Law of Navigation - Notes PDF

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MAN 4143

The Law of Navigation

Refer to Instructions Document for grading rubric. Submit your paper via the appropriate Canvas Dropbox, using this template.

What is the process you should go through in order to successfully navigate your team? To successfully navigate a team, you must follow the Law of Navigation. Followers need a leader that’s effectively able to navigate the team - they need a leader to chart the course. The process begins with seeing the course ahead of you. A destination and a plan is required, because as a leader of a team, you want to make sure that you’re leading your team towards success. John Maxwell developed a strategy that effectively lays out the process one should follow when navigating a team: Predetermine a Course of Action Lay Out Your Goals Adjust your priorities Notify Key Personnel Allow Time for Acceptance Head into Action Expect Problems Always Point to the Successes Daily Review Your Plan One must be able to predetermine a course of action and lay out the goals they have in mind. As time goes on, they need to be able to adjust to anything that comes up and they need to be able to unify anyone involved. Change is not always widely accepted, so there must be time allowed for that before heading into action. Problems always arise along the way, so it’s expected for a leader to lead with optimism and faith. Maxwell said, “If the leaders can’t navigate the people through rough waters, he is liable to sink the ship”. Do you agree that all four steps in the navigation process are necessary? Explain. I believe that every step listed is necessary. I say that because these four steps encompass everything you need to be an effective leader with a plan to navigate your team in the right direction. For example, there have not been any great leaders in history who didn’t reflect on their past experiences. Experience is the best teacher and you learn more by going through these things, rather than talking about them. Also, when navigating a team, a leader doesn’t just map out a plan and execute it without input. Effective leaders listen to their team and gather as much information as possible - it helps build relations, helps inform them about things of the present, and it gives them a more open mind when making a decision. The last two steps go hand in hand, I feel. I don’t think you can truly make a commitment without having some type of faith behind it. When you make a commitment without considering the conditions, you’re basically leaning on your own understanding. Like Maxwell said, you must “count the cost before making commitments”, otherwise, you’re going to impact people. In addition to that, if you don’t have faith instilled in you, then you’re not going to be able to navigate. Which step in the navigation process do you find most difficult? Why The most difficult step in the navigation process for me would have to be drawing on past experiences. I feel that I’ve had a lot of experiences in my life, but most of them have been failures in a sense. I haven’t [I feel] had much positive successes that I can draw upon. I know failure shows where you went wrong and indicates the flaws you made in your assumptions. However, I haven’t had much personal success 1|Page

MAN 4143

The Law of Navigation

that can show me just what I’m capable of doing. A fear of uncertainty and doubt lies within me and sometimes I find it difficult to get past that concept of drawing from your experiences. How do you choose who to run your ideas by before implementing them? I think the easiest way to choose who to run your ideas by is by asking questions. There may be people of importance within the group you’re end that you want to rely on, but they may not be the best fit. The most influential person may be in the room but their input may not lead you in the right direction. I think you need to ask questions of everyone and listen to the input given by each one. Once everyone has responded, then you go to the most influential people and field the questions to them and wait for them to be accepted and replied to before implementing any decisions. Describe a situation in which you skipped one of the flowing steps in the navigation process. What was the outcome? I recently skipped the step of adjusting your priorities in the navigation process. Last semester I had a group project that was due the last week of school. Towards the middle part of our group project, I allowed my priorities to get out of whack. I thought I would be able to make up where I lacked a few nights before the project was due. My priorities began to pile up and it was just way too much for me to handle. I ended up not doing most of my part of the project and in a way, the project didn’t have the success it could’ve had. How do you prepare your team for projects? In your opinion do you need to spend more time on planning? What prevents you from doing so? How can you more effectively plan to plan? When I’m attempting to prepare a team for a project, I usually always begin with planning. I try to get everyone’s contact information and predetermine a course of action to take going forward, in hopes to recognize any obstacles long before they arise. After reading this chapter, however, I feel that I do need to spend more time on planning. I feel like I’ve been going about it the wrong way in a sense. I have a lot of barriers that unveil themselves during the planning stage, and thoughts begin to form that hinders the planning process. Uncertainty about the future and lack of faith take the upper hand and the planning effort starts to waver. I think after reading this chapter, and reading more going forward, I’ll be able to ask myself if I’m following the four navigation processes. I’ll have to remind myself to keep a positive attitude and have faith in not only myself, but the people I’m working with. I can plan to plan better by following Maxwell’s acronym, as well as prepare myself to explore every alternative.

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