About the Discussion Questions
Each scenario is drawn from the experiences of Grit Project committee members and friends, and it is important that they ring true for you and your group. When choosing which scenarios to use, we suggest that you pick ones that you think your audience will best identify with.
Welcome to the
The Ten Scenarios
― Scenario 1 ―
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Marianna, a senior associate whose practice focuses on mergers, returned to her New York firm after four months of parental leave. Kyle, a third-year associate who joined the practice group while Marianna was on leave, was assigned to work on a large matter that Marianna will be running for one of the senior partners, Tim. Marianna has never met Kyle, but she has heard that he is ambitious and has a reputation for working hard and getting things done quickly.
After taking a few days to settle in and get herself up to speed, Marianna met with the team to review the relevant background on the client and the legal issues they would be focusing on. During this meeting, she explained that there would be aggressive timelines (driven by the client), and she instructed the team to let her know right away if they anticipated handing in work later than the current schedule called for. In addition, and based on her experience working with Tim in the past, Marianna asked the team to run drafts through her so she could provide feedback and effectively manage the workflow before the drafts were sent to Tim.
Two weeks later, things are not going well. It takes Kyle more time to respond to Marianna’s requests than she would like, and more often than not, she has to send repeated requests for status updates or overdue work product. When Kyle does respond to her, he never apologies or acknowledges missed deadlines. In addition, Marianna has noticed that Kyle increasingly talks over her in meetings. Last night, when she checked her email after putting her newborn to bed, she noticed that Kyle sent four separate emails to Tim without giving her a chance to review his work (or reduce it to a single email).
Feeling frustrated, Marianna schedules a meeting with Kyle to provide him with some feedback. She explains to Kyle, for the second time, that she needs to review work before it goes to Tim. Kyle is aloof and dismissive and explains that he “just doesn’t operate like that” and “no one else has made this request.” Marianna is not only taken aback by Kyle’s frank disregard for her authority but is also concerned about how this will impact the overall team dynamic, her reputation with the partner, and ultimately the performance of the team for the client.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever faced a similar challenge when leading a new team? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- As noted in the Gritty Teams report, “Successful teams are teams that not only perform well for the client by efficiently producing excellent work product and delivering the highest levels of service, but they also operate in ways that allow them to continue to improve by learning quickly from their mistakes, anticipating and bouncing back quickly from challenges, and working hard while avoiding burnout.” How does Kyle’s behavior prevent the team from operating according to this definition of success?
- How would you advise Marianna? How can she use a growth mindset-oriented leadership approach to help her effectively manage the situation?
- How can one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) help young leaders regain authority that is being undermined? How else might these practices help Marianna resolve the challenges she is encountering?
― Scenario 2 ―
Ch-Ch-Changes
Manisha leads an in-house team that she often describes as “small but mighty.” The team is comprised of a group of lawyers and support staff who have been working together for several years. Each member of the team has different strengths that everyone understands and appreciates: Samuel is extremely organized, Sasha is an outside-the-box thinker who is skilled at coming up with novel solutions, Ankur has an unmatched rapport with and ability to deliver guidance effectively to the business, and Isa is a research phenom. They all enjoy working together and have established a comfortable and easy routine.
Following a recent acquisition, four new team members are assigned to work with Manisha—effectively doubling the size of her team. Initially, Manisha is excited about having the additional support, but it doesn’t take long before things start to unravel and Manisha’s pre-existing team appears to be struggling with the transition. Sasha butts heads with a new team member who, like Sasha, likes to innovate. Samuel is overwhelmed by the chaos. Isa seems intimidated—she rarely speaks up in team meetings and seems to be second-guessing herself at every turn. Ankur is not shy and bitterly complains that he “prefers the way things used to be.” What was once a well-oiled machine is now beset by conflict and lack of collaboration. Manisha is tired of playing referee and she also knows that the team will never achieve success if things continue as they are.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever faced similar growing pains? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- How would you advise Manisha? Are there ways to create and foster gritty, growth mindset-oriented team dynamics through specific onboarding practices?
- How can one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) help leaders tackle team conflict? How else might these practices help Manisha resolve the challenges she is encountering?
- What else can Manisha do to help her new, larger team come together, create a new normal, and thrive?
― Scenario 3 ―
Mentor
Sally is an in-house attorney for Pepper Supplies, Inc. She has worked with the company for three years handling general corporate matters. Recently, the company created a task force to identify legal issues caused by delays in the production of its products. The task force is being led by Mabel, an expert in force majeure-related issues and contracts. Except for Mabel and Sally, the other members of the team are all men.
Initially, Sally is thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Mabel. Mabel has been a pioneer in the industry and is known for having killer instincts and the ability to get even the most difficult things done. Sally has admired Mabel’s accomplishments from afar and is eager to learn from her.
