Target Leadership

Speaking for at USCTI conference in Savannah, GA

A dash cam video from a 911 caller recently captured a jaw-dropping event: an 8-year-old girl confidently, yet erratically, drove her mom’s car 13 miles to Target for a shopping trip. Police arrived at the store, prompting an officer to later jokingly post on their page:

“Not sure what she bought, or if she was even able to use her Target app to save 5%. We did let her finish her Frappuccino. We’re not mean." 🫶🏼

As you can imagine, reactions to this event varied. Many judged the parents. Some cast aspersions on the child. Lots of reactions were comical. But most were thankful no one was injured. For me, it was a moment to pause and reflect. This story offers us simple insight into human behavior, no matter the age.

**Confident Incompetence**

Where and how did this 8-year-old get her confident (incompetence) to pull off a seemingly monumental task? She got it from the same place anyone does when they attempt to do work they’re untrained to do:

- Repetitive observation of others accomplishing the same task without injury makes it appear easy.
- They don’t know what they don’t know (lack of experience, license, training).
- A personality trait biased toward exuberance and overconfidence.
- A sense of personal achievement or potential reward (Frappuccino).

Her confident incompetence came from repeatedly observing her parents driving to and from Target, which emboldened her to try it on her own. Add in a personality trait that asks, "How hard can it be?" and answers with, "There’s a steering wheel for left and right. There’s a skinny pedal for GO, and a fat pedal for STOP. How hard can it be? Perhaps the only hard part to this whole job is finding the car keys! There’s a Frappuccino waiting at the end.”🤷🏼‍♂️🤣

**Here’s The Takeaway**

Are we really much different from that 3rd-grade little girl? No matter the age, there are some who feel confidently incompetent to hop on a forklift, weld a pipe joint, fix an electrical wire, crawl into a confined space, or take a shortcut, often done without injury. Remember, the absence of accidents does not mean the presence of safety—there was simply the presence of luck 🍀 .

I thoroughly enjoyed making the rounds throughout Southern Nuclear plants speaking to both craft people and senior leaders!
This organization pursues perfection and achieves excellence at all levels, and I was honored for the invitation to come and speak to each group!