The Active Avoidance of Sisu

Sisu, a Finnish word that has no direct translation. In English, sisu may be described as the energy that lies past grit and perseverance to overcome adversity. Today I won’t look at sisu directly rather, voice a few thoughts and questions about the other side of the equation: Adversity.

If Sisu is the energy used to overcome adversity, it is important then to understand what is to be conquered. Adversity by definition is: adverse or unfavorable fortune or fate; a condition marked by misfortune, calamity, or distress. For me, I don’t think this really describes adversity well because, as you can probably gather, this all seems to be very subjective. What is calamity, distress or unfavourable fortune? These terms would be very heavily dependent upon the one experiencing them.

In Finland, I have heard numerous times how an ice hockey team or player used sisu energy to succeed in difficult conditions. It has been mentioned in regards to business success as well as political and industrial maneuvering. When I first arrived in Finland some 13 odd years ago, clients would often give me mini Finnish history lessons to bring me up to speed. Many broached the subject of past wars and battles where inevitably, the term ‘Finnish Sisu’ would be called upon to describe how Finland managed to survive. How does the survival of a war compare to a tough hockey game on the adversity index?

If sisu begins where determination, perseverance and grit end, wouldn’t the point of beginning be dependent upon how much grit and determination one already possesses? This would mean that the starting point of sisu for any particular individual could vary wildly from that of another, as would the adverse events required to call upon the sisu reserve. This makes the adversity level of events required to induce sisu highly personal and incomparable to the experiences of another, even if the events themselves are comparable.

“Through high school I lived a life of adversity. You see, I had an iphone 4 when all of my friends had a 5 and some even a 6. It was a tough time but my sisu got me through.”

Is this what we could hear as stories that demonstrate sisu? Does this provoke us to ignore the odds and inspire us to jump into the fray? Which situations bring out our own strengths and hidden reserves? Is mild adversity enough or does it require gut wrenching, muscle ripping, physical and mental struggle where failure or success is balanced on a razor’s edge? Perhaps an extremely adverse event to one may seem relatively mild through the eyes of another. Can an observer judge?

When it comes to judgement, sisu seems to be something that can be guessed at through third-party observations but not actually measured. Like a 1-10 pain scale, it is only relevant to the individual experiencing it and the threshold for one may be much, much higher or lower than that of another. The judgement would also depend on what types of events the observer believes worthy or unworthy of even attempting and their personal experiences and attitudes. I also suspect that when it comes to observing sisu by the actual individual experiencing it, there would be no available energy to pay observational attention, as all would be allocated to the adverse sisu-evoking task at hand. It is perhaps possible to see in reflection but, when looking back, does one realise that the grit/sisu threshold was crossed, or does survival itself prove that there was actually more energy within?

Then, if we are interested in experiencing sisu and growing resilience we would have to think if our lives offer the type of adversity that inspires sisu to get involved? We live in a society where we protest the loss of a few holidays and demonstrate because we believe we don’t have enough to help people that have fled war zones. We will argue against measures that place financial discomfort upon us and shy away from making personal and policy changes although the current and future environment demands them. We ask others to look after us in many different ways, blame them if they fail to reach our expectations and get offended and target them if they say or do something with which we disagree. We continually judge everyone else based on their actions and circumstances yet fight for our right not to be judged ourselves. There is already a life filled with conflict, and much of it seems self-inflicted, but is it sisu inducing?

To experience sisu we have to face adversities that challenge us beyond our own expectations and beliefs of what we think we can do. Which would mean, doing what we think is for us, impossible. But, most people will instinctively not test personal limits that defy the odds because of the likelihood of failure and certainly not willingly attempt the impossible. Alternatively, we could experience sisu if the adversity we experience is not chosen, but thrust upon us by external factors, however, our common practice is to fight against anything that we expect will put us in discomfort, let alone awaken the sleeping sisu giant inside. We seem to want to believe sisu is within us, but will actively avoid the adverse situations that would prove it.

A poor diagram attempting to show the move:

Regardless of whether sisu usage is realised or not, dipping into the reserve would  promote an expanded ‘believed ability’ capacity for future use since it has been proven in practice and repeatedly doing so would continuously move the boundary and create a highly resilient individual. If one adverse event expands the grit capacity, does this translate into the ability to handle a highly diverse adverse event?

