So three weeks have gone by, and no weekly additions to the citadel library for Self Help from the Seven Kingdoms. I guess all I can say is, life happens!
To make up for lost time, let's explore a key concept from each of the last three episodes.
Rhaenyra the Cruel: A Lesson on Perceptions
In this episode, the Westerosi spin doctor extraordinairre, Otto Hightower, quickly sought to change the murder of his great-grandson Jahaerys to the Green's advantage. I'm all for seeing the positive in the negative, but I couldn't help be a little bit sick in my mouth at just how Machiavellian Otto was willing to be.
By painting out Rhaenyra as the perpetrator of child murder, Otto does teach us a powerful lesson of perception. The tears of the King's Landing population early on in the episode showed the hearts and minds firmly towards the Greens. Later in the episode, much to Otto's disdain, Aegon risked all of that with the killing of the Red Keep's rat catchers.
The lesson for me is that there's a fine line between being perceived as powerful and being perceived as cruel. You'll recall that Aegon promotes Criston Cole to Hand of the King, stating that 'the hand will now be an iron fist'. This is clearly an effort to challenge Aegon's perception of being weak.
Meanwhile on Dragonstone, Rhaenyra clearly understands this by virtue of becoming incensed when she hears about the sham funeral procession that paints her out as a monster, while Daemon acted without her orders.
She knows, as anyone should, that perception creates reality.
Perhaps then this is why Aegon also has some of his most significant moments in this episode. He creates Criston Cole as Hand of the King, casting aside his granfather, the aforemention Otto, stating that the hand should now be an Iron Fist. Ironically, said saga develops due to Aegon's hanging of the rat catchers, which Otto strikes down as foolish - again, on the basis of the perception it might create for the king.
So what does this mean for us? Robert Greene states in 'Power' that 'so much depends on your reputation, guard it with your life'. Whilst very few of us are going to come up against smear campaigns in our professional lives, it is true that our reputations are crucial to workplace success.
I'm a big fan of 'doing the basics right'. Meeting deadlines, doing as you say you'll do, and showing up on time seems to put you ahead of the majority of people in life. It's really alien to me to think otherwise, but if you find yourself not meeting any of those obligations, start doing it, and watch your reputation skyrocket. If you're seen as a 'go-to' in your company through your actions matching up to your words, you'll be unstoppable in your career.
The Burning Mill: On Serving the Greater Good
After the fire and fury that was unleashed in the first two episodes of season 2, this was an altogether quieter affair, albeit with some fantastic scenes in Harrenhal and the Sept of Baelor alike.
We meet Simon Strong during Daemon's Harrenhal break in, where it becomes clear that he and his brother Larys 'Clubfoot' have very different ideas on
The contrast principle is strong in this house. Larys is gangly while Simon is stocky. Larys is self serving, while Simon recognises the role Harrenhal's castle plays for the realm.
Speaking of which...
In the most iconic Septa scene since Cersei's 'shame', we see old friends reunited with the two Queens, Alicent and Rhaenyra.
We hear the following at various points during the exchange :
Rhaenyra : “Alicent, despite everything, there is still a part of me that remembers our friendship. Can we not find common ground for the sake of our children and the realm?”
Alicent: “Rhaenyra, my duty is to my family and the throne. The choices we make now will determine the future of the Seven Kingdoms.”
Rhaenyra: “We both know the cost of war. I am willing to seek peace, but it must be genuine and not a ploy to weaken my position.”
Alicent: “Peace seems like a distant dream when there is so much blood already spilled. But perhaps, for the sake of the realm, we can attempt it.”
Rhaenyra: “The sept reminds me of simpler times, of the oaths we took as girls. Let us not forget those promises, even as queens.”
You can see them quarelling with each other, and even themselves, trying to prevent bloodshed. As mothers and Queens, they understand their wider obligations. Unfortunately for the realm, but fortunately (I guess) for us as viewers, we see how they are unable to set the past into the past, and thus to all out war we go.
The trouble with the greater good, is it's so subjective. Both Rhaneyra and Alicent talk of family and the realm, yet of course they speak narrowly on the roles of their own factions within the family.
