Over the past decade, I have been brought into organizations to address issues that have challenged their growth. One thing I have always found interesting is the difference between business owners who begin describing the problem by talking about what was wrong and who or what was responsible for the occurrence and those who look at their current position as an opportunity to strengthen their organization for the next disruption.
A business owner that sees an issue as one that is caused by someone or something else, has missed the very essence of leadership. Even when the problem is the result of external factors such as a “pandemic”, leadership is not about laying blame, but understanding the challenge and empowering people to rise above and move forward.
I know it may seem as though I am saying there are not situations that occur that are beyond our control and result in problems outside of our planning, that is not the case. Instead, what I am saying is business is fluid and ever changing. We enjoy the times when unforeseen increase comes our way, but the opposite is also a part of the process.
One of the first things I do in my coaching sessions is have the business owner tell me the vision that caused them to start their business and what they have learned on the journey thus far. As we move forward, I ask how the vision was shared with anyone who has a part in delivering their product/service to their customers and what has changed.
The business owner’s response is a clear indication of whether they understand leadership or if they are simply managing as scenarios occur. Typical answers of a manager revolve around the inability to find “good employees”, changes in consumer behaviors, competition, or increases in costs of goods sold.
Conversely, a leader will discuss their strategic plan for the last few quarters, their current trajectory, and how they plan to get back on course. Although the recovery strategy will address the issues that caused them to miss their goals, it is viewed as nothing more than a detour.
This mindset allows me to inspire the leader to a higher level of success because it is focused on strengthening people, products, processes, and promotion to deliver the desired outcome. Not to point fingers at who they believe did not perform to expectation, but to understand where the disconnect was between their vision and its execution.
Therefore, there is no “blame” in leadership because the outcomes are a direct reflection of how well you have communicated your vision, empowered your teams to accomplish their goals and the level of transparency you maintain. It’s not that challenges won’t occur, but if you have built a culture of creativity and thought diversity that will allow you to adjust.