Personally, when I look back at my life, I have pushed through some very difficult times, but in reflection, were they that difficult? I now think I had much more reserve than the struggle suggested and perhaps didn’t come as close to using ‘sisu’ as I thought I did at the time. Maybe I underestimated myself then because I didn’t understand a wide range of adversity, perhaps I now overestimate my abilities because I think I have already faced the most difficult. It is highly likely that with my personal growth, the troubles of the past now appear insignificant. In hindsight, I feel I was much more than a little naive, and looking forward, I think I will look back at now and think the same again. We can believe in something without it being true, but truth itself doesn’t require a belief. Should I find out where my true limits are or, should I trust where I believe them to be?

In my opinion, adversity does not need to come through a struggle against the negative, it can come through a journey for the positive. It doesn’t have to be brought on by misfortune, distress or calamity. At least not in the way we generally define it. Sisu and its benefits could come through deliberate choices to push ourselves into adversity by tackling what we believe to be impossible for us, but worthy of our energy investments. The breaking of familiar structures and concepts and venturing into new fields, yet to be formed technologies and methods that are still only dreams. To learn about and collaborate with people, cultures and nations that are unfamiliar, uncomfortable to build stronger relationships and better solutions. To invest in the unknown, investigate the unexplored and attempt to do what has never been done. The undiscovered always lives in adversity until found and the path to a better world is impeded by those unwilling to look. Of course, negative events will still appear along these paths also but, rather than trying to avoid them, we can aim for something far greater and they will help us achieve it.

Sisu may begin at the end of our known abilities, but not the end of our ability because if there is reserve, there is fuel to learn more, understand deeper and move further. Sometimes the steps seem too big and our legs too short and we question ourselves and our power to continue, yet here we are, continuing. And, if we know that sisu is there, why are we afraid to go further than what we believe are the limits? Why not test our impossibles? When we look back, the moments we revere, the ones that have shaped us, the ones that have become a part of our story, many of these are born from difficulty and pulled from adversity. The great leap forwards in things such as technology and education, social welfare, human rights and medicine have also been pushed through uncertainty and adverse conditions. Adversity becomes the catalyst for fulfilling our potential, avoiding it creates our ceilings.

“Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they’ve been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It’s an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It’s a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.” – Muhammad Ali

Like normal, these are just some thoughts that may inspire more thoughts and questions. Feedback and opinions are welcome.

Taraz

 

Position+

Professional environments have changed markedly in the last few decades. In most fields, hierarchical, chain of command processes have been (or are in the process of being) replaced by flatter, side by side forms. Departments are broken into semi-autonomous units, units into smaller cells and self-directed individuals populate each compartment. Very few employees currently rely entirely on someone telling them what, how or even when to do it. On top of this, necessary skill sets have expanded considerably. Previously, a specialist largely focused on their particular core area but, with optimisation for efficiency and profit, positions have been combined and a kind of job creep has taken place. Everyone is now required to be able to play several roles. The butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker has become the Catering and Lighting specialist.

These ongoing changes throw up many challenges but also many opportunities. The stability of a specialisation and job for life may be gone, but the freedom to explore options and self-direct a career path is wider than ever. Being irreplaceable within an organisation is almost non-existent but, the ability to move within and externally is high and the low safety within large organisations can be offset by the chance to take part in startups and small business growth. Depending on how you look at it, these changes may threaten a current position or offer broad opportunities to move. To Stay or to Move?

That is the question, but it doesn’t matter which side an individual favours, both require the same approach. Skill growth.

If you want to stay the same, change.

Many organisations are looking to change. The results enjoyed in the past are increasingly being challenged as globalisation, competition, technology and world events place pressure on process and result. Establishing new value systems, restructuring and shuffling can only bring about limited changes in the development an organisation craves. Large changes are not made in the rules, they are made by the people.

Because of this, organisations expect that actors within will have a change mindset, be willing to learn, follow and promote change as well as be proactive in progressing change processes themselves. This means that if one wants to stay in the same position, it is necessary to develop the job to fit the needs of the changing organisation and therefore build personal skills that fit the new position requirements. Successfully doing this is about as stable as one can make a position in the current business environment.

