Lee Ellis's Blog, page 236
July 24, 2017
5 Behavioral Barriers to Better Leadership Clarity
By Lee Ellis
Have you ever had to fight for clarity in a meeting or conversation? Early on in my military training at Air University, our professors who taught speaking and writing courses told us repeatedly to “fight for clarity.” When lives are at stake while flying multi-million dollar pieces of equipment, clarity was crucial for us.
Clarity in the Crucible
Having spent several years in the crucible of the Hanoi POW camps, I grasped the concept of clarity in a literal way several years before I fully understood it in a classroom setting. With the guards patrolling the compound, it was a daily battle just to keep our limited covert communications flowing. And with so much on the line, clarity was essential for alignment on strategy and tactics as well as encouragement and support.
Clarity in All Situations
Clarity is essential in all situations. It’s easy to see the problems when a sports team doesn’t have a clear message. For example, in baseball, what if the batter misses the sign and the runner at first gets thrown out on what should have been a sacrifice bunt? In football we often see the problems when a player or two miss the call, and the play blows up from the start. In a more typical workplace culture, it may be more subtle but can be even more disastrous. So, though clarity may be crucial, it’s almost never easy.
Why is Clarity So Hard?
“Clarity is difficult because we’re dealing with humans—not machines.” [Tweet This]
To understand the battle, here are some of the challenges we must overcome:
Low Priority. We’re too busy and don’t recognize how important clarity is and just neglect it.
Bad Assumptions. We assume that others see the world that we’re seeing and therefore don’t understand that they don’t have the right picture.
Unfocused. Some leaders don’t take the time to focus and decide what they want to happen—what success will look like.
Lazy. Sometimes leaders are too lax in their approach, figuring that somehow it will get done. They think that they can give a few instructions, withdraw from the process, and then one day it will all be completed.
Fear. Some leaders resist clarity because they fear the responsibility of holding others accountable—which, at times, means being firm and risking “negative emotions.”
Yes, it’s a battle, but gaining clarity is worth fighting for. It reduces the fog and ambiguity that undermine high performance. It brings understanding, alignment, and positive energy. It opens the door for synergy and teamwork. Clarity is really a 360 degree challenge, but for now let’s looks at it just from a top-down perspective.
How Can You Get Clarity?
100,000-foot level. Clarity about mission, vision, and values is crucial to building a culture of synergy and accountability. Unless these are hammered out at the top and then pushed down to the lowest levels, the culture will never be strong. Consider the success of Southwest Airlines’ more than forty years of consecutive profitability. Their culture has remained consistent on mission, vision, and values and it permeates to the lowest levels. Compare the success of Delta’s merger with Northwest and the difficulties seen in United’s merger with Continental. It’s all about clarity and alignment at this highest level.
50,000-foot level. For the sake of discussion, consider this level as standards and policies for the industry and organization. Enron and Arthur Anderson lost clarity and focus on these points, and they’re no longer in business. The NFL has struggled in recent years to gain clarity about player behavior on the field, in the locker room, and in domestic situations. Similar challenges can be seen in most every area of endeavor, probably due to a decline in clarity about standards and accountability in our culture.
25,000 foot level. This level is about policies and processes for the leader and the team. How do we work together? What do we expect of each other?
15, 10, and 5,000-foot levels. This level is about the specifics of the task or project. What will a successful outcome look like? What problems will be solved? What resources are available, and what ground rules or assumptions are in place that need to be considered?
When you look at clarity in these few, levels, you can see that it’s not easy.
“It takes diligence and courage on the part of the leader to provide the clarity that people and teams need to successfully perform their assignments.” [Tweet This]
It takes diligence and courage on the part of the leader to provide the clarity that people and teams need to successfully perform their assignments. And natural behavior assessments like Leadership Behavior DNA pinpoint the exact communication strengths and struggles of an individual or team members (See page 10 on a sample LBDNA Report).
The Reward
The rewards for clarity are great—extending beyond celebrating success of the immediate task. In the process, everyone is growing in accountability and professional development. Envision current and next generation leaders growing together. Now that’s a goal really worth fighting for.
LE
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Lee Ellis Book Combo Package – Save 20%!
