#314: When men stop believing in God they don't believe in nothing; they believe in anything
Why vision and the buy-in are crucial to your business
G.K. Chesterton is credited with this quote:
When men stop believing in God they don't believe in nothing; they believe in anything.
Why share this in a business blog? You are a leader. It’s about your vision and what your team believes. If you are going through your day leading the company without a vision, chaos is what you are attempting to manage. Your operation team will strive for cost reductions and price increases. In contrast, your sales group will desire improved products and price reductions. You may want to launch an entirely different line of products that is even more expensive and less efficient for manufacturing.
I’m not trying to state that your leadership position is God-like. However, you do need to realize that it is your word that matters most in the organization. Have you painted a picture of meeting these goals and visions? In other words, what paradise are you promising?
Let’s launch that new, more expensive, and less efficient product. How do you get your team to buy in? We don’t want them slipping back into the old ways of lawlessness and calamity. Instead, we want them to toe the line and unite others as they climb the hill to prosperity.
How do you recognize your operations team? Tie that recognition to your new endeavor. For example, your sales team might be commissioned on total sales revenue. Maybe that must change if you look at many new prospecting initiatives and a longer sales cycle. Tie your goals to theirs, and you will develop a loyal following.
Daily Examples
Unfortunately, our elected officials (I refuse to use leaders) are examples of how not to manage your team. Instead of finding common ground for all to believe, they slice and dice the population into smaller, more diverse groups. Each group has its agenda, and these officials play on those demands and pander. Again, they are not selling a vision for all to follow but letting each group do whatever they choose to further their cause.
This ‘ends justifies means’ mentality can’t run amok in your organizations. If you do that, you have situations that can spiral out of control. For example, sales teams take shortcuts, and their ethics blur. Or you find that Operations may speed up the line, quality is reduced, or personnel safety is no longer considered.
The slippery slope goes in a downward direction for a reason. Gravity takes hold without you lifting their spirits and focusing on ascending the mountain together. And we all know what runs downhill. It becomes a race to the bottom, and you are stuck either trying to manage that mess or you find yourself at the bottom of that pile.
Your vision solves these issues. The root cause of disarray and confusion is your lack of clarity, not their lack of understanding. If they haven’t bought into your vision, you haven’t given them a reason to.
Do you feel like you are pushing a rope or herding cats? Call us at the Kole Performance Group to help define a clear and concise vision. It’s hard work today but it will lead to a better tomorrow.
Schedule a free 30-minute consultation to see how we can work together!