Of course, this doesn’t cement a position in the organisation. However, if personal and development takes place and one does find themselves on the open job market, a change mindset, enhanced skills and future thinking goes a long way in demonstrating value and securing another role. Or creating one.

If you want to change, change.

As previously stated, the changing environment comes with many opportunities to move and grow but generally, these new opportunities may require skills that were not previously necessary to be a specialist. As a result, many have not actively sought to obtain these skills for two reasons. The first being that to effectively develop, one must understand what is being trained and as this is future based, a lot of uncertainty exists in defining this. And secondly, investing in something that has no demand seems illogical.

Development always requires learning and the pathways are difficult, errors possible and investments can be lost. But, each movement brings more opportunity and learning, deeper information and potential course correction. The more learning that happens, the more real estate for movement opens up.

To see opportunity, one has to be able to identify it and to benefit from it, one has to understand it. In other words, you have to understand before you see. Investing in something before demand has its risks but the upside is that it can stimulate demand whilst simultaneously creating the learning opportunities required. The first drives the second. Waiting for the inverse, demand drives learning, means that it is always a chase to close skill gaps and competition is likely to be higher and the according benefits, lower. The early adopters are both the ones that potentially lose their investment AND make the greatest gains.

Choice comes at a price

Everyone wants the freedom to make their own decisions (at least at some level) but this comes at a price. The price is responsibility. Self-direction comes with consequences. Positive growth is available for the taking, but so are negative results. Leaving decisions up to others may mean that blame can be laid on the shoulders of the decision maker but, allowing them to make the decision is a decision itself and some responsibility must be taken for a negative outcome.

Many are frozen in the headlights of choice, unable to make a decision from so many and questioning their judgement when they do. The paradox of choice is that the more there is, the less decisions get made. And with so many small, inconsequential choices available, difficult, meaningful choices are left unmade. Many people spend hours deciding on which coffee table or car to buy but hardly a thought goes to which professional skills to improve. These crucial decisions are made by default settings that are more likely to be suitable for a past gone, than the coming future.

Make a move

Expecting skills to build in the workplace is a suitable approach but remember that the skills generally learned on the job are skills suitable for that particular job. If the aim is to move to a new position, some different skills are likely required. If one can preempt the upcoming skill requirements of a new position or organisational change and close the learning gap, opportunities are not only easy to identify but also demonstrate willingness and ability for the next position.

Fast learners may only appear so

Fast learners are often fast because they already have a foundation built for the tasks required. They have closed gaps. An organisation can spend months developing a change program and nothing on building the skills in their people required to efficiently implement the changes.

If an individual has invested in independent self-development, when the inevitable changes arrive, one can not only appear as a ‘very fast learner’ but also become a leader within. Once a leader, steps can be made to develop similar skills in all personnel, and a very effective change leader for all future implementations is born through creating future leaders and highly-skilled, self-directed and effective followers. If leadership is not desired, a fast learner is highly prized by leaders in an organisation and is likely to retain a position over another that has an aversion to change.

It is your move

Some may leave personal development up to their organisation, which is fine, but comes with a narrowing of the path. Organisations tend to help personnel be better at their current job rather than close gaps towards a future position or what is in the best interest of the individual. This is natural as the immediate needs of the organisation take the lions share of the attention.

Often though, this comes at a future (unforeseen) cost which may be very high if coming trends are not coupled with the skills necessary to take advantage. In cases like this, an organisation can not only be left wanting, but leave personnel behind the eight ball in a competitive job market.

For an individual, the safer personal option is to actively continue self-development, close gaps, broaden knowledge and skills. Investigate and question current positions, possible positions and desired positions. Find alternative solutions, variations in thought and process and understand the pro’s and con’s of each. This requires investment.

Perhaps money, but more likely the most precious resource of all, time. Spending this time on personal growth activities may be the most important investment you ever make. If your organisation can’t provide you this time resource, personal time has to be used. It is up to each of us to be more than the butcher, baker and candlestick maker. Not because our organisation demands it, but because we require it of ourselves.

If you are a manager, leader, owner or decision maker looking for improved results or continued market strength: commit heavily into investing in your people the best you can. If you are an individual that wants job security and opportunity, don’t leave it up to them.

