Failing Forward

Posted on by Scott

mistake-876597_640It was 1903 and French scientist Edouard Benedictus, reaching across his desk, accidentally knocked over a flask. It was empty, but the glass bottle fell to the floor shattered. Rather than breaking into thousands of jagged pieces though, this flask kept its form. It was broken, but retained its shape. Upon further investigation, Benedictus discovered that the bottle had previously contained plastic cellulose nitrate. The substance had dried and coated the inside, forming a film that held the broken pieces together. Thanks to the Frenchman’s clumsiness, the world was introduced to safety glass.

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Like the rest of us, Alexander Fleming was anxious to start his vacation. The scientist was so anxious in fact, that he left work early and headed out of town for Labor Day weekend in 1928. Behind him, Fleming left a pile of dirty equipment, including several petri dishes containing bacteria he had been studying. When he returned and started cleaning up the mess, he noticed something strange about one of the dishes.  Like the other samples he’d left, the staphylococcus bacteria had grown unchecked in his absence. However, this particular dish had a spot of mold; and around the mold, the dish was clear – as if the mold had prevented the bacteria from propagating. Testing revealed that the mold also blocked other kinds of bacteria from growing as well. Thanks to his carelessness, Fleming had discovered penicillin.

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In 1968, 3M employee Spencer Silver was working on a new formula for the adhesive company. He had been tasked with developing a super strong industrial glue. Silver’s most famous effort resulted in a glue that coagulated in to tiny spheres which, as desired, wouldn’t dissolve or melt and were very sticky. Unfortunately, the spheres didn’t provide much surface are for contact and the glue pulled away easily. A colleague saw potential in Silver’s failure though as a “temporarily permanent” adhesive. As a result, 3M’s Post-it Notes became a must-have in every office across America.

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Accidents, oversights, and missteps aren’t something most of us look forward to. We’ve missed the mark and see it as failure. However, as these and countless others have discovered through the years, our failures often lead to our biggest triumphs. That is, if we know how to approach them. Mistakes aren’t so bad if we approach them the right way. The next time you goof up, try working through these steps.

  1. Accept it. Don’t try to deny the mistake, cover it up, or shift blame for it. Instead, acknowledge that mistakes will happen and treat them as a natural part of the success journey.

    How is this mistake helpful? What is the opportunity here?

  2. Study it. Take time to analyze the circumstances surrounding the error. Every attempt is useful so long as we expand our knowledge base and/or skill set.

    What events led up to this point? What can I learn from this?

  3. Act on it. Instead of retreating from mistakes and using them as reasons to give up, keep moving forward. Take the lessons learned from the attempt and either renew your efforts or modify tactics to zero in on the desired goal.

    What must I do differently? How can I reset and start again?

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When asked about his repeated failures in inventing the light bulb, Thomas Edison famously said “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Edison was constantly experimenting and developed many conveniences we still benefit from today. Eventually he held over 1,000 patents on his work, including the phonograph – which was invented by accident while trying to solve another problem. Aren’t you glad he messed up?

In It to Win It

Posted on by Scott

The 2018 Tour de France concluded yesterday. The multi-stage race, first held in 1903, always promises tons of drama and this year’s event didn’t disappoint. From tear-gassing by police to fisticuffs between riders, there were enough headlines to interest even non-race fans. But in the midst of so much news, there’s one story you might have missed. It involved cyclist Lawson Craddock.

No, he wasn’t the winner of this year’s Tour. That was Geraint Thomas. The first Welshman to win the tour, Thomas has typically been a support player – holding off competitors so a teammate could build up a lead. After Saturday’s individual time trial, he’d managed to pull almost two minutes ahead of the pack and essentially cruised to victory on Sunday.

And no, Craddock wasn’t the rider at the center of this year’s doping scandal. That was Thomas’ teammate Chris Froome. Cleared by officials just prior to the start of the tour, Froome was jeered (and even assaulted) throughout the duration of his run. He was aiming for a fourth straight win, but crashed early on and lost too much time.