Unfortunately, Sally soon recognizes that Mabel is not interested in mentoring her. When Sally tells Mabel how much she is looking forward to working with her, Mabel waves her off and changes the subject. Sally feels slighted, but she decides not to overthink it and to try to focus on impressing Mabel with the quality of her work. At lunch a few weeks later, Sally overhears some of her teammates talking about Mabel’s golf swing—which is apparently very impressive. She asks her friend Tom about it and he explains that Mabel invited three junior team members—all in Sally’s cohort—to play golf with her at Mabel’s country club. Tom thinks Mabel is “the best” and says she’s “a really great leader” and he’s “learned so much from her.” Sally is both surprised and disappointed to hear this because Mabel has not shown any interest in her and Sally is concerned that she might be missing out on important learning opportunities.
Sally mentions her concerns to Tom, and he tells her that Mabel’s view—which she apparently shared with a group of young, male lawyers over club sandwiches at her “favorite pub”—is that she “will never mentor someone just because they are a woman” and she “hates that women always expect senior women to do this, even when they haven’t earned it.” Mabel did everything on her own, and she thinks that’s the best way to prove to others that you have what it takes to succeed.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever worked with a leader who was not interested in mentoring you? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- How would you describe Mabel’s behavior? How does it prevent the team from operating successfully? Here is the definition of success used in the Gritty Teams report: “Successful teams are teams that not only perform well for the client by efficiently producing excellent work product and delivering the highest levels of service, but they also operate in ways that allow them to continue to improve by learning quickly from their mistakes, anticipating and bouncing back quickly from challenges, and working hard while avoiding burnout.”
- How would you advise Sally? Should she speak to Mabel directly about her concerns? If so, what should she say?
- Do you relate to Mabel’s perspective? Do you think one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) might help her be a better team leader? If you were advising her, where would you tell her to start?
― Scenario 4 ―
The Gem
Jessica is a junior partner in a large firm in Texas. She is acting as the lead attorney on an oil dumping case. She has two, terrific associates working with her on the case, Tammy and John. They all get along well and have established an effective working relationship. Jessica wants Tammy and John to feel comfortable raising issues with her and has done her best to create a safe and supportive working environment.
On Monday, the team has a Zoom call with the client, Robert, a 76-year-old businessman who has been wildly successful in his field. At the beginning of the call, Robert compliments Tammy on her pink shirt and tells her she is “as pretty as a peach.” Tammy smiles and takes the compliment in stride, and the call begins. The substance of the call generally goes according to plan, but on more than one occasion Robert refers to Jessica as “honey” and he often directs his questions to John, even though John is the most junior member of the team. John is a quick study, and he does a great job of answering what he can and then redirecting the conversation back to Jessica. At the end of the call, Robert says to Jessica, before signing off, “thank you my dear, for all of your great work—you’re a gem.”
After Robert drops off, Jessica, Tammy and John stay on the Zoom to discuss next steps. As soon as they are alone, Tammy bursts into laughter. “Can you believe that guy? What a dinosaur!” she says. John joins in and quips “This guy is straight out of central casting—you can’t make this stuff up!” Laughing, they both turn to Jessica to see what her reaction is.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever experienced a similar situation? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- Should Jessica have said something to Robert on the call? If so, at what point, and what should she have said? What are the pros and cons of each approach?
- What should Jessica say to Tammy and John after the call?
- Do you think one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) would be helpful to Jessica in this situation? If you were advising her, where would you tell her to start?
― Scenario 5 ―
All Is Not Well
Beth is a member of a large nonprofit and an Officer of the Section of Diversity Law (“SDL”). Each year, the Officers of SDL are asked to plan an intensive two-day program for new members, teaching them everything they should know about diversity law and related issues. There are eight Officers, and each one is required to put together a module on an assigned diversity topic. Beth is tasked with making sure that each Officer does their part to ensure that the program is a success.
Everything seems to be on track, but then, two weeks before the program, one of the Officers, Paolo, sidebars with Beth and tells her that he has been struggling with depression and anxiety and needs to take some time off. Unfortunately, due to a very busy schedule (which was contributing significantly to his stress levels), he had not had a chance to get started on his module. Beth assures him not to worry about it, but now she must figure out what to do.
Beth is not sure that she feels comfortable asking another Officer to take on Paolo’s module at the last minute because all of the other Officers are busy working on their own deliverables. Furthermore, this is a volunteer organization, so there is only so much you can ask of people.
Beth finds herself in a bind, especially given that her own, active private practice requires her full attention during working hours and her family keeps her busy on nights and weekends. What should Beth do? SDL is well known for its programming, and many people are counting on Beth to produce another successful event.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever experienced a similar situation? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- Other than releasing him from his SDL obligations, what else, if anything, should Beth do to support Paolo? Should she be forthcoming with other team members about what is going on?
