Saturday, May 27, 2023
I’ve observed leaders in all fields who believe in demonstrating what needs to be done, and not expecting anyone to do what they can’t do themselves. That’s motivational, right?
Well, it depends. Showing up for work at 7 am and departing at 7 pm may be what makes your day (especially if you own the place), but it’s not what enhances most peoples’ lives. You may be a math whizz who can create and interpret complex spread sheets in minutes, but not everyone is a math prodigy. Taking the employees on an “outdoor experience” can be healthy, but not if you’re fit and relatively young and the rest of the staff, well, isn’t. Are they supposed to risk their health on a two-hour hike up a hill?
Famed pitcher Dizzy Dean said once, “If you can do it, it ain’t bragging’.” But just because you have the talent, time, and incentive to do it, doesn’t mean that everyone does or should have. My first ski instructor didn’t begin with black diamond hills. We went down green slopes and later blue. I never did get to the black diamonds, but that didn’t mean that I didn’t have a great time skiing with the family.
Leaders shouldn’t use their personal talents as criteria with which to assess others. It’s better to take an hour and get the spreadsheet right than strive to finish in five minutes and get it wrong.