Chris Caradonna, one of my clients, is an upper
middle-level technology manager with a Fortune 500 financial
services company. Chris and his team are "whelmed."
To explain what whelmed is, I'll start with a
description of what it is not:
It is not:
• a rare disease contracted by exposure to tsetse flies
• a derivative of six-sigma
• a law passed by Congress to impose new controls on the
managements and boards of publicly traded companies
• the title of Ken Blanchard's new book.
Here's what it is (with apologies to Chris, this is my
definition of his original concept):
Whelmed – "a state of engagement achieved when just
out-of-reach goals are perfectly aligned with people who are
smart, focused, evolving, time-challenged and completely
energized." To clarify terms, here's Webster’s definition of
overwhelmed: "To be overcome by superior force or
numbers." Here's my definition of underwhelmed
(Webster's defines it as "to fail to impress or
stimulate"): "A state of indifference characterized by
disinteresting and unimportant work completed in a superficial
way by people dying to be meaningfully engaged."
To distinguish them from overwhelmed or underwhelmed
people, whelmed people have a giddy-up in their step and a
smile on their faces. They are perpetually in what athletes
call "the zone." They are clear about what to do and
determined to get it done. They know that their boss, who is
also whelmed, will aggressively support them. They never
"burn-out" because, as we know, hard work doesn’t cause
burnout; disengagement does. Disengagement, in turn, is cause
by rolelessness, uselessness or alienation. Far from
disengaged, these people never point fingers, make excuses, or
cast themselves in the role of "victim." They simply deliver
the goods! Whelmed is the ultimate state of engagement (I'm
beginning to feel a little bit like Yoda).
Here's Chris's "Whelmed" model:
My question to you: Are you striving to achieve a state
of whelmed on your team? If so, great! If not, when will you
begin?
