Push the Edge of “Be the Change…”
I’m always inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s quote “be the change you want to see in the world.” Any book about leadership best practices will tell us that leaders should be role models for what they want from others. I think this applies to relationships both vertically and horizontally within the organization.
Want your direct reports to care about their work and customers? How much do you care and how do you show it?
Want your management peers to inform you about events and decisions that will impact your team? How proactive a communicator are you?
Want your manager to tell you how you’re doing? How often do you share feedback, positive as well as critical, or even ask for specific feedback?
And, even though “be the change…” is a great quote, there are some missing pieces for leaders if you’re trying to change others’ behavior or lead a culture change. If we wait and hope people will pick up on our own newly modeled behavior changes as if they’re breadcrumb clues, we’ll have a long wait. This could be because the behavior is too subtle to break through what people have become used to seeing or that people think the behavior is a brief alteration that won’t last.
Sure, start with being the change you want to see in your organization. Then, add these behaviors to the mix:
Be transparent. Tell others what you’re doing, trying to do, want them to do, and why it’s important.
Ask for help. Engage others in the effort of holding each other accountable. Ask for help in supporting you and each other. Do you need a sign when you’re slipping into old patterns? Can the team help identify supporting actions and helpful metrics to monitor?
Celebrate successes. Capture and identify the wins, even if they seem like baby steps. What gets rewarded gets repeated.
Denise Holmes
Principal (MA, MBA, PCC)
Maybe it's caused by being too direct, frustrated by others' incompetence, stress resulting in angry outbursts or managing with a "my way or the highway" style, and/or employees unhappy about something else.