Here are some selected quotes from Chapter 3 of Scaling Up Excellence by Robert I. Sutton and Huggy Rao. What you are not getting by just reading these quotes are the real life stories and examples which brings the principles to life. I highly recommend you get this book.
Chapter 3 - Hot Causes, Cool Solutions: Stoking the Scaling Engine
"While arguments will persist over whether it is most effective or logical to first change beliefs or behavior, the two strategies are mutually reinforcing. So as a practical matter, you can stoke the scaling engine by targeting beliefs, behavior, or both at once. The key is creating and fueling a virtuous circle." p. 70
"Communicating a hot cause entails creating and sharing stories, symbols, language, reasons - the beliefs and emotions that flow from a mindset. An effective hot cause unleashes strong feelings such as pride or righteous anger. Such feelings make people feel powerful and in control of the world around them, which in turn triggers assertive and confident action. The way that advocates communicate a hot cause is as important as it content: nonverbal behaviors are especially crucial." p. 70
"When it comes to getting people to rally behind a hot cause, the key is creating experiences that generate 'communities of feeling.'" p. 70
"When the emphasis is on triggering beliefs alone, compelling talk may spread, but the constructive actions that are hallmarks for successful scaling usually will not. Remember the ancient proverb: 'What I hear I forget, what I see I remember, and what I do I understand.'" p. 77
"To scale up excellence, leaders and teams need to keep finding ways to bolster belief in a hot cause (and the underlying mindset), persuade others to live that mindset (whether they believe in it or not), or better yet work both belief and behavior angles at the same time. Her are some strategies for starting, sustaining, and accelerating this virtuous scaling circle." p. 79
1. Name the Problem
"The right name provides a compact summary that helps people understand a challenge, explain it to others, and guides them to cool solutions." p. 79,80
2. Name the Enemy
"The 'name the enemy' strategy can be extremely effective. But it can also backfire." p. 83
3. Do it Where All Can See
"Persuading people to take 'public' actions that demonstrate a commitment to a mindset or belief is a powerful means for stoking the behavior-belief cycle. As psychologist Robert Cialdini contends: 'Whenever one takes a stand that is visible to others, there arises a drive to maintain that stand in order to look like a consistent person.'" p. 85
4. Breach Assumptions
5. Create Gateway Experiences and On-Ramps
"Gateway objects and experiences are equally valuable for paving the path to excellence - especially for guiding transitions to new behaviors and beliefs." p. 89
6. New Rituals, Better Rituals
"Rituals can serve as on-ramps for creating or reinforcing a mindset - especially when they are performed in front of others, done by all, and repeated over and over." p. 90
"when a new leader or team takes charge, they can help modify the reigning mindset by changing the interaction rituals." p. 91
"A big pile of studies shows that putting forth effort to do something, doing it in front of others, and doing it voluntarily add up to a potent recipe for changing hearts and minds - and that is exactly what this new ritual accomplished." p. 91
7. Lean on People Who Can't Leave Well Enough Alone.
"Picking people who will jump at the chance to live the new mindset - and sidelining or even firing those who resist such change - is often the first step to scaling up a new mindset." p. 92
Poetry, Plumbing, and Scaling up Excellence
"every skilled executive, manager, and supervisor is both a 'poet' and a 'plumber.' The poetry part is mostly about communicating hot causes: creating beliefs via words, stories ceremonies, mission statements, goals and strategic plans to inspire and guide others. The plumbing part is mostly about cool solutions - especially the nitty-gritty behavior required to ensure that planes or trains run on time, widgets or cars are built, grapes are grown and put in bottles of wine, or in our case students are taught and those books and papers written." p. 95
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