🕒  1 min read

One of the greatest miracles our brains make possible is the ability to conceptualize in a very fluid way. Ideas or concepts are typically associated with words. And these words open up another miraculous capability: we can share these with others; we can remember them; we can write them down.

Conceptions are magical in that they are a gateway to the universal. If I express the concept “sunset”, the concept of sunset potentially includes every sunset throughout time, everywhere in the world, and in the experience of every living being. In this way, concepts are truly portable and magical.

However, there is a profound problem with concepts, in that we naturally mistake them for reality. In particular, the left brain, the hemisphere most strongly associated with verbal thinking, organizes the world by relying on concepts. We can easily get trapped in these concepts and mistake these concepts for reality.

Consider a concept like “sunset”. When does that sunset begin and when does it end? Does the sun begin setting at noon, as soon as it begins to descend in the horizon? Is sunset just that one brief moment when the sun descends below the horizon? Are we talking about some particular kind of experience of a sunset? All of those are part of the reality of sunsets, but none of that ambiguity is obvious in the concept of “sunset”.

One of the most powerful things we use our conception for is to create and identify structures. We use concepts to define groups of people, responsibilities, deadlines, and most of the formal organization that makes up a company. Organizations around the world are created and managed through concepts. Social and political distinctions, such as whether someone is a “liberal” or a “conservative” are all concepts. Whether you are in the “sales department” or the “marketing department”? Are you a “junior employee” or a “senior employee”? Is this “good quality” work, or is this “bad quality” work? All of these are concepts. They all reflect some situation in reality, but the mind tends to confuse reality with the absolutes that a concept implies.

Hidden inside every concept is a feeling. In particular, the sense that something “is” or “is not” something else, hides an aesthetic judgement. Those feelings emerge when someone labels something incorrectly: “no that’s wrong!”. It is the feeling baked into concepts that creates a polarity: something is correct, and something else is not correct.

The deepest and most difficult to shake concept that we all have is a concept of “self” versus “other”. Our boundary of self can extend to include those who are similar to us in some way. But beyond the boundary of self always lies the “other”, those who seem quite unlike us. So our concept of self can allow us to work together with certain others, but its very nature is isolation and exclusion.

As we think about organizations, we need to understand that in reality, there are no divisions or silos in reality. It is only our conceptual mind that creates a sense of silos within the organization. Companies are already perfectly interdependent systems, although not necessarily high functioning systems. Our dividing the world is a mental trap that we fall into, especially given the dominance of our left brain. We need to continuously try to balance this by stepping back, opening our mind and appreciating the broader context in which we’re operating.

One of the big problems with the left brain is that it conceptualizes things in terms of good and bad. This natural tendency oversimplifies the world and can lead to a worldview divided into extremes, failing to capture the true nuance and balance of reality. As a result, people can become entrenched in a mentality that sees "us" versus "them," leading to tribalism. When we gradually identify other groups as inherently bad while viewing our own as inherently good, we lose the ability to see the full spectrum of perspectives—and fail to collaborate across organizational boundaries.

Importantly, this is an emotional issue rather than an intellectual issue. When polarization takes root within an organization, it often leads to siloed thinking and micro-optimizations. Instead of working towards what benefits the organization as a whole, teams and individuals focus on their own narrow interests, moving further from a shared vision and the global optimum.

One of the key responsibilities of leaders, therefore, is to navigate these tensions across the organization by developing a profound respect for each and every individual and group within the organization. Effective leaders encourage an environment where all individuals are valued and feel valued. The process of learning to value each other and learning to work together harmoniously is a continuous learning process. This doesn’t mean avoiding difficult conversations, but rather ensuring they happen without demonizing or blaming. In fact, the real learning challenge for any organization today is learning to collaborate effectively, which is foundational for growth and resilience.

Brilliant individual talent, after all, doesn’t necessarily equate to effective collaboration. True organizational success lies in fostering an inclusive environment where diverse minds not only coexist, but also complement and elevate one another. Building these collaborative skills can be a game-changer for organizations aiming to reach their full potential.