7 principles for taking action and leading change
Below are seven principles that I now live by. I discovered these after working with big teams, small teams, start-ups, and established organizations. I have found each principle to be true in each of those operating environments.
When you’re the first to put a plan on the table, 70% of your ideas will stick. The first person to raise their hand and outline a plan is extremely influential. It’s not because this plan is necessarily the best, but it marks a line in the sand for what is expected. What follows is typically a bunch of tinkering and edits, rather than total re-writes. So if you’re the first to develop a view on a matter, be careful with what you share.
If you don’t know how you’ll use the data, no one does. Any metric is only as useful as you make it. Typically, we measure things to reduce our uncertainty in key strategic decisions. Articulate the decision that needs to be made and the data needed to make it. If this is left unsaid, you risk wasting time and resources collecting data that serves no purpose. Worse yet, you will miss the opportunity to collect the data you actually need. Be the one to force clarity.
Naming the elephant in the room gets you to the answer faster. People know when you’re beating around the bush. By naming the problem head on, not only will people respect you more, you will move more quickly to actually addressing what needs to be done.
The elephant won’t go away. When you don’t name the central problem, it persists. Your plan to work around it will only buy you time.
If you don’t know who the decision maker is, no one does. Always clarify who the ultimate decider is and let this guide what you need to produce. If you’re unsure, chances are everyone else is too.
Your team can smell the smoke, don’t tell them there’s no fire. It pays to be honest with your team. Let them in on what’s happening to the extent that it affects their work. Of course this comes with discretion and tact — don’t scream, “the house is on fire” — but I’ve found people go the extra mile for colleagues when their relationship is built on trust.
If you’ve repeated yourself 5 times, maybe you’re the problem. What may seem obvious or intuitive to you, might not be to others. If you find yourself repeating an important idea without gaining understanding, then adjust your style. Try communicating it entirely differently, try new words, try a new hook, even try a new communicator (can someone else convey this point for you?).