Craddock was the last cyclist to cross the finish line. The American’s 145th place finish came four and a half hours after Geraint Thomas. In fact, he finished dead last in all but one of the Tour’s 21 stages. Lawson was never expected to win – his job was to support his team’s leader – but finishing at all became his unexpected mission.

On day one, early in the first stage of the tour, Craddock ran over a stray water bottle, crashed, and gashed his forehead. The cut required stitches to close. Along with other scrapes and bruises, he also broke his scapula. That’s the shoulder blade, a bone that’s difficult and very painful to break. Recovery takes around six weeks and requires the shoulder to be immobilized.

But rather than bow out of the race, Craddock got back on his bike and finished stage one. Then he finished stage two, and three, and four. While other racers walked away from the competition having suffered far less serious injuries, Craddock kept going. And he kept finishing; in last place mind you, but he kept finishing.

After his crash, Craddock pledged to donate $100 to the Alkek Velodrome in Houston if he finished the stage. The velodrome is where he started racing and the venue was damaged badly during Hurricane Harvey. He invited fans to match his contribution, adding another $100 for each stage he completed. Craddock’s father set up a GoFundMe page with a target of $1,000 as way for people to show  support for his son’s new mission. As of this morning, the page had surpassed $225,000 in pledges.

I write a lot about success and achieving your goals. After all, that’s why we set goals, right? To reach them. To crush them. We aim for a target and work like crazy to win. In the world of business, as in the world of sports competition, the expectation is to stand on top of the podium. But what happens when that expectation is obliterated? What happens when the dream of finishing first is dashed? What are we to do when the goal is so far out of reach that success” becomes impossible?

I guess we could quit. That’s what most people do, and it’s perfectly understandable. Nurse your wounds, heal, rest up, regroup – watch from the sidelines and wait for the clock to reset so we can (maybe) give it a shot next year.

Or, we can do what Lawson Craddock did. Fight through the pain. Find victory in giving everything we have just to finish the race. We could redefine success and rally those around us to join in the pursuit of a different, more meaningful, goal. And in doing so, discover this is the race we were meant to win all along.

Feature Presentation

Posted on by Scott

film-681993_640For the past several years, I’ve taken a week of vacation in July to attend Boy Scout Troop 157’s Summer Camp in Ardmore Oklahoma. Both of my sons earned the rank of Eagle Scout as part of this troop and I have many friendships that began as a result of my involvement. Over the years I’ve helped out by teaching various merit badges during this camp and am proud to have played a small part in the development of many young men.

As much as I try to share some knowledge with the scouts and help develop their skill sets during this experience, I feel like I am the one who learns the most from our time together. Take this year for instance. For the 5th time, I taught a Movie Making merit badge class. My goal is to teach them the fundamentals of film production through practical application. In other words, we make a movie.

Five boys signed up to take my class and despite the restrictions placed upon them given the context of an outdoor summer camp, they produced an impressive film. Along the way, they taught me a thing or two about achieving your goals.

  • Set a short timeframe. Summer Camp only lasts a week. Each class only lasts an hour. That means we had 5 hours to come up with a concept, gather resources, shoot the video, and edit everything into a final cut. That meant we had to move fast. There was no time for long debates about who would play what role or how each line of dialogue should be written. Once we decided on the basic story, we started moving.
  • Keep things simple. As you can imagine, this production didn’t have a huge budget. Costumes, props, locations, equipment – everything we used had to be readily available and cheap/free. I think we may have spent $20 on some stuff at Walmart. Everything else was found around camp. Our cameras were smart phones. The editing software was a freebie included with Windows on the troop’s computer. Costumes and props were either borrowed from other parts of camp or fabricated as needed.
  • Focus on the finish-line. Knowing we had to debut our movie to parents and friends during the campfire on Friday night meant that every member of the team was invested. These guys gave up their free time to shoot scenes in triple-digit heat. They could have been at the waterfront where it was much cooler and a lot more fun, but they were committed to the end result.
  • Roll with the punches. Things didn’t always go as planned. They botched bits of dialogue. There were wardrobe malfunctions and stunts that were too complicated to pull off. But that didn’t cause anyone to give up. They just found a way through, around, or over every obstacle that presented itself.
  • Enjoy the process. The ability to laugh at themselves played a big part in this group’s resiliency. They truly seemed to enjoy every aspect of the movie making process. While I made sure we had a coherent storyline to follow, they regularly contributed their own ideas – ideas that made the end result better. Had I not given them this flexibility, I doubt we’d have a product anyone would be proud of.

