Fear: Bad for Individuals, Bad for Groups

I was reading something by Krishnamurti the other day that seemed oddly familiar: "To be creative, which is to have real initiative, there must be freedom; and to have freedom, there must be intelligence." Krishnamurti says that intelligence cannot exist where there is fear or prejudice, and goes on to describe "the intelligent mind": "The intelligent mind is an inquiring mind, a mind that is always watching, learning, studying. Which means what? That there is intelligence only when there is no fear..."

This idea of fear as the obstacle that impedes intelligence, thereby limiting freedom and creativity, reminded me of a similar discussion of the negative effects of fear. In their book Built on Trust, Arky Ciancutti and Thomas Steding identify a half-dozen behaviors that underlie a properly functioning organization, which they call "the leadership organization." The authors argue that when each member of an organization commits to these behaviors and attitudes, the organization builds trust internally, and when there is trust among the members of an organization, it improves its performance.

A quick summary of the book doesn't do justice to the ideas, but what I like most about it is that it's more than platitudes - it's a recipe for building trust in an organization. And what's more, the best organizations I've been a part of were the ones that put the principles of Built On Trust into practice.

I agree with Krishnamurti and I agree with Ciancutti and Steding. Fear stifles innovation, initiative and creativity in individuals, and what's more, it prevents trust from developing within groups. And yet, many business managers believe that fear is an effective motivator. Fear may be somewhat effective at driving workers to a goal, but the cost is an organization composed of individuals who don't innovate, lack initiative, and don't work well together.

The best organizations you've been a part of - was there fear or was there trust and creativity? And more importantly, if you reject fear as a management tool, what do you employ to motivate and guide your teams?