Keep It Simple and Avert Disaster

At the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway stand off to the side of the stage, waiting for their cue to walk on and present the 2017 Academy Award for Best Picture. Beatty is handed the envelope by one of two partners standing on either side of the stage to make sure the presenters get the right one.

The crowd is festive, as everyone loves seeing these two actors standing next to one another. Beatty opens the envelope and stares at the card but says nothing. Many think Beatty is acting, driving the suspense of announcing the winner. But it’s a long pause that becomes an awkward moment of silence until Dunaway grabs the card out of his hand and announces the winner of the 2017 Academy Award for Best Motion Picture, La La Land. Beatty’s reaction to Dunaway’s announcement tells the world something is not right. But no one's paying attention as the crew from La La Land celebrates walking on the stage.

Moments later, the blame game begins because Beatty and Dunaway had read the wrong card. They read the card intended for Emma Stone, who had just won best actress moments before. Beatty knew the card read Best Actress. He knew it read Emma Stone, La La Land; yet, he dismissed the mistake as some weird error. Naturally, the blame fell onto the lap of Price Waterhouse Coopers, the governing body for the safety and security of the awards. PwC has all sorts of protocols and safety systems in place to prevent such a failure. So how did this happen?

Because, as Galileo tried to teach us, when we add more and more layers to a system intended to avert disaster, the layers of complexity may eventually be what cause the catastrophe.

It applies in our leadership worlds as well. The simplest team rules always seem to work, whether it's for legendary UCLA Coach John Wooden or for the New England Patriots. For all the complexity of the Patriots, their core rules are simple:

1. Do your job as it's defined.

2. Speak for yourself in all matters.

3. Be attentive when in the building.

4. Always put the team first.

There are no complex layers to their protocols. It’s easy to understand and even easier to execute. Galileo would have loved to play for Coach Wooden or the Patriots. Because he knew, the more variables we add to prevent problems, in the end, create problems.

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