Think or Sink

In Think Or Sink it becomes all too obvious that John Cleese's ego has gotten in the way of the professional, unemotional process of solving problems and reaching viable decisions. And now he's lost his job. The incoming general manager (played by Robert Lindsay) asks Cleese to tell him what went wrong with the product relaunch that contributed to his downfall. According to Cleese, "We didn't do anything wrong; it was plain bad luck. The new product's disastrous performance was completely unforeseeable". "On the contrary", says Lindsay, 'It was the most inept and amateur piece of team thinking ever that caused it". Cleese imposed his position and personal prejudices on the meeting, stifling the initiative and self-confidence of the very people to whom he should have looked for ideas and inspiration. Cleese is taught how to create competition between ideas, not people. Good alternatives are crucial. And people must be encouraged not to sit on the fence, particularly when it comes to voicing doubts about potential problems.