Page 113 - Harvard Business Review, Sep/Oct 2018

3 January day in 2009, Sully was able to especially in the face of tough challenges.
It’s natural to concentrate on results,
ask himself what he could do, given the
But focusing on learning is generally more
available options, and come up with a
creative solution. He successfully fought
beneficial to us and our organizations, as
option (landing at the nearest airport).
when U.S. Air Force personnel were given
Emphasize learning goals. the tendency to grasp for the most obvious some landmark studies show. For example,
When I asked Captain Chesley “Sully” Especially when under pressure, we a demanding goal for the number of planes
Sullenberger how he was able to land a narrow in on what immediately seems to be landed in a set time frame, their
commercial aircraft safely in the Hudson the best course of action. But those who performance decreased. Similarly, in a study
River, he described his passion for contin­ are passionate about continuous learning led by Southern Methodist University’s Don
uous learning. Although commercial contemplate a wide range of options VandeWalle, sales professionals who were
flights are almost always routine, every and perspectives. As the accident report naturally focused on performance goals,
time his plane pushed back from the gate shows, Sully carefully considered several such as meeting their targets and being
he would remind himself that he needed alternatives in the 208 seconds between seen by colleagues as good at their jobs,
to be prepared for the unexpected. “What his discovery that the aircraft’s engines did worse during a promotion of a product
can I learn?” he would think. When the lacked thrust and his landing of the plane (a piece of medical equipment priced at
unexpected came to pass, on a cold in the Hudson. about $5,400) than reps who were naturally

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