#groupthinking

Why is consensus dangerous ?

Have you ever kept your opinion to yourself in a meeting? Necessarily has been. We don't say anything, we nod our heads in acknowledgment of what's being conveyed, after all we don't want to be a constant spoilsport. And we can't be a hundred percent sure of the accuracy of our different ideas. Others who agree aren't stupid either. When everyone acts like this, there's group thinking: a group of smart people make stupid decisions, because each of them makes their own opinion based on the so-called consensus. Thus, decisions arise that each group member would normally reject. Group thinking is a special kind of thought error social proof that we have studied in past chapters. In March 1960, the American Secret Service began organizing anti-communist exiled Cubans to use against Fidel Castro's regime. Two days after taking office, in January 1961, President Kennedy was informed by the Secret Service about the secret plan of the Cuban attack. A critical meeting took place at the White House in early April 1961. Kennedy and all his advisers approved the attack. On April 17, 1961, a brigade of 1,400 exiled Cubans took off to the Bay of Pigs off Cuba's southern coast with the help of the U.S. Navy, Air Force and CIA. The goal was to overthrow the Fidel Castro government. Nothing went as planned. On the first day, not a single ship could reach shore with supplies. The first two ships were sunk by the Cuban Air Force, and the two ships that followed turned around and fled. Within 24 hours the brigade had been completely circled by Castro's Army. On the third day, 1,200 surviving fighters were captured and confined to a prisoner-of-war camp. Kennedy's Bay of Pigs extraction is considered one of the biggest fiasco of American foreign policy. What is surprising is not that the removal did not go as thought, but that such a ridiculous plan was put into practice. All of the assumptions that seemed positive for extraction were false. For example, the strength of the Cuban Air Force was completely underestimated. It had also been calculated that the brigade, made up of 1,400 exiled Cubans, could hide in the Escambray Mountains to start a war against Castro if he was in trouble. One look at the map of Cuba was enough to see that the escape location was 150 kilometres from the coast of Pigs and the presence of an impenetrable swampy area in between. Kennedy and his advisers were one of the smartest people ever to meet in an American government.

January to April in 1961, what went wrong?

Marketing has moved beyond the basic expectations of the people. Once you have achieved product and market fit, your growth is simply a matter of smart marketing on the front end and good customer retention on the backend.

There is no magic marketing strategy!

The goal of marketing strategy of Step Change is to connect your business ethics to the right customer base. It’s a simple concept but it can take a million different shades.

A very good example of digital technology and media is Dominos. According to a survey, Dominos UK took its first phone order in 2010 when online sales were even less than 30% of the total revenue. After eight years, Dominos reached a market share of more than 50% with digital transactions accounts for more than 80% of sales. This was all possible due to a change in marketing strategy.

Top marketing strategies of Step Change for your business

Face book advertising:

Millions of small to medium-sized businesses advertise on Facebook. It’s an inexpensive and effective way to market virtually. These ads are very effective in advanced targeting. Moreover, they allow targeting a specific audience based on location, interests, age, sex, online behaviour and many other factors.

Creating Facebook ad is very easy. You just need a solid headline, bit of descriptive copy, one image and a link. Facebook is considered as the right option for marketing effectively.

Content marketing:

According to a survey, 18% of marketers reveal that content marketing has put the great commercial impact on the business in 2016. Content marketing is a task of creating, relevant and consistent content to attract and retain audience. By this you can drive profitable customer action.

Unlike paid advertising usually focuses more on long-term results. Initially, payoff tends to be low, but the long – term sustainable growth in visitors and customers can carry a good business.

Organic social media:

67% of consumers use social media for customer support rather than using the telephone. Only 33% of people make use of the telephone. If people can’t find your business through social media, they will look for other competitors who are present on preferred social channels.

The real problem isn’t whether you are active on social media accounts, its how much time and resources you are investing in growing your social audience. Some businesses are heavily invested in organic social media growth.

Email marketing:

Email marketing is the foundation of digital marketing. Email remains the highest converting channel for interaction between people. The email begins with a “lead magnet”. Most of the people who pay a visit to your site will not immediately buy from you. There should be something compelling to offer website visitors in exchange for their email address.

All these tips are worth considering if you want to have a unique and growing business.

Why do some crowds turn to WISDOM and/or MADNESS?

The madness of crowds is not necessarily due to the individual people, but due to how we're trapped in a network's sticky web.

That does NOT mean abandoning personal responsibility, for we're also the weavers of that web. So...

improve your contagions: be skeptical of ideas that flatter you, spend time understanding complex ideas. And...

improve your connections: bond with similar folk, but also build bridges across cultural/political divides.

too few connections, and an idea can't spread. Too many connections, and you get group-thinking

Beware of this… Common sense is often better than sixth sense !!!

We live in an age of experts… Common sense is often better than sixth sense

Look online and it seems EVERYONE is an expert at something. Granted, it’s good that the Internet gives us access to other people’s expertise.

But, there is danger of us ourselves being “mesmerized” by the “exotic persona” of some of the people holding themselves up as the masters in their field.

What I mean is this: We…

Always make sure you aren’t contradicting the other person; instead, ADD to their range of alternatives or ideas…

A good rule to influence is to remember this: Always make sure you aren’t contradicting the other person; instead, ADD to their range of alternatives or ideas.

An Example:   Someone says to you that what you have suggested will never work. The worst thing you can do is contradict them by telling them it will work (even if you know for sure that you are right and they are wrong).

Instead, it’s…

How should an Manager/Leader should handle Group Dynamics in the Project or Organization ? What Causes Poor Group Dynamics? and Strategies for Improving Team Dynamics

The term “group dynamics” describes the way in which people in a group interact with one another. When dynamics are positive, the group works well together. When dynamics are poor, the group’s effectiveness is reduced.

What Causes Poor Group Dynamics? Group leaders and team members can contribute to a negative group dynamic. Let’s look at some of the most common problems that can occur:

Weak…

Management professor/consultant Fernando Bartolomé offers the following six guidelines for building and maintaining trust:

Communication: Keep team members and employees informed by explaining policies and decisions and providing accurate feed- back. Be candid about one’s own problems and limitations. Tell the truth.

Support: Be available and approachable. Provide help, advice, coaching, and…