When Friday night rolled around, I was confident the guys had put together a great piece of work. Was it perfect? By no means. I don’t see Showdown at Devil’s Gulch winning any Academy Awards. But it accomplished the objectives that were set out. It was definitely a success. What’s keeping you from achieving your goals?

The Fountain of Youth

Posted on by Scott

youth-570881_640On this day in 1513, Juan Ponce de Leon, an explorer from Spain, “discovered” Florida. The peninsula that makes up our southeastern-most state had been sighted before, but Ponce de Leon was the first to make landfall, arriving near the present-day city of St. Augustine. He named the new land “La Florida” since his arrival occurred during the time of Pascua Florida – the Easter Feast.

Legend says that Ponce de Leon was searching for the Fountain of Youth, a fabled stream of water that restored health and vitality. Stories of this mysterious spring were recorded as far back as the 5th century BC, when the Greek historian Herodotus wrote about it. Myths about the Fountain of Youth have been part of various cultures across the globe.

While there may not be an actual Fountain of Youth, I think it’s safe to say that we’d all like to maintain as much energy and vitality as possible. And it isn’t necessarily age that saps you of your youth. I know teenagers who act as if they’ve given up on life and senior citizens who are more active and alert than I ever was.

Obviously, exercise and diet play huge roles in prolonging life and providing energy, but according to research, there are a handful of intangibles that are just as important. Youth isn’t simply a matter of the body; it involves the mind as well. Here are three characteristics of youthful people to take note of.

They play. Think about the amount of time you spend at work. Have you ever noticed how the time seems to pass more quickly when you enjoy what you’re doing? That’s because we lose ourselves in the work when it’s enjoyable. We aren’t as prone to distractions and don’t even think about looking at the clock when we’re mentally engaged in the task at hand.

Studies show that laughter and mental engagement are key contributors to growth. We learn faster, perform better, and contribute more when we enjoy the work we do. Just because it’s called work doesn’t mean it can’t be fun.

They pursue. One of the things that make stories like the Fountain of Youth exciting is the pursuit of it. Ponce de Leon and other explorers left the comfort of their homes behind in search of something new and exciting. They weren’t content with what already was – they desired to accomplish something new.

What are you trying to accomplish at work? Do you have a goal that drives you to explore new opportunities on a regular basis? Without something to pull you forward, there’s no excitement. Don’t wait for someone else to introduce a little adventure into your job. Be an explorer and seek out opportunities that no one else has before.

They bend. It’s no doubt that, as we age, our bodies become less flexible. The same goes for our minds – unless we take care to exercise them. I think the term “malleable” is most apt to use in this context. Substances that are malleable aren’t flexible by nature, they’ve been pressed or even hammered into shape without breaking.

The key for us to is to view change as a chance to become something different – to assume a new shape without allowing the process to break us. People who are too set in their ways have a difficult time flexing or morphing into something new. Yet, as youths we did it without even thinking about it. It’s in our nature to flex. We lose that tendency over time and start to remain fixed.

Often it seems the biggest life-suckers of all come from work. For many people, work is drudgery – a grind. They live for the five o’clock whistle and the weekend. But that’s no way to live. It’s a definite recipe for growing old. And there’s no reason why it has to be that way.

