“ Does your team know how to create a win? How do you know? “
Great leaders define the expectations with every assignment. Unfulfilled expectations still bring life’s greatest disappointments. What do you do when a team member disappoints you?
It helps if you ask yourself three questions. Do they know what to do? It’s called information and communication. Do they know how to do it? It’s called training until they feel confident. Do they want to do it? It’s called motivation on their part and inspirational leadership on your part. Don’t critique their performance until you answer these three questions.
Your ability to attract and retain valuable people increase in direct proportion to your ability to define and gain consensus on expectations before they join your team. If you don’t, that is how non engaged, underperforming, and poorly motivated people get on your team.
People who cannot find fulfillment and value by associating with you and your team should not stay around too long, regardless of how good they may be. Their lack of motivated effort will damage the team and diminish your leadership in the eyes of the rest of the team. However, before you start assigning blame, look in the mirror, you may find the problem.
You must refresh, retrain, or remove them, sooner rather than later. Problems seldom get better with age and so do team members without leadership intervention. Who is on your team today that needs to be inspired? Who needs additional training? Who needs to be released so that they can find a better fit? These are your three options, pick one or continue to be frustrated.
Leaders are often disappointed because their team doesn’t fulfill their expectations. Team members are discouraged because their leader never shows them how to win on a regular basis. What’s the best way to deal with disappointment?
Are you sure your team knows what you expect? How do you know? Is it fair to hold people accountable for expectations that you have not clearly defined and are not understood by everyone on the team? If those expectations are not written, do they really exist?
Great leaders recruit the right people, make sure they understand the expectations of their assignment, provide adequate training and support, and then provide significant opportunities for them to win, individually and as a team. How do your team members handle their disappointment, they leave.
If your team members don’t “feel” like they are winning by playing on your team, they will continue looking for a leader who will create those opportunities to win, personally and as a team. Great leaders seldom have to look for good people, good people are always looking for a great leader to join.
How many good people are asking to join your team? How many good people have left you in search of a leader who will show them how to win? The answer to these two questions will tell you all you need to know about your leadership.