While the split is avoidable and potentially repairable both efforts require incredible commitment from the team and courage on behalf of the leader.

Rarely do leaders intentionally ignore the vision and sacrifice values. Success, however, is intoxicating and alluring—subtly skewing our thinking and drawing us in. It feeds our egos and has the power to lead us astray if we are not wise to its temptations.

There is nothing wrong with success, but without the necessary boundaries provided by a guiding vision and strong values we can easily allow greed to take over our motivations. And, when that happens the root of our success starts to erode, and left unchecked so will success itself.

Simon Sinek provides insights into the split in a powerful TED Talk:

Vision is about direction—like a beacon that keeps us headed in the right direction. Without vision it is easy to lose our way and chase mirages. Values are guiding principles that define how we behave along the journey. Without values we lose alignment as a team and the very advantage that allowed us to achieve success in the first place.

The only way to avoid the split is for leaders to paint a clear picture of the vision at the outset and continuously refer to it along the journey so that the destination remains in clear sight at all times. At the outset leaders also need to define non-negotiable guiding values and not sacrifice them when it seems convenient or expedient. 

Just like a rocket that constantly refers back to the coordinates of its target a leader needs to constantly remind the team of where it is going and why it matters.

The only way to repair a split is to reestablish foundational vision and values, regardless of the cost, and start to build from there. Unfortunately, few leaders have the conviction and courage to take such drastic measures. Instead, they hope to outrun the approaching freight train and invariably get run over in the process.

Great leaders avoid the split by operating with intentionality around vision and values.

For a refresher on intentionality go to: INTENTIONALITY MODEL

Herb Mast is a Leadership Coach and Employee Engagement Specialist. Learn how he can assist you in implementing the principles and concepts presented here.

Why is it that some teams achieve more than others?

What makes the difference? Talent? Passion? Attitude? Effort? Intelligence? Strategy? Yes, all of these elements play a role and many more! And we all possess some or all of these elements, but in varying amounts. So, what makes the difference? 

I believe it is the recipe or formula of how all of these elements are brought together that makes the difference. And that is where leaders come in. 

Great leaders celebrate diversity and recognize what each person brings to the table. Some bring more and some bring less, but it is through the assembling of a team and the blending of individual strengths that leadership greatness is first demonstrated. It is then in the harnessing of passion, release of control, and disciplined execution that teams are ultimately differentiated.

Two former Navy Seal Instructors (Jocko Willink and Leif Babin) recall a time during hell week when they observed the impact of good and bad leadership. They recount the story in their book Extreme Ownership. Six teams, chosen at random, were competing. One team consistently finished first or second while another team consistently finished last or second to last.

So the Instructors decided to see what would happen if they swapped the leaders of these two teams. Almost immediately the team that had been losing started to win and the team that had been winning finished more in the middle of the group than first. The Instructors concluded that the difference was leadership and how the leader either brought out or suppressed the will of the team. From this they concluded that there are no bad teams, only bad leaders.

Henry Cloud, in Boundaries for Leaders “Why some people get results and others don’t,” states that leaders always get what they create and what they tolerate. In other words, leaders have the power to shape the team, determine the plan, set the pace, motivate and inspire the people, etc. Therefore, if the results fall short the leader can only blame themself. Anything else is futile.

So, when results fall short leaders need to look introspectively…which is also why humility is one of the most important attributes in becoming a great leader.

Herb Mast is a Leadership Coach and Employee Engagement Specialist. Learn how he can assist you in implementing the principles and concepts presented here.

You catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar. 

I am convinced that yelling and screaming is actually a sign of weakness rather than strength. Strength uses ideas, solutions, influence, and accountability rather than demeaning demonstrations of power and position.

Great leaders courageously use the power of choice.

Alan Mulally, the famed CEO who saved the Ford Motor Company from bankruptcy without using a government bailout, responded to employees with, “it is ok if you do not want to do what I am asking. In fact, it does not make you a bad person if you do not want to do it. However, you do need to make a choice if you want to be on this team.”

Yelling and screaming actually creates the opposite from the desired effect by causing cortisol to flow through the veins of people. Cortisol is a hormone that our bodies produce in response to a stimuli that catches us by surprise or threatens our safety. Cortisol shuts down our thinking brains and puts us into fight, flight, or freeze [reactive] mode. In other words, yelling and screaming generally shuts people down in a business environment, rather than spurring them on to greater feats.

Neuroscience tells us that the brain comes alive when given a choice. A choice allows us to buy-in or buy-out so that the remaining team is more aligned around the goals, objectives, challenges, and vision. And bought-in teams tend to produce more because they experience more positivity chemicals being produced by the brain—like dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphin—which stimulate great creative brain functions.

So, the next time you have the urge to yell and scream at a subordinate, take a breath and consider the cost such behavior has on you, the employee, and the organization. Then find a better way to communicate your message with a positive effect.

Herb Mast is a Leadership Coach and Employee Engagement Specialist. Learn how he can assist you in implementing the principles and concepts presented here.

If a picture is worth a thousand words…how much more when it comes to assembling jigsaw puzzles?…and building organizations?

Some puzzles [and organizations] are more enjoyable than others. And while most people assemble puzzles for the challenge of the exercise, imagine trying to put one together without knowing what the final picture was supposed to look like. Yet, when it comes to business it is surprising how many organizations [choose words and] give instructions for what they want their people to do, rather than painting a picture of what the final result is to look like.

When it comes to jigsaw puzzles the front of the box [picture] not only provides clues as to where the various pieces fit, but plays a significant role in which puzzle is purchased in the first place. The same is true when it comes to [authentic] vision statements in business—people are smart and will figure out what goes where if they know what the final result is to look like. Further, attracting better people is easier when people identify with and are inspired by the picture.

In its most fundamental form a vision statement is meant to paint a picture of a brighter future that inspires people to join the journey. Unfortunately, when leaders fail to paint the picture it leaves followers with the challenge of attempting to put together a blank puzzle, which becomes a futile exercise of trial-and-error.

Just like how you continuously reference the front of the box when assembling a puzzle, great leaders recognize that they must continuously paint the picture [vision] of the organization, so that their people have a reference point—making the effort quicker, easier, and more enjoyable. 

Herb Mast is a Leadership Coach and Employee Engagement Specialist. Learn how he can assist you in implementing the principles and concepts presented here.