Noise

Chapter 20Herding Cats: Facilitating to Focus More, Fidget Less

Many years ago, there was a funny television commercial for EDS, a tech company that compared information technology consulting to herding cats. In the commercial, real-life cowboys shared the painful “realities” of being a cat herder.

“Herding cats. Don’t let anyone tell you it’s easy,” one says. Another adds, “Anybody can herd cattle, but holding together ten thousand half-wild short-hairs, well that’s another thing altogether.” “Being a cat herder is probably the toughest thing I’ve ever done,” yet another cowboy confesses.

What made that commercial so hilarious and instantly memorable was how it struck a chord with people. It got us to readily admit how humans can act as crazy as cats and how someone needs to round us all up.

Facilitation is one of the most important responsibilities of focus management. An elusive skill, it seems effortless when done well. Yet, the reality is that it’s tough work getting people to collaborate, focus, discover, and discuss.

It’s not easy making it look easy.

There are many distinctive domains where leaders can step up into the role of facilitator and focus manager. Three, in particular, come to mind: at work, at school, and at home. You may need to take on one or all of these roles at some stage in your life, each of them presenting separate challenges to get people to pay attention and stay on track.

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