- Should the expectations for team members and team leaders be different in a volunteer organization? Why or why not? Should Beth just take on the work herself?
- Do you think one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) would be helpful to Beth in this situation? If you were advising her, where would you tell her to start?
― Scenario 6―
Culture Wars
Angelina was raised by a liberal mother and a conservative father. Her parents would often have spirited debates at the dinner table and would regularly invite guests with opposing viewpoints to join them. Angelina enjoyed listening to the adults argue back and forth and was impressed that they always managed to do so respectfully, even though it was clear that everyone felt passionately about the topics being discussed. After a particularly heated debate about the Iran-Contra Affair, Angelina decided that she wanted to become a lawyer—and she never looked back.
Almost 40 years later, Angelina is a well-established partner at a law firm in Chicago. She is running a significant patent litigation for one of the firm’s top clients, VIP, and she is lucky to have two incredibly talented senior associates, Jenna and James, assigned to the team. Jenna was the President of the Federalist Society in law school and James was the President of the American Constitution Society. From time to time, they playfully poke fun at one another about their differences.
After a few weeks of working together, the Supreme Court issues a watershed decision that deeply divides the country and is emotionally triggering for everyone on the team at all levels. Angelina herself is deeply impacted by this decision—with which she does not agree—and she finds it difficult to concentrate and keep pace with the demands of the case. In addition, Jenna and James—who used to politely tolerate each other’s political views—are now at odds.
Angelina feels like she is watching the national conflict play out on her own team. The junior associates on the team quickly take sides and make their allegiances to “Team Jenna” or “Team James” known. Meanwhile, Jenna and James both separately tell Angelina they don’t feel comfortable continuing to work together. Angelina is desperate to make things work for the client, but she is not sure that it is possible under these circumstances.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever experienced a similar situation? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- Should team members with opposing political views be required to work together? What are the pros and the cons of this for the team, the firm and the client?
- How would you advise Angelina? How can she be a good leader to both James, with whom she is ideologically aligned, and Jenna, with whom she respectfully disagrees?
- Do you think one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) would be helpful to Angelina in this situation? If you were advising her, where would you tell her to start?
― Scenario 7―
One Exception
Jane is a fourth year associate who is working on a large scale, government investigation. There are close to 30 lawyers and paralegals on the team, and she enjoys working with most of them, with one exception: Ralph. Ralph is also a fourth year associate on the team, and he attended the same law school as Jane. She has never liked him.
Ralph is entitled and arrogant. Jane is a first-generation college graduate and the first person in her family to go to law school. She has worked hard for everything she has in life and resents Ralph for all of the advantages he has been given. Ralph was a legacy in law school (his parents were both graduates, successful lawyers, and big donors) and the rumor at the firm is that he got his prestigious federal clerkship because his father went to boarding school with the Judge. Ralph has made it known that he is just biding his time before he eventually takes over his father’s practice, and it is his goal to “coast” for as long as he can while doing the minimum amount of work possible.
Jim, the partner in charge of the investigation, is a talented lawyer and a skilled leader. As far as Jane knows, Jim has no idea what Jane and the other associates think of Ralph, and Jim likely doesn’t realize the toxic effect Ralph is having on the team. While the rest of the team works around the clock, Ralph comes in late, leaves early, and is nowhere to be found on a summer Friday. From time to time, Jane fantasizes about marching into Jim’s office and telling him what Ralph is up to (or not up to), but she can never bring herself to do it.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever experienced a similar situation? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- How would you advise Jane? Should she say something to Jim? If so, what should she say? What are the pros and cons of both saying something and not saying something?
- What responsibility do team members have for ensuring that the team operates in a gritty, growth mindset-oriented way? How can they help leaders foster these traits?
- Do you think one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) would be helpful to Jim in this situation? If you were advising him, where would you tell him to start?
― Scenario 8 ―
The Aftermath
A business located in Washington, D.C., right near the Capitol, has assembled an internal working group to study the effects of January 6th on its employees – especially since the business is located within viewing distance of the Capitol. The working group includes junior and senior employees and is led by Michael, a senior employee. Michael was on vacation with his family on January 6th, so he did not witness any of the events of that day. However, the rest of the working group was in the office that day and some of them have sought counseling due to difficulties in coping with the aftermath of the events.
Michael is the kind of person who believes people can “just get over things” by putting their mind to it. He is not a believer in counseling or therapy, and many members of the working group believe he is not the right person to lead the organization’s efforts to understand the emotional impacts of the January 6th events on employees. The working group members are afraid to share their true feelings with Michael lest they be dismissed from the group. They are also concerned that the outcome of their research efforts will not result in any positive changes for the organization.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever experienced a similar situation? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- How would you advise the group members? Should they go over Michael’s head and request a new leader?
