Have you started to develop a "Brain Trust?'

2015-06-25T12:37:53-04:00

Listening to one of my daily podcasts today reminded me of a concept which I wanted to present to RallyPoint.

The Brain Trust.

Now a Brain Trust is nothing more than knowing people. Think of it kind of like a Commander and his staff. A Commander can't know everything, so he has to have a staff. Someone does Intel, someone does Ops, someone does Logistics.

But a Brain Trust is a little more fluid than that. It's knowing who you can call about information if you need it, but it's also knowing how to link friends together. It's your personal network.

RallyPoint is a Brain Trust from an Institutional Standpoint. Our Contacts are an even greater form of that.

As an example, if I'm looking for a great book to read next, I have a few people on my contacts list (and the Books Group) I can ask for recommendations. I can do the same for movies.

If I am trying to develop an argument for or against something, there are people I can contact to check my logic chains.

If someone contacts me and is looking for a Job, I "may" know someone in that field, or in that locale who I can put them in contact with.

Building a Trust is about that.

So have you started doing that?

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 25 at 2015 12:48 PM

2015-06-25T12:48:39-04:00

Both in my civilian and military life. You're correct in that no one has the answers but different people tend to be strong in certain areas. It's strategically smart to know who your "go to" person is for any given topic area. The CEO/President/Commander, etc. doesn't have to be the smartest person in the room...he/she just has to surround themselves with those that make that concept whole.

Response by Capt Richard I P. made Jun 25 at 2015 12:53 PM

2015-06-25T12:53:39-04:00

Perhaps we could also call it a 'social network.'

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 25 at 2015 12:57 PM

2015-06-25T12:57:11-04:00

Having a group of people you can rely on to help you navigate moral, ethical, and professional dilemmas is an invaluable tool, no one is too young or too old to learn invaluable life lessons from.

Response by Capt Seid Waddell made Jun 25 at 2015 1:07 PM

2015-06-25T13:07:26-04:00

I have done this in technical fields for decades.

Response by COL Mikel J. Burroughs made Jun 25 at 2015 1:10 PM

2015-06-25T13:10:08-04:00

Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS I think you are absolutely correct in your comment about: "RallyPoint is a Brain Trust from an Institutional Standpoint. Our Contacts are an even greater form of that." I have several "Brain Trusts" going simultaneously. The first one is LinkedIn where I do 80 to 90 percent of my business and I have connections in my field of business that I rely on heavily; and the second is now on RallyPoint. I have connected with a lot of professionals and I have learned a lot of things that I didn't know about the other branches of the military. I learn something every day that is new and it has become my source of news, good, bad, or ugly! I believe that I could call on a few of my connections to answer some pretty tough questions or provide some solid advice. I hope I can do the same for other members and be value added! Great post Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS

Response by CPT Jack Durish made Jun 25 at 2015 1:22 PM

2015-06-25T13:22:12-04:00

Generally speaking, if I have a question, I go to the person most likely to provide an answer, usually a subject-matter expert. That's only reasonable. However, there is a danger in assuming that one's special knowledge in a specific area indicates that they are knowledgeable in all areas.

Let me tell you a story...

Once upon a time the most knowledgeable (best educated) person in any community was the family doctor and people carried all their question to their doctor as though they were some kind of all-knowing guru. Sadly, these people felt compelled to respond, some even coming to believe that they must be as wise as the members of their community believed. (Interestingly, I never heard of lawyers being held in similar stature.) Of course, doctors didn't have the answers to all problems and the results of following their advice in matters other than medical care were rarely effective.

The truth is that no individual is all-knowing. In fact, the crowd is usually wiser. I was surprised to learn that someone had even studied this and documented it in a book: The Wisdom of Crowds by James Suroweiki. I recommend it highly. As you read it think of RallyPoint as a "crowd" and you'll learn why there is so much wisdom to be found here...

Response by PO2 Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 25 at 2015 1:51 PM

2015-06-25T13:51:09-04:00

Being an IMRL representative, having contacts is almost a must. Communication between the different shops and commands' IMRL Reps is absolutely crucial. So I suppose there is a sort of brain trust there. But for my own personal reasons, I don't really have a brain trust with anyone for particular cases. Just my friends who might be able to help me out in certain subjects.

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 25 at 2015 2:34 PM

2015-06-25T14:34:59-04:00

Have had one ever since I started being in charge of folks......like you said you can't know everything.... NO one can do it by themselves and I don't think you can appreciate that until you are in a leadership position and have to rely on others to "keep you out of trouble" and "keep you in the know." One of the hardest things to do is find folks you can trust, but as a leader if you can't find them you have to develop them.