I was recently
reminded of the importance of keeping a cool head during stressful situations while reading articles about the new CEO of
Google, Sundar Pichai. One story that went viral on the internet was the “cockroach
story” he supposedly delivered at a recent speech. (I say supposedly as the
story is at least four years old and he may not have even delivered it—you
really can’t believe everything you read online—but regardless, the moral still
holds true. Here is the story:
“At a restaurant, a cockroach suddenly flew out from
somewhere and landed on a guest, who promptly started screaming. The guest began jumping
around and wringing both hands, desperately trying to get rid of the cockroach.
Their reaction was contagious, as everyone in the group also began panicking. Finally,
the guest managed to push the cockroach away, but unfortunately, it immediately
landed on someone else in the group. Now, it was the next person’s turn to
continue the drama.
The server rushed forward to their rescue, but in the
flurry of movement, the cockroach next landed on the server’s shirt. However, instead of panicking, the server stood firm
and composed, and observed the behavior of the cockroach patiently. After a few
still moments, the server was finally able to calmly pick it off and throw it
out of the restaurant.
Sipping my coffee and watching the amusement, I began wondering,
did the cockroach necessarily warrant the guests’ panicked behavior? If so,
then why was the server able to handle the situation without any chaos?
I realized then that it is not the shouting of my
father or my boss or my wife that disturbs me, but rather my inability to peacefully
handle the disturbance caused by their shouting that further disturbs me. The traffic
jams on the road don’t disturb me inherently, but rather my inability to handle
the disturbance caused by the traffic jam that disturbs me.
More than the problem, it's my reaction to the problem
that further creates chaos in my life.
Lessons learnt from the story:
I understood that in lieu of a knee-jerk reaction, I
should instead respond. The guests in the restaurant reacted, whereas the server
responded.
Reactions are instinctive, whereas responses take time
to think about in order to save a situation from going awry, to prevent cracks
in relationships, and to avoid making decisions while angry, anxious, stressed,
or rushed.”
This story
shows how reactiveness can often cause increased panic, and exacerbate the
situation rather than resolving it. On the other hand, a calm, measured
response can bring value.
So how does
this relate to the world of BRM? Well, although we would like to spend 100% of
the time working strategically with our business partners, there will be times
when a major incident occurs and our business partners and the provider will
need us to help them through it. In these situations, the calm, unflappable BRM
can play a key role by remaining calm and facilitating the cockroach’s removal from
the restaurant. Adding
value to a fraught situation is always appreciated, from both sides of the BRM
role, so always try to remember to remain calm, gather the relevant information and respond accordingly or help facilitate the correct response.