- How might a growth mindset-oriented approach help you to effectively manage the situation?
- Do you think one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) would be helpful to the group members in trying to resolve the challenges they are encountering?
― Scenario 9 ―
The Magic City
Ilana’s business team has just been commissioned to respond to a 10 million dollar RFP. Ilana is really excited to work on this project and has a number of novel ideas about how best to position the company and win the work. Ilana and most of her team members live in Chicago but Karim, who is the leader of the team and has the strongest relationship with the potential client, is based in Miami.
On their first Zoom meeting about the project, Karim surprises the team by suggesting that everyone fly to Miami early the next week so they can meet in-person. Karim says that he prefers to meet face-to-face, especially when he is just meeting many of the team members for the first time. In his experience, people produce better work and develop stronger working relationships when they are in the same room. Given how important this work could be to their company, he wants to “set this team up for success.” Karim also thinks the potential client will appreciate the effort, and he will find a way to mention to them that the entire team flew in from across the country to get the proposal done in the right way. At the end of the call, he says “I’m so glad that COVID is over now and we can ditch the masks and get back to the way things were.” One of Ilana’s newest team members, Chloe, is obviously thrilled—she quickly types into the Zoom chat: “This is amazing – I have never been to Miami. So excited about this trip.”
Ilana starts to panic. She has some personal concerns, chief among them that the holidays are right around the corner and she was planning to spend them with her grandmother, who is very high risk. Moreover, she knows that while Chloe is ecstatic, other team members will not want to travel to Miami either. They have varying degrees of comfort around being together in-person and when they meet in Chicago, they all still wear masks out of respect for those who are the least comfortable. There is no way Karim’s intended in-person meeting is going to work, so Ilana needs to figure out a plan and manage everyone’s expectations—and she needs to do it fast.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever experienced a similar situation? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- How would you advise Ilana? Should she poll the group to find out where everyone stands? Should she approach Karim immediately with her concerns? If so, what should she say?
- How might a growth mindset-oriented leadership approach help Ilana effectively manage the situation?
- Do you think one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) would be helpful to Ilana and the other group members in trying to resolve this situation?
― Scenario 10 ―
The Ineffective Leader
Joel is the Executive Director of a non-profit organization focused on social justice issues. Joel co-founded the organization two decades ago and has strong relationships with the board and numerous external stakeholders and funders. Anand, Vice President of outreach and programs, and Luzia, Director of projects and strategy, lead teams of employees responsible for the execution of the organization’s programs and projects.
In light of the recent focus on racial equity, current and potential partners are seeking to fund an initiative that would provide programs and fellows focused on training, audits, and litigation that advance racial justice and equity. Anand and Luzia both have prior experience that is directly relevant to the potential racial justice and equity initiative: Anand has a background in community organizing, and Luzia comes from a law firm position where she led ESG audits. However, Joel has taken the lead on all facets of the initiative because the asks are coming from his connections.
Joel has put together a high-level strategy, but a specific, actionable plan to effectively leverage the organization’s infrastructure, employees, volunteers, and external stakeholders to drive the training, audits, and litigation initiatives has not materialized and thus, the work has not progressed. Anand has ideas on training, and Luzia has tried to propose a strategy that integrates Anand’s ideas with her tactical proposals around racial equity audits and litigation opportunities.
Unfortunately, Joel is protective of the high-profile project, and insists on driving this project himself. However, Joel has not worked directly with Luzia and Anand’s teams, and lacks insight into the teams’ strengths and how they have worked together effectively in the past. Without the leadership support needed to successfully drive the new initiative ahead, Luzia is doing her best to smooth things behind the scenes, but Joel continually undermines her ability to make decisions or provide answers that the team needs to move forward. Anand has been included in meetings with external stakeholders, where he has continually endorsed Luzia’s ideas and leadership, but Joel undermines those efforts, discounting Luzia’s role. The team feels like they don’t know how to move forward, and two members who were most excited about this work are getting so frustrated they are starting to look for outside opportunities and may leave the team. And funders are starting to get anxious and demanding more granular action plans.
QUESTIONS:
- Have you ever experienced a similar situation? If so, how did you handle it? What was the outcome?
- How would you advise Luzia? Is there something she can say to Joel, Anand, and/or the team?
- How might a growth mindset-oriented leadership approach help Joel effectively manage the situation? How about Luzia? Or Anand?
- Do you think one (or more) of the five areas that promote grit and growth mindset-oriented behaviors on teams (1. interest, 2. practice, 3. purpose, 4. hope, and 5. safety and support) would be helpful in trying to resolve this situation and make progress on the initiative?