Rebels at Work

Appendix B. Handy Rebel Lists

20 Ways to Be a More Effective Rebel

• Be positive.
• Frame it.
• Stay out of drama.
• Judge ideas, not people.
• When angry, stop and wonder why.
• Strive for influence, not power.
• Start the flame; tap into the collective brilliance of others to fuel the fire.
• Share the glory.
• Communicate in ways that create clarity from complexity.
• Address the cost/value tradeoff.
• Let ideas breathe.
• Pick the right boss or executive sponsor.
• Ask good questions; become a keen listener.
• Learn how to facilitate messy collaboration.
• Address the fears.
• Show how success can be measured.
• Learn how to have constructive conversations.
• Be thoughtful in all you do.
• Know when to walk away.
• Believe you are enough.

Top 10 Rebel Mistakes

• Breaking the rules because the rules aren’t for you
• Being against the status quo instead of being for something
• Skimping on learning the organizational landscape
• Not linking ideas to what the organization really values
• Avoiding conflict and controversy
• Putting things in the wrong order
• Wasting opportunities
• Flirting with the dark side
• Going it alone
• Losing your sense of humor

Top 10 Rebel Fears

• Losing my job
• Hurting my chances for a promotion
• Upsetting my boss
• Damaging my reputation
• Alienating my colleagues
• Conflict, having to disagree with others
• Looking dumb or not smart enough
• Someone else taking credit for my idea
• Having to present my idea to management
• Being made accountable for running the entire effort

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