Nothing breeds failure like success!

This is a misquote of French playwright and novelist Alexandre Dumas’s phrase ‘Nothing succeeds like success’ (Ange Pitou, 1854), but it is nonetheless more relevant to the world we live in today.

The “experience trap” is a term coined by psychologist Robert J Sternberg. It is used to describe a situation in which a leader unconsciously and inappropriately applies his old experience to new and unique problems. The success of organizations in today’s complex and dynamic environment depends on the ability of their leaders to apply new solutions to new problems. It is based on a leader’s ability to learn new ways of working, but most people don’t know how to learn. In fact, the most intelligent, educated, and experienced people often make the worst learners. Why is this?

Single loop learning

The way leaders define and solve problems may be the source of the problem. Chris Argyris, a professor at Harvard Business School, has found that people define learning too narrowly as ‘problem solving’ and therefore focus on identifying and correcting mistakes at work and in the organization. This is called “single loop” learning. For learning to be effective, leaders must engage in what Argyris has called “double-loop” learning, in which the leader looks inward to critically reflect on how they themselves perceive, think, and act. When their single-loop strategies start to fail in the face of uncertainty, complexity, and change leaders get caught up in their need to survive and often become defensive, stop listening, and blame anyone or anything. apart from themselves. Their ability to learn leaves them and they become trapped by their own experience.

The IQ Fallacy

It is often assumed that the people with the highest IQs, with a little training, will become the best leaders. This is not necessarily the case. When it comes to predicting performance in non-academic settings, IQ represents only a limited part of the observed variance. In contrast, cognitive agility and learning ability have higher predictive validity (see our article ‘5 factors to identify future leaders’). The combination of these two factors leads to a different type of intelligence than that measured by IQ tests. It is a more practical intelligence and reflects the cognitive rules or reasoning that leaders use to design and implement their actions. Argyris calls it a “master program” stored in the brain, which governs all behavior and determines a leader’s capacity for double-loop learning. Second-generation psychometrics, like cognitive process profiling, can uncover this “master program” stored in the brains of leaders. It is capable of profiling cognitive style, cognitive processes and learning capacity. In essence, the tool predicts where in the organization the leader will be able to perform at their best in terms of the level of complexity, uncertainty, and change in the work environment.

The limitations of the personality

Successful leadership is often associated with being authentic. The highest levels of authenticity are achieved when the leader trusts that her personality aligns perfectly with the demands of her job. Personality profiling tools like the 16PF, OPQ, and MBTI can be effective in helping managers find their authentic way of leading. However, excessive use of these tools or substantial success can encourage the leader to hold onto their authentic personality too strongly and they tend to become rigid in the way they perceive, think and act. Then, when their job demands change, they quickly fall out of alignment and face a struggle for survival. The leader has been constrained by his personality and is faced with three choices: get defensive, behave inauthentic, or go further along his development path. Further development can be achieved through the use of tools that identify the dynamics that underlie personality, such as the Motivational Profile, FIRO-B, the Hogan Developmental Survey (HDS), and the Value Orientations. Instead of ‘being your personality’, these tools allow leaders to ‘keep your personality light’ and objective. As a consequence, they become more able to look inward to critically reflect on how they perceive, think, and act—the foundation of double-loop learning. You can find more information on this in our Becoming an Authentic Leader article.

development journey

As leaders progress through their development journey, they will find that most of the ‘experience traps’ have been set at the middle level (Level 4 on the Leadership Capability Framework). It is at this level that leaders have gained enough expertise, experience, and confidence in their authenticity to deliver the required results and be successful. If the leader’s mental complexity is aligned with the complexity of his work environment and there is sufficient stability, the leader is unlikely to fall into a trap. However, research by psychologist Robert Kegan suggests that most leaders are out of alignment with the complexity of their job and, in fact, are “over their heads.” This results in many leaders continually behaving, as mentioned above, in survival mode. They stop listening, start acting defensive, and place the blame anywhere but at their own doorstep. For leaders to have the mental complexity required to effectively lead most organizations today, they must be at Level 6 on the Leadership Capability Framework. Transitioning beyond Level 4 is achieved through the leader facing varied and challenging experiences where their current experience, authenticity, and worldview no longer deliver results. However, in order for them to successfully navigate this transition, they must be prepared and supported. This can be achieved through the use of second generation psychometrics, cognitive training, action research groups, and developmental training.

For more information, you can read the previous articles ‘A Leader’s Journey’, ‘Mapping the Terrain for Leader Development’ and ‘Developing Leaders in the Workplace’.

“In times of profound change, learners inherit the earth, while scholars find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.” eric hoffer