Decisions are hard to make. It is easy to get off course and lose your direction. How do you stay on track without becoming conflicted or confused about where you are going?
Every single day things fly into your inbox and your doorway that can take your eye off the ball. You do 100 emails and have 6 meetings and feel like you have accomplished nothing. Busy? Yes, effective? Not so much.
Sound familiar? At the end of the week this week, take a quick survey of your week. At the end of each day, did you feel conflicted, confused or courageous? Did your team feel conflicted, confused or courageous?
The reason I ask this specifically about these three topics is that courage doesn't usually come up in our day to day work. We may feel conflicted about decisions, do we have all of the facts, do we have enough to move forward with or are we missing critical data to make the best decisions?
Confused, am I in the right role, do I have the right people on my team, are we moving the needle on the right priorities or are we just being moved by the current?
What does courageous mean?
adjective
Definition of Courageous:
Having or characterized by courage: BRAVE
How often does this come up in your business? Is it even a safe conversation to have? We say we are creating an environment where people can thrive. We say we are creating an environment where people can fail - safely - without condemnation, repercussions or fall out. Have we?
What is the culture of your team? Is the culture such that the courageous acts and behaviours would be championed? What do you define as brave?
In a culture where it is safe to be yourself, where new ideas are shared openly and where there is an atmosphere of trust and authenticity, you will see more bravery. Eventually, the brave acts may no longer seem brave, but just "normal" and how awesome is that? What a great thought!
Could your team be confused about the priorities and the direction you are headed? Are you laser-focused on where you are going and have a roadmap to get you there, or are you bobbing along the river just hoping to get to the sea at some point?
Do your team members have conflicting priorities? Are they conflicted about their roles and responsibilities? Are they clear and concise? Are your team members able to have an open dialogue about these topics?
What defines courage to your team? Bravery? To step outside their comfort zone and make suggestions about how to do something new or what might be a great idea to move the team along?
I'm convinced that to get to the culture you are looking for, the courage and bravery start with the leaders. How can you show your courage to your team today? What would help them to see that it is ok to take a risk, even if they fail? That the failure is in NOT trying?
This is your challenge for this week. Put on your brave face and step outside of your comfort zone. You know you have been wanting to!
Then let us know how it's going!
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