ESSENTIALS MANAGEMENT 4. Understand and create strategic entanglements. The theory of quantum entanglement — what Einstein referred to as “spooky action at a distance”--ifnds that basic particles can be linked together in such a way that when something happens to one, it also happens to the other. Since most of us don’t have a particle collider, we can instead use quantum management to entangle and motivate positive traits on our teams, a strategy that accelerates progress, increases quality, and boosts morale. In short, if you put something positive in motion, generally more positive things will happen. Here are a few types of Quantum Management entanglements: Accountability Encourage an accountability entanglement by holding yourself to the same standards to which you hold your team; they’ll mirror your behavior. It’s human nature to mimic. People look for inspirational leaders. If you’re rigorously accountable, your team becomes more accountable. Whatever you say you’re going to do, just do it. You want to set up systems where you’re creating behaviors tied to something in a spooky way. You see things organically unfold because you’ve changed your behavior. Also, you have to set up your machine so that someone CAN be accountable. I can’t make someone guarantee delivery on something if it’s dependent on someone else. Encourage people to be very clear about what they have to do and what they’re going to do by being that way yourself ifrst. Empathy Direct teams toward projects that will improve their day-to-day operations. The more your team interacts with their product, the more invested they’ll be in the outcome. This tends to be easier if you’re building consumer sotfware, like at Instagram. I use Instagram, as does everyone on the team, so we feel the same pain as our users. But what if you’re building some sort of enterprise system for long-distance truckers and you don’t even drive? Look for even minor or tangential ways to empathize with your users. As an example, when I worked at LiveOps , we were building call center infrastructure. We looked to our own customer service department to get their feedback and pipe it back into our product development loop. Entangle yourself with your customers to understand what they’re experiencing on a deeper level, why it needs to be better, and how you can improve it. 13