Purchase the latest books from Lee Ellis and FreedomStar Media in one package, and save 20% off!
Leading with Honor is the 2012 release outlining the 14 leadership lessons learned in the POW camps of Vietnam. Engage with honor is the 2016 release that applies many of the original leadership lessons into a practical Courageous Accountability Model.
Visit the Online Store for details.
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July 23, 2017
On This Day in Leadership History, July 23rd
On this day in leadership history in 1715, the first lighthouse in America was authorized for construction at Little Brewster Island, Massachusetts.
What’s the leadership lesson? When creating something or leading others, balance form and function in your work. Make it creative (and fun if possible) and make it functional.
Little Brewster Island, Massachusetts – Wikipedia
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July 22, 2017
Leading with Honor Coaching – Get Free Instant Access
Lee’s latest 5-minute Leading with Honor Coaching Clip on “How leaders can preserve the sacred honor of freedom” is now available.
Signup with your free registration, and get instant access!
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July 21, 2017
Leading with Honor Wisdom for Today, July 21, 2017
“Sometimes magic is just someone spending more time on something than anyone else might reasonably expect.” – Raymond Joseph Teller
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July 20, 2017
Quick Wisdom – Leadership and safeguarding our independence and freedom
Quick Wisdom – “As a leader, what can I do to help safeguard our independence and freedom?”
Playing off our brand and mission at Leading with Honor®, we are engaged in a battle to be leaders who live with honor. Here are 3 important points:
Lead and manage yourself. Live as a person of honor. If you need some ideas on what that looks like, download the Honor Code.
Set the example. Influence the next generation and help them understand that freedom requires responsibility.
Hold your elected leaders accountable. Make sure that they’re serving with honorable behavior that serves the best interest of freedom and our country’s founding principles rather than themselves.
This mindset isn’t easy. It takes courage, character, and commitment that’s supported by self-awareness and discipline. To be frank, living and leading with honor doesn’t come easy. It requires an ongoing battle with the dark and lazy side of human nature. it’s easy to just settle, drift, and become indifferent and apathetic about our greatest treasures as a nation.
Please share this post with others – thank you
Read the entire article on this topic – 3 Ways to Lead in Preserving Our Independence
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July 19, 2017
The latest recommendation from Lee’s bookshelf – “Never Fly Solo”
The latest recommendation from Lee’s bookshelf – “Never Fly Solo: Lead with Courage, Build Trusting Partnerships, and Reach New Heights in Business” by Robert “Waldo” Waldman. Waldo understands one thing better than most businesspeople: You can’t reach your highest potential alone.
You need wingmen–trusted partners–who can help you overcome obstacles, adapt to change, and prepare for success. A decorated former combat F-16 fighter pilot and now a successful entrepreneur, Waldman lives his life by this rule.
Check out this valuable book on team development on Good Reads, and please share your comments if you’ve read it – thank you!
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July 18, 2017
SlideShare – 6 Ingredients for a competitive winning recipe of success
Some time ago, Lee enjoyed a corporate dinner event with the client and heard some great words of wisdom from the CEO. Earlier in the day, he had observed that the morale and energy of the group to be unusually high—even after a long day of training classes at a conference.
This brief slide presentation below summarizes the six leadership ingredients that comprise his recipe of success.
Check them out on our SlideShare page and share your comments about them in this post – thank you!
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July 17, 2017
Updated Leading with Honor Reminder Cards! See Inside
[image error]Updated Leading with Honor Reminder Cards! Use these cards to remind your team every day of the 14 leadership lessons shared in Leading with Honor.
Durable and designed for quick scanning and use in the workplace. They are sold in a pack of 10 cards for $3.00.
Please purchase in the Online Store.
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July 16, 2017
On this day in leadership history, July 16th
On this day in leadership history in 1969, Apollo 11 launched, carrying 1st men to land on Moon. This is Buzz Aldrin’s bootprint, one of the first steps taken on the Moon.
What’s the leadership lesson? Stay in your area of natural strengths and behaviors, and then intentionally stretch yourself to grow and achieve your goals. Keep going one day longer, one more task, one more relationship, and one more idea.
Apollo 11 – Wikipedia
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