Taraz

An uncomfortable position

Get sick, be nervous

Hands shaking, stomach churning, heart fluttering, nerve racking, muscle tensing pressure. This can be the experience of a new job – and it is a good thing. Job starts can be difficult because it is at this point that the most uncertainty lays and everything up until here is history. The path is open but a lack of definition obscures the view like a heavy fog whilst the mind simultaneously questions skillset, experience and the ability to perform tasks that are still largely unknown. Discomfort is the normal state when uncertainty is present and the nerves can provide a form of energy rather than act as a facilitator of dread. Like a flashing amber light, these feelings are a caution signal. Be aware, be prepared, be agile.

Know your skills, start achieving

You were chosen to fill the position for a reason and even if doubt as to why lays in the back of your mind, understanding what strengths you bring to the table can help you take first steps and get some early wins. Early wins can help you in several ways such as balancing your initial steps, confidence building, foundation for future opportunity, position justification and networking influence. Knowing your personal processes – how you learn, how you react, how you manage emotions, where strengths lay and which weakness leaves holes – helps build priority points for what to start on, how to approach, how to manage and where to direct actions. Understanding yourself gives you both a base from which to operate and expand upon as well as a fall-back position on which you can rely if required by the situation.

Find holes, plant seeds, get growing

With any new job, especially the high-value, challenging kind that makes you stretch, there is likely to be many gaps in knowledge and skills which can not be pre-closed. So, be prepared to learn. Most learning, like uncertainty, is uncomfortable because it is filled with unknowns, failures and takes investment to develop towards proficiency with little immediate pay-off. The understanding of what to learn can be discovered by identifying key players, observing the culture and asking questions from influencers on where they see things currently and where they are both expecting and directing things to go.

Develop quick and smart – prioritise first

There will be a large list of gaps and it is both impractical and unwise to attempt to close them all simultaneously. Prioritise them from critical (obtain quickly) to trivial (can wait) and further categorise them into opportunity to build, investment required to develop and precision needed to operate effectively. Some will need immediate and full attention while others can be postponed. A few may require fast action but average quality and some others may need high investment in learning the basics but require little need for detail. Whatever the variables, learn them.

Apply fast and small

As skills are acquired, tasks learned and processes formed, apply them quickly. Become accustomed to using your growing skillset by applying them to smaller tasks often so that comfort and confidence builds, small achievements are felt and modest results are seen. Stay aware through the entire process so that you can both witness the progress and identify possibilities to further tune your personal processes. Observing and adjusting process means that with each instance, learning efficiency increases. Actively building a relevant toolbox helps secure the quick wins and demonstrates to your direct network the ability to learn, proactivity and a willingness to grow independently. This leads to opportunity, expansion, and future influence within the system.

Name, skills, needs

The names and titles of colleagues are just the anchor points on which the web is hung. Networking is about identification, cooperation and connection. Your network is your resource pool from which support can be found and ideas spring. Identify skills and make your skills known through observation, conversation and most importantly, demonstration. When in need, find the complementary skills within the network that fit requirements and reciprocate when possible. Work together with openness and integrity and all parties benefit. Even if there is no direct benefit for you, connect nodes of the network that can cooperate and benefit each other. Creating the handshakes that build strong, mutually beneficial relationships solidifies your value to the group. If networking is one of your uncomfortable areas, get researching and practising as soon as possible. There are many good resources and coaches that can offer advice in these matters, use them.

Fail. Learn. Repair.

With so much uncertainty, many unfamiliar tasks, cultural variances and unforeseen challenges hidden behind corners, failure is guaranteed. Fail well. Resilience is built upon the back of adversity and mistake and the ability to persevere, adapt or let go are skills worthy of continual development. Professional freedom comes with responsibility and with responsibility comes consequences. Rather than lay blame or have excuses for failure, use your energy to learn and repair the damage. Fail, learn, repair. Fail. learn, repair. Make this part of your personal mantra for managing the failure of all things, irrespective of size. At times, it may require the support of your network and at other times the weight may lay squarely on your shoulders, whichever it is, make your process for dealing with failure one that turns all failure into a learning experience and skill development exercise.

Love it

Whether today is the first day of a new job, the last day of an old or any day in between, do what you need to do, learn what you need to learn and enjoy the experience you both receive from and provide to your environment. Every start will have an end which will be followed by another start. With experience and development, beginnings will still be uncomfortable, but each time in new ways that widen and deepen your processes and understanding.