wear ratty old jeans to an interview?” As I moved to the next interview and the next,. I struggled to maintain staff levels and customer needs. As the organization grew it became apparent that turnover was an issue. So I began an interviewing initiative where the questions were specific to the job’s needs based on skills and behaviors. Over time turnover began to decline and the struggle to maintain staffing levels slowed.  The next problem that I asked myself was “Why do they not get it” or “These kids today are lazy and have no work ethic!”  I learned that I had to ask more questions in order to “get it” myself and that most folks do not want to fail, they just have different approaches to doing their jobs.

The next thing that caused me to relook at my mental models was a recent interaction I had while driving. One early afternoon I was driving back to the office after meeting a client in the Falmouth area. As I drove towards the Washington Avenue area I noticed a vehicle driving right on my bumper. As the SUV became closer to my bumper the hairs on my neck began to stand. This carried on for a few miles. I noticed that the driver was a female on the phone. The single lane formed two and she struggled to get by the line of traffic yet ended up behind me once again. The thoughts ran through my mind. The thoughts flew through my mind. Everything from, “It is not my fault you are late!” to…well you get the rest.

The person behind me continued to drive erratically and continued to cause stress for all the cars near her. As I stopped at the next light the lady in the SUV pulled up next to me and began to roll down her window. As I regained my thoughts, my comments, rebuttal, and final comments were on the tip of my tongue. I was ready to give her some lip, but decided to stop and look instead.  I was amazed to find out she was a well dressed lady with tears running down her face. The conversation was very short. She leaned over to the passenger seat and apologized for her driving. She went on to tell me her son had just fallen down a flight of stairs and she was trying to get to the school so she could be with him in the ambulance. She turned left and was gone. My mental model was that she was a strange, inconsiderate person. It was so far from the truth. I now pull over when someone becomes too close to my bumper because they could have a very good reason. I have had two mental models that were not true. Most of us tend to in this society.
So, what I learned was that mental models are present everyday, not only in the work place but in our personal lives. Mental models are the views we have of the people we work with as well as the conversation that triangulates at the water cooler, and everything in between. Mental models are not only helpful, but hurtful. When we look at aspiring leaders, we have a mental model. They have what it takes to be successful. This in turn shapes how we interact with them.

Wikipedia defines a Mental Model as: an explanation of someone's thought process about how something works in the real world. It is a representation of the surrounding world, the relationships between its various parts and a person's intuitive perception about their own acts and their consequences. Our mental models help shape our behaviour and define our approach to solving problem.

Craig Twombly

Craig is the primary facilitator at Priority Learning, he is responsible for conducting an array of leadership series offered and consulting assignments from communications to team development in organizations ranging from the service industries to finance, manufacturing and more. Having extensive experience at balancing the business needs with the wants and desires of people are Craig's strongest assets.