Zoom in Zoom Out Reflection

Some prefer to see things from a close perspective, zoom-in, while others prefer a broader and afar perspective, zoom-out. All these perspectives should however work as an advantage and not as fixed points. According to Kantar (2011), leaders ought to have multiple perspectives in order to have a complete picture of the situation. An effective leader should always zoom-in and zoom-out. It is through the zoom framework that dynamic leaders get to increase their own range of vision and also successfully create and establish favorable conditions that facilitate the success of others behind them. Zooming-in is dangerous to the progress of the organization in that it can easily obscure the bigger picture of the end goal making the leaders to overlook issues that are very important.

Furthermore, zooming in also makes leaders use territorial language and exercise turf protection over the organization, a danger to organizational growth and development. Zoom-Out Concept Zooming out means that a leader looks far out by map the entire territory before they start working on the steps to the end goal. It is the most essential aspect in successful big picture decision making processes. This approach enables leaders to see the current events as mere examples of general patterns rather than individual incidents. It is a common challenge that when leaders zoom-out and stick their eyes on established pathways; they may equally fail to jump onto a side road as a way of escaping traffic along their pre-defined pathway. Thirdly, a leader’s focus is set on the grand theory; some situations which would otherwise profit the attainment of the bigger picture are neglected in the view that they are too insignificant to receive quality attention.

The leaders in these situations fail to understand that the bigger picture is dependent on contingent circumstances which may most likely evolve affecting their initial focus. It is important that leaders take a nudge in order to take a close look at the details that may disapprove their theories and lead them to rethink their plan. Often at times the preference of a leader to choose the zooming out approach can in the end make leaders look remote and far from the very needs at the time. Combined Approach to Zooming-In And Zooming-Out The best leadership practice is to zoom in both directions in the face of a problem. This is because, a leader is able to use zooming-in to identify the problems and then apply zooming-out to explore similar situations, their probable root causes and policies that will ensure that the problem never recurs again.

In addition, good leaders are the ones who encourage others to expand the range of their zoom. Being more than just a metaphor, the zoom functions can be used for so much more such as in manipulating maps, exploring issues, comparing photos and effecting action plans that encourage learning from different perspectives. Furthermore, it can be a very useful way for people to enhance their mental capabilities. Personal values My score is 5. 67 and my rating under personal values is highly proficient. Since values are a highly guiding force to individual behavior, it is important that I understand my own values as a guide to the decisions I make. As a leader, I intend to demonstrate my values through leadership and inspire others to work with me.