Are You Leaning Back as a Leader?

Over the weekend I attended 2 meetings of our homeowners association.

1 was a group of neighbors who were up in arms and the other was the official meeting.

The buzz all started around an official ballot sent out asking us to agree or disagree to certain policies.

The information was concisely presented in one to two sentences.

Unfortunately, most of us needed more information.

We needed context and understanding around why things that had worked for 40 years needed changing.

We needed to understand the intention of the board.

This situation made me hyper-aware of the need for communication.

Where there is none, people fill in the blanks on their own and they typically aren't accurate or charitable.

In the introduction of L. David Marquet's book, Leadership is Language, he talks about his time as a commanding officer of the USS Santa Fe. 

Experience on the submarine taught him a lesson; he barked out an order that was not capable of being carried out because of the equipment on the sub.

He changed his tactic immediately and made the promise to never give another order.

Instead he would provide intent or the goal of what they were trying to achieve.

His officers agreed to never wait to be told what to do.

Instead, they would share their intention with him, along with how they were going to achieve his intent.

Their language shifted from “requesting permission”  to “I intend to.” 

As the Commanding Officer, David leaned back and his team leaned in.

Now back to what's happening in our Neighborhood Association meeting.

Simply asking the questions of the board, what was the motivation in sending out the ballots and what was the motivation to some of the changes, led to conversation and better understanding. 

Fractured friendships could have been avoided, if that information had been shared before or along with the ballot.

As a leader myself, it is easy to get caught up in having all the answers.

Making the decision so everyone can move on.

It's an ego trip to have the answers.

But the better process, especially if you are trying to grow, is to give your team the room to lean in, to share their skills, knowledge, and be a part of creating something great.

To be a part of the team effort. 

Being the leader, as you scale, you will need your team to achieve business growth.

In our Cash Accelerator, we help you visualize your cash runway and determine your business direction.

Understandably, these two important aspects of your business then allow you to be clear with your intentions to your team.

Do you feel you are buffeted constantly by the winds of change, never really settling on a firm course?

Are you wasting money chasing shiny objects that never fully materialize?

If so, let's talk and get you on a path to sustainable growth.

Cyndi

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