The 50th Law (with 50 Cent)

Let information and ideas flow freely.
As the group evolves, your
greatest danger is the slow formation of a bubble around you. The
lieutenants, trying to ease your burdens, may eventually isolate you
from what is happening throughout the group and filter the
information they provide you. Without realizing it, they tell you what
they believe will please you and keep out the noise that is important to
hear. Your perspective on reality slowly becomes distorted and your
decisions reflect this.
Without becoming overwhelmed by details, you need to establish a
very different dynamic. Consider the open communication of ideas and
information—about rivals, about what is happening on the streets or
among your audience—the lifeblood of the group. This was the secret
to the success of Napoleon Bonaparte on the battlefield. He personally
reviewed the concise reports sent to him by his field marshals,
lieutenants, and others all the way down the chain of command,
including even foot soldiers. This gave him several lines of perspective
as to the performance of the army and the actions of the enemy. He
wanted as much unfiltered information as possible before deciding on
a strategy. He kept such reports to a reasonably small number, but
their diversity is what gave him such a clear picture.
To achieve this, you want to encourage frank discussion up and
down the line, with members trusting that they can do so. You listen to
your foot soldiers. You want your meetings to be lively, with people not
overly concerned about bruising egos and causing offense; you want a
diversity of opinions. To allow for such openness, you must be careful

---

in these discussions to not signal your own preference for a particular
option or decision, as this will subtly tip the team into following your
lead. Even bring in experts and outsiders to broaden the group’s
perspective.
The more expansive the deliberation process, the greater the
connection to reality, and the better your decisions. Of course, you can
take too much time in this process, but most people sin in the opposite
direction, making hurried decisions on highly filtered information. You
also want to establish as much transparency as possible: when
decisions are made, you share with the team how they came about and
for what purpose.
Extend this open communication to the ability for the group to
criticize itself and its performance, particularly after any mistakes or
failures. Try to turn this into a positive and lively experience, with the
focus not on scapegoats but on the overall functioning of the group,
which was not up to par. You want the group to keep learning and
improving. Learning from mistakes will make the team that much
more confident moving forward.