How To Get People To Follow You When They Disagree
I was talking with a client, once, about implementing a new protocol within his team."How will we get people on board with this?"
That question has a 2 part answer.
Part 1
It helps if someone has done this before. This is called evidence-based implementation and it may require hiring a consultant, doing a lot of reading, or perhaps getting a colleague trained in a new skill.But part 2 is even more helpful.
Part 2
You are going to need to get alignment from the team who will be responsible for doing the work.Don't think for 2 seconds that the group of people who will have to live with this decision are going to just trust you without having any skin in day-to-day game.To be clear, I'm not saying you need to get everyone to AGREE. You just need to get everyone ALIGNED.Agreement is nearly impossible to get and the odds get slimmer as the team gets larger. It also doesn't prevent people from changing their minds that the plan was a good idea. Blame will still fly. Resentment will still build.Alignment is a way to get a large group of people behind a new decision even if they don't agree. You can say things like "if I'm wrong about this and we have to back out, I'll buy everyone tickets to the sportsball game," or "I'm willing to be wrong about this idea--but we have to try it first. I need your help testing this out and finding the strengths and weaknesses in this plan."Most people, even if they don't agree with you, can align with a mission like this. This also allows people to see that you're taking a pretty reasonable, results-driven approach instead of a blindly led, authoritarian one.When it gets hard, people who are aligned will continue to do the work (even if they disagree), because they know the intention behind the idea and they know their supervisor has their backs.
2 Minute Action:
If you're trying something new with your team, partner, spouse, organization, etc. . .Take 2 minutes to:
- Reach out as soon as possible with the idea/plan/goal and where it came from.
- Paint the picture of the promised land.
- Say what you will do if it blows up.
Show deliberation.Show empathy.Show a focus on results.
You Don't Have To Work Hard To Get This
The bar is low for customer service.
Have you ever been yelled at in the airport at 6 AM by TSA.Have you ever been greeted by a store associate with only the two unapologetic words, "we're closed."If you've ever waited in line only to be given excuses at the end of it.All of us can feel it. It's part of being a human.It's just hard to the work AND do the emotional work of smiling at customers, too.The only good news about this is that you don't have to work that hard to impress people.And isn't that a world we'd rather live in? One that's a little bit more human?
2 Minute Action
Hold the door for someone today, look them straight in the eye, smile, and say "I hope you have a great, great day."Instead of pointing fingers or blaming external factors, call yourself out and say "no excuses. This was my fault."It's harder, but it's worth it.
The Defining Reason Leaders Fail
I want you to think about the last time you worked with someone who didn't do their job well.Were they always late?Did they not not complete their work?Were they sloppy?If you were their boss (and maybe you were) would you fire them?Whose fault is it?Most people would say: "Look, if they can't do the job I hired them for, that's on them."Wrong.Confused? Let me explain.
The difference between mediocre leaders and great leaders is one simple factor: ownership.
Who owns the project? Who owns the problem? Who owns the department?The leader does--and by leader, I don't always mean the person in charge.
It's up to you to take ownership of what's at hand.
Could you have been more kind?Could you have better set them up for success?Could you have listened to them instead of telling them what to do (or what not to do)?No matter if you're middle management, a barista at Starbucks, or a CEO of a Fortune 5 company . . .You're responsible for being your best everyday. You're responsible for training those around you how to be their best. No one else is going to do this for you.You're the owner of your life. You're the owner of the outcomes within that life. You're the owner of your destiny.
ACTION:
What's one thing that happened at work recently that you blamed someone for? Did they deserve it? How might you reframe that situation in your head to take responsibility as a leader?Would love to hear your stories here.