Seek to incorporate some play into your profession. Pursue a goal that’s bigger than yourself. Try to roll with the changes that come your way, maybe even initiate a few yourself. Odds are, the Fountain of Youth is closer than you think.

The Secrets to Success

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tent-384108_640Back in October, Nickolas Green began uploading videos to YouTube. The 15-year-old outdoor enthusiast filmed himself hunting, trapping, and practicing all manner of outdoor skills. By January 1st, his channel had reached a grand total of 70 subscribers.

To celebrate, and as a show of gratitude, Nickolas made a new video. He spent the night camping in his backyard. With temperatures hovering around -20 Fahrenheit, he narrated his experience for the camera. He reviewed his gear, described the environment, and shared his thoughts on the physical discomfort and the slow passage of time. He did all of this with the wide-eyed enthusiasm of youth. In other words, he was real.

And then last week, Nickolas suddenly gained traction. His video was shared on Reddit and went viral. It was viewed 95,000 times overnight. Viewers were drawn not to his fancy camera work or polished acting skills, but to his honesty. Today, his subscriber count has shot from 70 to almost over 70,000. Nickolas Green is a YouTube sensation.

They say that nice guys finish last; that to get ahead, you must be ruthless, political, and often even deceitful. The more you see others rewarded for this kind of behavior, the harder it is to justify remaining true to yourself. But people like Nickolas Green remind us that there’s another route to success; one that I find much more refreshing.

Be honest.

Be genuine.

Be engaged.

Be humble.

Be grateful.

Admit it; these are the qualities we appreciate in others, especially those we do business with. Lose my trust and you’re likely to lose your share of my wallet. Businesses who operate in the open and display admirable qualities may not skyrocket to the top overnight, but they also don’t have to worry about the public discovering any skeletons in the closet down the road.

The same goes for the individuals who occupy every level of the company. Real leaders, regardless of the actual title they wear, aren’t interested in playing political games. They don’t have to worry about who they’ve told which lies to or which version of the story is the “official” one. When you approach work from the right heart-set, you’ll have the right mind-set.

Perhaps it’s just my age showing, but I’d much rather watch Nickolas Green than most of his professionally accomplished contemporaries. And perhaps in time he will become jaded as well. I hope not. I hope he remembers how simply being himself led to his success.

Beating the Odds

Posted on by Scott

mount-everest-413_640At the age of 13, Sean Swarner was diagnosed with Stage 4 Hodgins Lymphoma, the most advanced form of the disease. He’d twisted his ankle during a baseball game, and now was given just two months to live. Miraculously, he battled back and, 10 months later, went into remission.

But at the age of 16, Swarner was dealt another blow. Tests revealed the presence of Askin Sarcoma, a totally unrelated, but just as deadly form of cancer. This time, the prognosis was just two weeks. Again, Swarner fought back. He survived, but the radiation treatments cost him the function of his right lung.

Having defied the odds, and amazing his physicians, Swarner began contemplating the meaning of his experience. Surely, he though, he was here for some greater purpose. He decided that his story could serve as inspiration for others battling cancer, and he set his sights on capping things off in a big way – he decided to climb Mount Everest.

On May 16th, 2002, Sean Swarner became the first cancer survivor to summit the world’s highest peak. He carried with him a flag bearing the names of fellow survivors as a symbol of hope.

But he didn’t stop there.

Swarner set a new goal. One by one, he climbed each of the 7 Summits, the highest mountains on each continent. Having accomplished that, he traveled to the South Pole in 2015 and, on April 11th of 2017 arrived at the North Pole. He is the first cancer survivor to achieve the Explorer’s Grand Slam.

Researching Swarner’s story leaves me feeling embarrassed. Here’s a man who didn’t let his circumstances hold him back. He set a goal and achieved it. Then he set another one, and another. He fought to achieve his goals despite his past struggles, despite being short a lung, and despite the incredible hardships each challenge represented. Yet, I am all too ready to let some minor difficulty keep me from finishing what I start out to do.

