Heroes and Legends Pt 2

On Monday I wrote about my Heroes and Legends Theory and how it ties into the work that we're doing now here at 2-Pros.  You can find that post here.

In Part 2 -- I want to clarify some of what I wrote about their differences.  

As a Response

I look at Hero and Legend both as responses by which to complete a task.  By response I am thinking of a call to action.  Either you "muscle up" and do it the Hero way through max effort, or you go cerebral and use the Legend.  An important distinction here is that Hero and Legend Responses are not mutually exclusive.  It is possible to utilize both methods at the same time to accomplish a task.  However, I have found in my experience in leading different sales and service teams that many people, especially those with low career maturity, gravitate towards the Hero Response and simply try their hardest.  A much smaller percentage of people will consistently use the Legend Response and systematically approach tasks.  Finally, a select few people effectively use both Hero and Legend Responses to maximize effort and a process.

The Pitfalls

As I've mentioned, the Hero Response tends to lead toward inconsistency.  There are many factors ranging from energy levels, to stress, to competition, to understanding, that can affect a person's ability to reach or maintain maximum effort during a task.  When a person consistently chooses the Hero Response, but fails to consistently maximize their effort due to exterior circumstances, they achieve results inconsistently.

The Legend, on the other hand, puts processes in place that nearly run themselves.  Missing from the machine though can be a human element.  When someone chooses the Legend Response, but fails to impart any energy, success is capped at best.

The Benefits (aside from the obvious)

Heroes are inspiring.  Watching a colleague or competitor pour it all out to meet a goal makes us want to join in the fun.  And true to that point, Heroes are often the charismatic leaders of our respective fields.  Their efforts don't only meet goals, they light a fire in our hearts that inspires us to join the mission.  

Legends are marvelous.  We look at the success of Legends and marvel at their ability to produce consistent results without the typical charisma that we see from Heroes.  We marvel at their efficiency, their calm, and their detailed plans.  Then we seek to imitate them.

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In coming posts on this topic I will begin to explore deeper into the Hero Response and Legend Response independently so that we can begin to really identify what makes each work, where the pitfalls occur, and how to integrate both Responses into our daily process.