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Eliud Kipchoge broke more than a record

The morning of Saturday 12th October 2019 will forever be etched in many Kenyan minds. Eliud Kipchoge made history by coming in a sub-two hour marathon clocking 1:59:40. The ultimate part was watching  him come down the last 100 metres, his legs powerfully striding towards the finish line and his face a blend of studied concentration, then total relaxation and utter joy when he realized he would come in with milliseconds to spare. I’ve rewound that clip countless times, Eliud’s power salute to the crowd on his right, thrusting out his index finger in salutation to an unseen supporter, followed by his victory signage: two fingers beneath his eyes telling the crowd “Watch this…I got this”.

Around about the umpteenth time of watching and rewinding, I realized something I hadn’t noticed before. In the last 500 metres, his pacemakers fell behind to let him run to his glorious victory and fame and then ran behind while yelling, clapping and generally providing a euphoric rearguard as he came pounding down the pike. Their unabashed joy and selfless pride as he crossed the finish line was as emotional as it was inspiring.  This was not about them, it was about him. It was about the role that they played to get him to deliver on the challenge. His victory was 100% their victory too.

I then played back excerpts of the race again. I watched all 1:59:40 of it. I had particularly enjoyed how seamlessly the transitions that the rotating team of seven pacemakers had undertaken in their Y formation. There was not a single trip up. No one was huffing and puffing while getting in step for the grueling 2 minute 50 second average pace per kilometer. No one elbowed the other to get into their laser beam designated space. It was like watching a ballet performance. Precise positioning designed to be delivered in a seamless choreography. I’m not a huge fan of sports, but I occasionally enjoy watching team sports like football, that are designed to ensure that wins arise from multiple player efforts rather than lone star performances. Running is a solo sport so watching 41 individuals rally around a lone star of a solo sport just to help him make a solo achievement was amazing.

I then reflected on what part I’ve played in my past life as a corporate employee to help make my boss look good. Having had fantastic bosses for the most part and, thankfully, a few intellectually plus emotional intelligence challenged bosses, it ended up being a long reflection. The great bosses I have had would no doubt have the rest of the team cheering behind as the individual continued to soar in the organization, largely due to our own individual performances that, collectively counted, helped them deliver and exceed expectations.

The one-on-one sessions with these bosses where there was motivation, encouragement and a lot of mentoring really helped me grow. In my first banking job, I needed a lot of that because I was completely clueless about how banking worked, how to credit assess borrowers, how to make sales pitches to corporate clients or how to structure complex trade facilities that were in multiple currencies. Both my boss at the time, and her boss at the time, took time to sit me down, explain the processes while accompanying me to critical clients to help provide the senior leadership presence required for client decisions to be made. As a result, I excelled at my work and this in turn helped my bosses achieve their team targets as they provided the same support to other team members.  If these bosses chose to run a corporate banking marathon, I’d sign up 200% to be on their pacemaker team!

My bad bosses. Well. Thankfully they were very few. Interesting enough, this reflection made me realize that they had one management strategy in common: divide and rule. In getting their team members to constantly bicker and perpetuate a silo mentality, they seemed to relish the backstabbing and the constant currying of favors by some team members. They gave their time sparingly, dishing it out as if it were the last drops of water to a lost group of stragglers in the middle of the Sahara desert. If the team members were in Kipchoge’s team, they’d be randomly arranged in shapeless formation and trip each other up deliberately while elbowing aside the main man. The marathon would be completed eventually, but the race would not be won. To Eliud Kipchoge and his band of pace making warriors: Congratulations! Even though Eliud was the main event, his pace makers profile were elevated at a global level as part of Team Victory. Well done.

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Twitter: @carolmusyoka

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The Silent Noise of Non Verbal Cues

About nine years ago when I was just starting out as a rookie in the consulting world, I teamed up with a senior consultant to submit a proposal to a mid-sized banking industry client. We were warmly met by the CEO in his office, where he poured each of us pretty decent coffee out of a French press into dainty cups. Once the small talk was over, my senior colleague handed over the proposal which the CEO opened with much flourish. His eyes slightly watered and his shoulders sagged imperceptibly all of which was noticed by my colleague. I, quite frankly, was still marveling at the piquant tones of the French pressed coffee that I was slowly sipping. We chitchatted and concluded the meeting with a promise from the CEO that he would get back to us.

I left the meeting with the presumption that we had the deal in the bag. My senior brought my pipe dreams to a resounding halt by the time the lift hit the ground floor. She described the CEO’s body language which belied the bonhomie that he displayed towards the tail end of the meeting. She was absolutely right. We never heard from him again.

Last week I sat through an interesting executive coaching training session. We undertook some practical exercises and the facilitator brought my own body language to my attention. I had started off my crossing my arms across my chest which is often perceived as a closed and defensive posture in a two person conversation. I was fairly ticked off with myself as I have often called out other people in sessions that I myself have facilitated for doing the exact same thing. But because I was self-conscious and slightly nervous about the exercise we were doing, I unconsciously reacted in a self-preservative manner. The CEO episode and my senior colleague’s instincts were my first true lessons about the subtle power of non-verbal cues in interpersonal encounters. So I learnt to spend less time savoring the coffee more time observing people during meetings which has helped me tremendously in determining if a meeting is making progress or not.

For instance, two colleagues that I have had to interact with in the past will only engage on business matters if I make my pitch within the first two minutes of the conversation. Strangely enough the two, who are completely unrelated but work in the same organization, cannot get past minute three without their eyes glazing over and their mind wandering elsewhere. Now you must understand, I am not there to ask for money or for a business deal. I’m there to discuss an issue in their respective organization that I am trying to sort it on their behalf. It was fairly disconcerting in the beginning as I would end up feeling frustrated and helpless as I nattered on ceaselessly (where ceaselessly would be about five interminable minutes) to an unresponsive counterpart. The options at the beginning were two: adopt the classic Kenyan passive aggressive behavior and simply stop talking mid-sentence or take the more dramatic approach which would be to snap my fingers in front of their faces and demand to be listened to.

But I had to take a step back and ask myself why these two fairly senior fellows both exhibited the same tendencies. Was it something about the organization’s strategic importance that ensured their minds were constantly whirring with activity which precluded their ability to concentrate on anything non-strategic? Their non-verbal cues were as loud as two clashing cymbals in a marching band. My solution to the problem was to speak rapidly in one minute and follow the opening line with a series of questions that start with “What do you think about….?” aimed at eliciting a response and hopefully a resolution within five minutes of the precious time I was being unconsciously allocated.
Non-verbal cues are an integral part of most interpersonal encounters and their recognition is a critical requirement in the emotional intelligence toolkit for team leaders. They often indicate the tone of a meeting and whether a positive outcome has been achieved consensually, rather than one party leaving a meeting feeling that he has achieved what is, in reality, a hollow victory.

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Twitter: @carolmusyoka