TwosWrite things down

Big Bets by Rajiv Shah

Big Bets by Rajiv Shah

by Parker · 52 things on Twos

How Large-Scale Change Really Happens
Introduction: How To Avoid the Aspiration Trap
When faced with a problem and when in doubt, they pushed to solve rather than just improve.
Would-be world-changers too often get so caught up in a tough problem's complexities that they forget to seek and then address the root cause, or core reason, that a problem has gone unsolved. They worry about upsetting people on the way to real change, so they set their sights too low or are content to address only a small piece of the problem. They think there isn't enough money or support to achieve large-scale change, so they ask too little of others. Or they lose their way and fail to track results precisely enough to know whether their efforts are succeeding or falling short.
The bigger your goals, the better your chances of bringing in sufficient partners, allies, and supporters to solve root causes and deliver large-scale change.
All big bets for humanity start with betting on yourself.
Chapter 1: Ask a Simple Question
To get to a solution, you need to understand the problem in its most essential form. You need to have the courage to ask the simple, even naive-seeming questions.
The right answers alone don’t change anything unless put into the right hands.
You have to go where you’re empowered, especially early in your career. You don’t need to be in charge, just a place that feels right.
Money alone doesn't overcome complexity and deliver results. Simple questions can help you establish a goal— and reestablish it over and over again to keep everyone focused. Tremendous resources can help overcome constraints and the aspiration trap only if they are used to motivate and fuel dedicated people to think anew about a system itself.
If you fill a blank sheet with simple questions and do the hard work to answer them, you'll find new ways of thinking that can lead to solutions, not mere improvements.
What would you do if you had a magic wand?
With the right approach and patience, it’s possible to build trust and transform lives
“The barrier to change isn’t too little caring; it’s too much complexity.” - Bill Gates
Chapter 2: Jump First
Even if an idea isn’t fully baked, others can help finish baking it.
You’ll need to jump first from time to time.
Concerns can be a roadmap in disguise.
It’s essential to learn to listen for feedback that you can use to keep going.
When others push back on an idea, you cannot take it personally. The only way forward is to amass the best material, present it in the most compelling fashion, and refine and repeat when necessary.
Do your homework. Preferably before you jump. But even if you jump first, you still need to do the work. People will only join big efforts if you have the answers they need to feel comfortable. Jumping first before you have all the facts lined up can instill that sort of urgency.
Remember your promises. Jumping is stressful; treat those who joined you well.
Chapter 3: Open the Turnstiles
There may be glory in going at it alone, but there is strength and scale in going together.
No one person can "own" a bet that big. I learned that I needed to take all the help I could get. This required developing ways to track offers of assistance, follow up on them, and say thank you. At times of crisis, you will naturally want to control things. But you'll need to find ways to work with new partners. The potential upside far outweighs any risks.
Keeping score keeps everyone on the same page. Rather than each team hoarding its data, we shared it openly and widely in our Ops Center and across government— though some wondered if that was wise, especially on days when the numbers didn't improve much. But sharing data, even when it identifies failures, helped establish the trust essential to the team's performance and drew attention to the areas that needed it.
Owning something often starts with owning the data, which is why people refuse to share. No one can judge performance or hold anyone accountable if they cannot see the score.
All you need to do is draw a table with three columns: an outcome you're measuring, your target for success, and the current prog-ress. Do that day after day and you'll see when you're succeeding and where you need help.
Teams can do extraordinary things, but unless everyone feels like they belong and are both enlisted in and enlivened by the effort, they will never reach their potential.
The bigger, more dispersed the team, the more you'll have to communicate and even repeat yourself to finally break through. That communication clarifies your own position and allows people to see your focus. It also allows people to see how you define the metrics of success.
People do their best when they feel they belong.
Take the help. The bigger the challenge, the more it will inspire people to pitch in. Accepting their help isn't a sign of weakness. Others wanting to show leadership and take you in slightly different directions is a sign of progress.
Chapter 4: Make It Personal
Building the large, diverse coalitions needed to make change sustainable requires you to know and understand your own purpose-and to be willing to take the steps to share.
Even if people have enough to eat, growth can be stunted due to insufficient intake of micronutrients in food—the vitamins and minerals, like iron, zinc, and vitamin A, that power our brains and bodies.
One of the hardest things to do is to stop using the strategies and methods that have worked so well for you in the past. If you're committed to your big bet, you won't give up. You'll find another way.
People won't trust you if you don't know them and they don't know you. Trust is built on common ground and in seeing each other as people, not as job titles, political parties, or any other label.
Chapter 5: Know Who You’re Betting On
Motivations matter, a lot. And yes, there are people who would rather enhance their own fortunes than do something to benefit millions. Do your due dili-gence. Understand what parties stand to benefit, and how.
Be willing to fail fast. Every minute spent on a project that has no realistic future is a minute wasted. Even though failure is a bitter pill to swallow, it's up to you to be okay with accepting that risk and moving forward with the next task.
Chapter 6: Keep Experimenting
Sometimes the first step is to find a way to create options. Know what you know, and know where you want to go. Then take it one step at a time.
Experimentation means trying many things and scaling the ones that do work. You'll also take calculated risks, some of which won't pan out. But eventually you'll find the right path.
A call with friends and former colleagues with relevant expertise can keep you fresh and allow you to float and refine new ideas.
Chapter 7: Give Up Control
If your goal is to help people at massive scale, you'll need others to join you. And to make that happen, you may need to go beyond your comfort zone and give up some ownership and control, all in the interest of achieving large-scale change. You'll need to get comfortable sharing with all sorts of partners, especially the ones with the greatest reach.
Chapter 8: Pivot
You must be willing to question assumptions, especially of those close to you.
Conclusion
Big bets for humanity are also big bets on humanity, on the belief that people want to live in a better, more hopeful world.
Our problems persist because we too often fail to try.