Throwing Spanners to Help the Works: Part 1

We were once the proud owners of a second hand, 1980, gold, Nissan Pulsar hatchback. It was a great car serving as our main vehicle until Adam, our third child came along in 1994. A capsule and two booster seats in the back seat was a tad squashy.

In its later years, an increasing number of mechanical issues arose. In an effort to save money, I attempted to change the starter motor. Those who know me well, might be shocked to know this. They wouldn’t be surprised to discover that at one point, I dropped a spanner into the bowels of the engine.

I couldn’t find it. I had literally thrown a spanner in the works. I had visions of the engine shredding itself. Despite my total lack of mechanical know how, I knew a spanner in the works of an engine was not a good thing.

I’ve been wondering recently, however, if spanners might actually be a good thing in our workplaces.

Humans are not machines. We’re heaps more clever. But what if we thought of the ‘machinery’ of human interaction at work? If it’s not running well, could it be helpful to throw a spanner in the works?

In my work with leaders and their teams, it’s not unusual to see how blame and finger pointing can grind people’s gears. Personal grief is often accompanied by a drop in productivity and effectiveness.

Imagine if you could go to the local hardware store and select a specially designed spanner to stop the machine and allow it to reboot.

When it comes to blame laced with accusation, I would strongly recommend the following brand of spanner. It’s a beauty.

It’s called the: ‘Don’t assume negative intent’ spanner.

You see, a strange thing often happens when we blame others. We fall into the trap of assuming whatever they did or didn’t do – the thing which caused us grief was done deliberately.

‘He’s so rude. He deliberately speaks like that to upset everyone.’ ‘She’s so lazy. She doesn’t prepare because she doesn’t care.’ You get the drift.

This type of thought pattern, if left to keep spinning can create all sorts of problems. This is the stuff which can lead all the way to unpleasant experiences like mediation or performance management procedures.

But what if we purchased the ‘Don’t assume negative intent spanner’ and threw it in the works? I’ve seen it work wonders.

It opens a mechanism for a totally different type of thinking and actions to follow. Thought bubbles like this appear: ‘Even though it seems like he’s doing it intentionally, I have to assume he means well. I wonder if he even knows the impact it’s having on the rest of us? Actually, no one has ever spoken to him about it…and he’s been here over a decade! I need to tell him. If I do this I reckon he can change.’

If you’re thinking “bollocks” I understand. Trust me though. Make the purchase and give it a go. The ‘He’s so rude’ example is based on a real situation. After receiving the feedback the person in question was mortified his behaviours were having such an impact. He made a conscious effort to change his way.

It seemed the machinery of relationships in that office was headed for meltdown. The ‘Don’t assume negative intent spanner’ was thrown in the works and the machinery was rebooted.

In my next post, I’ll spruik the benefits of another specialty spanner. It’s designed to stop the problems which can occur when we fall into the trap of acting helpless – being a victim.