Yet Sean Swarner’s story, and others like it, also inspire me. If people can overcome this degree of difficulty to accomplish great things, then I can as well. Who am I to squander the opportunities that I have been given? Who am I to let minor inconveniences hold me back? On the contrary, I feel a responsibility to reach my full potential. It’s my duty to perform at the highest level possible.

Here, at the beginning of the year, is when millions of people develop resolutions for themselves and professional goals for their teams. Yet, within weeks the vast majority will have allowed something to get in their way. They’ll abandon their resolutions and decide the goals just aren’t worth fighting for. Odds are, you will too.

What a waste.

I have big plans for 2018. I just turned 50, and I want the next year of my life to be the best one yet. But the year has already started. Time is already slipping by. I have to act now in order for my dreams to become reality. I have to take steps today if my goals are to be met. I can’t afford to let anything stand in my way.

Neither can you. What goals do you have for this year? What mountains do you want to climb? Let’s accomplish our goals together. Let’s take the first steps today.

The Dreamers of Day

Posted on by Scott

achieve-1822503_640All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity; but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible. –T.E. Lawrence

I love a good quote, and this is very possibly my favorite. T.E. Lawrence (you may know him as Lawrence of Arabia) led an interesting life. He was an archeologist, a member of the British Army, the Royal Air Force, and the Foreign Office. He was a military liaison during the Arab Revolt, a POW, and an author. He experienced and accomplished things most people can only dream of.

Like Lawrence, I too am a dreamer. I am optimistic about the future and my place in it. And like Lawrence, I want to be a day-time dreamer. I don’t to end my days here on earth with a lot of unfulfilled dreams. I don’t want to waste my potential simply dreaming about making a difference; I want to be a man of action.

This is the time of year when lots of people make resolutions…to lose weight, exercise more, or spend quality time with the family. Other resolutions involve our career. We might resolve to be a better leader, a better employee, or a better coworker. We might dream of getting organized, being more proactive, and more productive.

But history has shown that the vast majority of resolutions fail. Within a month or two, the promises made at the start of the New Year will fade from memory. They were but dreams, with no real intent behind them.

To be the kind of dreamer Lawrence talks about, you can’t just think about your goals. You can’t just come up with a half-hearted plan. You have to be more intentional than that. You have to act. You have to step into your dream with open eyes.

Dream. Plan. Act.

The dangerous men Lawrence alludes to aren’t reckless. They aren’t out to cause harm. The reason they are dangerous is that they actually do what they say they are going to do. Most people never muster the actions needed to back up their words. They don’t act on their dreams, so when someone actually does – it’s scary. We feel threatened, intimidated, maybe even embarrassed by our own lack of dangerous-ness.

My challenge for you this New Year is to join me in becoming dangerous. Let’s act on our dreams with eyes wide open and make them possible.

Moving to Mastery

Posted on by Scott

the-nature-is-stronger-695013_640Do you remember your first day on the job? What emotions did you feel? I bet there was excitement, nervousness, and pride all at once. There was a sense of anticipation; almost an eagerness to see what challenges you could accept.

Even before you started, in that middle ground between accepting a new job and actually starting, the mind starts racing with the possibilities. You can’t help but imagine what stepping into this new role will be like. You begin to picture yourself in action, solving problems and making a difference. In your mind’s eye, everything goes perfectly. You can’t fail.

This is called Fantasy; by definition, an idea with no basis in reality. During this fantasy stage of employment, we can’t help but think about a potential version of the journey we’re about to embark on. Our mind turns our conscious and unconscious wishes into a fantastic, and fantastical, scenario that we play over and over and over again.

But pretty soon, reality sets in. Before you know it, that perfect world imagery has been replaced with real-world … well, reality. Things don’t go exactly as we’d planned. There are obstacles we cannot overcome. There are personalities that we struggle to get along with, and job expectations that aren’t exactly the stuff of dreams. The fantasy is over. We find ourselves in a new phase of our career called Survival.

