Most techniques you need to survive in intelligence and counter espionnage will not help you to get a promotion or a pay rise when you have a white collar job.
But when we look closer at it, it turns out some of James Bond’s skills can help us to become better in our jobs no matter if we are Sales Directors or do accounts receivables.
Read on for the 10 most important lessons to learn from 007:
- Set yourself goals and always go for a close: At the beginning of each film, James Bond is given a clear mission from “M” and whatever will happen, he will reach his goal, stop the evil and end in the arms of a beautiful woman. Set yourself SMART goals (e.g. saving the world during the next 90 minutes screen time or doing your travel expenses before Friday noon) and don’t get distracted on the way there. If you have to extinguish villains or deactivate atom bombs to reach your goal, do so. But never compromise your values and let nothing and nobody hinder you from going where you want to go if you know you are right
- The world is not enough: James Bond always aims for the best. Whatever he does, it will be a superlative: you won’t see him chase a third class spy from an insignificant country but THE supervillain who is obsessed with world domination (often a self-made billionaire or mad scientist with German roots). His women are not good looking but stunning and when Bond goes to a Casino, he always wins. He wears a Rolex (Omega is dead wrong of course and we all know that) and drives an Aston Martin. Any questions?
- Be an expert: 007 knows everything about diamonds, heraldry, horses, cars, butterflies, women or poker. Expertise is great but in the real world, you need to focus. Peter Drucker, the ‘father of modern management’, says that effective executives can excel in one, maybe in two but never in more than two disciplines. He recommends that you ask yourself “Of those things that would make a difference, which are right for me? They don’t tackle things they aren’t good at.” Develop a meaningful core competence, be better than your peers in this one area and make sure senior management knows about it. This will help give you a competitive edge in your organization and in your industry
- Do what needs to be done: In Moonraker, James Bond is thrown out of an airplane without a parachute. This is unfortunate and there is only one thing to do: catch the person in front of you and take away his parachute. This is what 007 does, the villain dies and Bond makes it safely to the ground. How can this story help you if your job is java programming? Peter Drucker answers: “Successful leaders don’t ask ‘What do I want to do?’ They ask, ‘What needs to be done?’” Follow Roger Moore’s and Peter Drucker’s advice, don’t complain or complicate things. Do not lose energy on things you cannot change, accept them and move forward
- Don’t leave a trace when it gets hairy: When James Bond travels, he uses false passports and cars with rotating license plates. He does not leave a trace (except for dead, ugly middle-aged men and beautiful young women with a broken heart). He stays intangible, untraceable and remains in control. Do the same and if you work behind a PC, choose your communication channels wisely. For touchy issues, rather use personal communication or the phone than email. When you write sensitive or touchy emails, save them, have a break and read them again before sending: You never know what happens to written words, who the email may be forwarded to and you risk losing control of your action. Back-up strategic information though with an email and choose wisely who you put on copy
- Be careful who you trust: The woman you made love to yesterday evening on a yacht in the Bahamas might try to kill you today, your ally from the last assignment in Kuala Lumpur could be a double agent. Solid business relationships are built on long-time trust. Until you know the true character of those with whom you do business, use caution. There’s nothing to be gained by sharing too much information, especially with the wrong person, whether a colleague or a customer. Nobody really cares for you but you yourself and even the most helpful colleagues will have forgotten about you the moment you leave the organization
- Know your enemies: the supervillain throughout a number of the series is Ernst Stavro Blofeld and Bond chases him from Switzerland to Las Vegas. Bond has studied him well and knows all his habits, forces and weaknesses. Be as far-sighted as 007 and do not forget that you have internal and external rivals. If you are successful, there are always people that want your place. Observing them closely and deciphering their motivations as well as knowing their weaknesses is the best way to stay ahead of them. Don’t become complacent and stay sharp
- Build powerful alliances: When in the US, Bond is working with Felix Leiter from the CIA (no spoiler: have you seen “No time to die?”) which is a good thing to do as their goals and values are the same and they combine British style with an US American no-nonsense approach. While alliances can be a good alternative to M&A for an organization in order to gain missing resources, they can also help you personally to get access to competence or contacts you do not have. Understand that 1 plus 1 equals 3 and look for alliances that suit you (clubs, chambers of commerce or other), that are based on win-win and bring you as well as your ally forward
- Reinvent yourself: Six actors have portrayed 007 in the film series so far. The profile of the role has changed over the years. While Sean Connery was a perfect Bond for the sixties, Daniel Craig is without a doubt a true millennium Bond. Who is the next Bond? Successful people learn to adapt to change, especially in today’s challenging business world. What got you here won’t get you there. Ask yourself regularly if a decision or direction you took one year ago is still good for you today. Reassess and correct your decisions and goals if appropriate, upgrade yourself (e.g. through executive education) if you risk running out-of-style
- Be good: someone who kills an average 7 people in 90 minutes screen time should not be taken as a benchmark for ethics and morale. Nonetheless, James Bond is fighting for world peace, ensures that evil henchmen will be punished and the biggest villain around dies a terrible yet very photogenic death. So you better be good unless you want to go a) into the news like Lehman Brothers’ top managers, b) to prison like the senior leadership of Enron or c) to hell like Goldfinger, Doctor No or Le Chiffre
Conclusion:
Do what needs to be done, reject mediocrity, be sharp, good and intelligent and whatever you do, do it in style to ensure not only your survival in intelligence but also a successful career in marketing, private banking or J2EE programming