We also see a longer term view on the greater good, with Rhaenys counselling Rhaenyra that soon people will forget what is is they were fighting about. I see this so much in the political sphere with wars that seem to have gone on since the dawn of humanity. Forgiveness is part of the greater good as well.
Where I see this playing out in real life, is that businesses can often retreat into their siloes and factions, while forgetting who it is they're serving, the customer. Jeff Bezos writes beautifully on how Amazon prevents this, focussing on cutting process as proxy out, and keeping it as day 1. https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/2016-letter-to-shareholders
Businesses that don't focus on the greater good, which is ultimately their paying customer, will die, if not tomorrow, then eventually. If you're in a customer facing role, think about the red tape you can cut out to deliver more value to the customer. If you're not in a customer facing role, figure out how you are a part of that whole - for example if you're in billing or HR - you ultimately have a role to play in better serving customers, even if it isn't immediately obvious.
We also get a bonus lesson in this direction, through a lovely tie in between HOTD and Game of Thrones. Rhaneyra sends Rhaena away to Essos, carrying four dragons, of which three become Danaerys' dragons in the main series. As the Japanese proverb goes, 'one generation plants the seeds, and the other gets the shade'. The Japanese culture is incredibly collectivist overall, and so the emphasis on the long term in that proverb is no surprise. I'd try to convince my Western readers to 'be more Japanese'. While we crave success in the short term, ultimately failing to keep an eye on the long term and how we serve our customers leads to our downfall. The story of Netflix and blockbuster tells us this.
The Red Dragon and the Gold: Lessons on Listening
Fresh from a cup of moon tea, it's to Alicent we turn for this episode's source of Throne-spiration.
In her once per episode scolding of her son, King Aegon; she asks him “What thoughts would you have? Do you think simply wearing the crown imbues you with wisdom?”.
Aegon’s assertion of authority despite his lack of wisdom and experience parallels the HIPPO problem. - where they Highest Paid Person's Opinion prevails over reason, logic, data or collective input.
We've already seen Aegon dismiss his Grandfather as Hand, the killing of the ratcatchers, and the general horseplay in this series, and yet Aegon finds himself as 'protector of the realm'. Despite having some of the greatest minds in Westeros at his disposal in his council, they are often scourged into submission through Aegon's screaming outbursts.
The HIPPO problem can be quite pervasive in organisations. In the least damning of circumstances, it creates a dependency on said manager; in the most, it stifles all creativity, innovation, and motivation.
I'm really pleased to see a real-life recent example of solving the HIPPO problem with new UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer appointing James Timpson as Minister of State for Prisons, Parole and Probation. So often under Conservative leaders, particularly Boris Johnson, we saw the cult of Boris prevail above all else, with reason sidelined for blunder and bluster. Brexiteer loyalists were given the prominent Government positions, rather than experienced heads. On the other hand, James Timpson comes from the world of business, running the cobbler and key cutter Timpson's in the UK. Timpson's employs up to 10% of its workforce as rehabilitated individuals who've been through the prison system. We've seen the problem of overcrowded prisons and reoffending in the UK, and we're trying to solve it by listening to someone with real life experience of solving both of these issues. Bravo.
Back to the episode, and let's contrast our experience of Aegon with the House of Black. We see Rhaenyra heeding the counsel of Rhaenys, her most experienced Dragonrider. Now we know that this ultimately doesn't end well for Team Black, but I'd argue that it so nearly went very right for them, in contrast to the Greens, who very nearly lost their King. Aegon's recklessness very nearly spells disaster for his house. Perhaps this episode will cause him to heed his council more often, albeit I don't think it too likely.
Sharpen Your Sword:
So how can you learn the lessons from this three episode spell?
On Perception: Create a strong reputation for yourself by doing the basics well, and then branching out to become a go-to person. It'll pay dividends for your career
On The Greater Good: Relentlessly focus on customers, and cut the BS. Focus on doing the right thing, not just doing the thing right
On Listening: Facilitate conversations among your team, allowing diversity of thought, opinion and experience to come to the fore
Let me know your thoughts on these Episodes in the comments. What Self Help will you take from the Seven Kingdoms this week?
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