The Power of Context

If you are like most individuals, you enjoy working on a piece of something larger than the simple task at hand.   We humans are wired to want to contribute to something bigger than ourselves, to something that makes a difference, or to something that adds value and meaning.     Unfortunately, some leaders fail to seize on a powerful concept that builds teamwork, increases job satisfaction, and improves productivity.   That concept is context.

Put simply, context is the why behind the what.     It communicates the larger goal or outcome and gives meaning to specific tasks that make progress toward the desired outcome.   It also empowers coworkers to make decisions on their own, to organically invent approaches, processes, tools, or designs which advance a project without requiring micromanagement.

In perhaps one of the more spectacular demonstrations of context, Lt. General Paul Van Riper led a smaller, less advanced team to victory over the U.S. military in the Millenium Challenge 2002 war games.   Rather than instruct his field commanders about what to do, he simply outlined the larger goals.   Stressing the importance of these tasks along with the ultimate goal (victory), he left the details to his lieutenants to figure out and execute.    This had the surprising effect of a nimble team, one which so overwhelmed the traditional military approach that the rules were changed in the middle of the exercise to favor the existing doctrine and thought patterns.

Antoine de Saint-Exupery, a French writer and poet, once wrote   “If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people together to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.”       Providing this kind of context to a team will accelerate their work, and will only engender respect for their leader.

The most productive project I have ever been on, and the most fun, started when I was told what the business needed - the context - and that how I got there was up to me.   In turn, watching my teammates innovate and develop pieces of the larger product after sharing with them what we needed to build and why - context - was immensely rewarding.