A colleague once told me that an analyst must be bold--gusting to arrogant. Those are some of the wisest words I’ve ever heard with regard to this profession –that of the professional analyst. Typically, or stereotypically, we are meek, akin to the computer geek or CPA. We can be seen perhaps lunching with the engineers, all of us sporting pocket protectors with outdated neckties and short sleeve shirts. A great professional analyst, on the other hand, must by definition be bold and not meek. It is their job to question everything, and then with the important knowledge gained, help those who have hired them to either solve their problems or answer their questions.
Unfortunately, to do this correctly, we must gain considerable knowledge in the pursuit of an answer. Often we become so knowledgeable that our understanding exceeds that of our employers. If we show our cards too early, we can be labeled as arrogant. By definition though, if we indeed have a solution to our employer’s problem, we are smarter, at least on the subject under consideration. Therefore we must be bold to be heard.
If, however, there is something missing, and we are not smarter than our employers and our solution is either inadequate or is rejected, we have either failed to understand the problem completely or we were hired to help with a problem that was not intended to be solved (Let’s call this the Gauntlet for you Clint Eastwood fans). If either happens we work harder, quit, or slip into analyst purgatory. Analyst Purgatory or AP is that waiting room on the way to Hell where we might get a second chance. When we find ourselves, as we inevitably do, staring at the bleak walls of AP, we still have options we can take.
We can join with the devil thereby completely sealing our fate by becoming the chambermaids of our master to assist him with his evil plans. We can become prostitutes by selling our services to the highest bidder, remaining neutral on ethics, but affirming the remainder of our lives will continue to exist in the AP of our creation. We can leave the profession completely. Or, as I would like to be the option you have chosen exhibited by your desire to participate and contribute to this blog, you can attempt to elevate our profession, with me, above the charlatans and whores that practice all around us.
We must pursue truth in everything we do. We must leave no stone unturned in the pursuit of the truth; to strive for less would be to strive for something incomplete, and most likely something to label as incompetent. For if our recommendations are followed, and they are not the truth, what is left is blind luck. We might as well have rolled the dice, kicked up our feet, took a nap, and waited for a paycheck. But to pursue the truth, to really find the answers to the questions we seek, we must be bold, very bold. To do so requires rock solid faith, abundant energy, and complete competence. When you have faith, energy, and competence you are bold – perhaps not yet gusting to arrogant, but you will gust soon, perhaps alienating those around you, perhaps winning the respect you deserve – there will be time for humility after you’ve solved world hunger.
In the mean time there is no room for the incompetent in our profession. Why would those with problems to solve choose to hire the incompetent? That would be the height of irony. It unfortunately, is not just a good question, it is a reality that happens everyday, and there are reasons it happens, some, like the sinister Gauntlet will be addressed in the days and weeks to come. Other reasons will remain a sacred mystery, but most, fortunately are simply the landscape of a profession that has forgotten how to discover the truth.
We are all ignorant when we first come upon a new problem to solve; as we start we know very little about the problem. There are other essays and professional works that can help you discover the problem and how to define things, then later how to solve things. This blog is not about the analysis process proper. This blog is about seeking the truth. So as we begin each problem anew, ignorant but hopefully with motivation, it is our next step that will dictate competence or incompetent behavior. We cannot predict which. Nonetheless, our first principle should be clearly stated here--
Discovering the truth is not easy, but if you strive for it, pursuit of the truth keeps you closer to path of competence rather than the one of incompetence. However, there are no guarantees.
So let’s begin boldly and gust arrogant as we go along.
Another good post Mooch. I agree that an analyst must be bold and seek the truth. My comments are for a point you made later on, that “We are all ignorant when we first come upon a new problem to solve.” Have you heard of the fable about six blind men and the elephant? It is an old fable, but relatively new to me. http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Blindmen_and_the_Elephant
ReplyDeleteA brief summary: six blind men come upon an elephant, and each one feels a different part. One man grabs the tail and says “an elephant is like a rope,” man two grabs the tusk and says its like a spear, man three touches its ear and says its like a fan, man four touches the leg and says its like a tree, man five grabs the trunk and says its like a snake, and man six feels its broad side and says its like a wall. The message is that each man took what they knew and argued loudly that they were right, and even though each man was partly correct, they were all wrong.
This little anecdote has been a good reminder to me when I’m arguing for something; I ask myself if there is something larger that I’m missing? Could my teammate’s argument be equally valid? There aren’t a lot of zero-sum games in the world. Maybe I should be quiet and listen a little harder. In my analytic experience, there are almost always multiple explanations, multiple factors influencing an outcome. When I started my Air Force career, my retired uncle told me, “Natasha, I have just one piece of advice. When you are entering a new situation, keep your eyes open, and your mouth shut until you figure out what’s going on. That will keep you out of a lot of tight spots.” So be bold, but also be a good listener.
Nice buzz kill Tasha...I'm on this gusting to arrogance streak and you've like..."Hey jackass, shut-up and listen". A very good reminder that we must also be humble and quiet in order to hear.
ReplyDeleteAs we proceed all the characteristics of a good analyst will emerge so we can see which ones are to be discarded. I think bold is important but as I've been working with a retired 3-star the past few weeks his advice has been "You don't know what you don't know and what you might know ain't necessarily so." Which is a sobering reminder that when seeking the truth we have to continually take in new information and assess old information. Being a good listener is just as important as we boldly go where no man has gone before in our pursuit of truth.