In survival mode, the emotions are much different. There’s frustration, anxiety, and disappointment. Days are filled with either fire-fighting and never-ending to-do lists, or the monotonous drudgery of repetitious, mindless button-pushing. Goals seem further and further away, with progress coming only sporadically. We begin each day, not with anticipation, but with dread.

It’s here, in survival mode, that most people spend the entirety of their careers. Decades go by. The dreams that once inspired you to step into a new adventure fade away into the fog of a daily routine and the promise of an all-too-short weekend. Good times, huh?

But what if I told you that there’s another phase of your career just around the corner? What if there was something more than just survival? Would you be interested in that? Would you be willing to do what it takes to escape from survival and embrace something more? Are you ready to turn the corner?

There’s a phase of your career called Mastery; and it’s incredibly compelling.

Mastery represents control. It is, by definition, accomplishment. Masters dominate a particular skill or skill set. They are in control of their day, not the other way around. Back in the 13th century, “mastery” meant “victory.”

Mastery represents a return of the confidence and pride that colors the Fantasy stage. This time, though, those emotions are indeed based in reality – a reality that you have created for yourself. To-do lists are replaced with systems. Fire-fighting gives way to efficiency. Stagnation becomes progress and growth.

The great thing about moving to mastery is that you don’t have to wait for it to happen. You don’t need special tools or the right circumstances. All you need is the right attitude. You see, mastery is a mind-set. It’s a belief that you have been created for a purpose and a determination to see that purpose fulfilled.

Masters are merely those who have decided that survival is not enough. They are the few who have made the choice to live their lives intentionally. Roadblocks still exist. Problems still pop up. Nothing about the job or the environment is different. That’s because mastery is not a circumstance; it is a decision.

How do you see yourself today? Are you a survivor, or a master?

What’s Your Plan? (Part 4)

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district-1264717_640So far this month, we’ve looked at the importance of having a strategic plan, steps for developing a strategic plan, and some tips for ensuring execution. I want to close out this series of articles by focusing on idea of plan review.

Even the best plans need periodic review to make sure they are still relevant. Any number of things can lead to a necessary course adjustment. Market fluctuations, competitive positioning, regulatory restrictions, personnel changes, and policy or procedure adjustments – all could mean your well-defined plan just went out the window. On top of that, it’s a good idea to periodically check the numbers and take the pulse of the team.

Approximately every 90 days, I suggest pulling the team back together for a strategic plan review. This is your opportunity to kick the tires and make any tweaks needed to keep the plan moving forward. Here are a few questions you can ask as part of your review:

  • Did we get what we expected from each particular strategy?
  • How far off the mark are we?
  • How far over the goal did we get?
  • What worked, and why?
  • Can we do more of those activities that seem to be bearing fruit?
  • What could have been done to make it even more effective?
  • What fell short, and why?
  • Can we fix it, or was this just a bad idea to begin with?
  • What should we have anticipated that we didn’t?
  • What are our team’s strengths?
  • How can we capitalize on these in stronger ways?
  • What internal issues need to be addressed so we can be more effective going forward?
  • What outside forces need to be dealt with?
  • How needs to happen to improve our FOCUS?
  • How needs to happen to improve our MOTIVATION?
  • How needs to happen to improve our ACCOUNTABILITY?

These and other questions can help stimulate a discussion about the state of the team’s performance against the plan. Based on the insights gleaned from your discussion, you should update your plan. Plug the holes in viable strategies.  Reinforce the efforts put into the best ones. Replace the worst ideas with new ones that seem promising.

These periodic reviews are a great way to reenergize the team. You’ll find people recommitting themselves to the process and approaching their work with a renewed energy. Ownership will go up and the dedication they show to the plan will bleed over into other aspects of the job.

So, the strategic planning cycle looks like this:

DEVLOP > EXECUTE > REVIEW > REPEAT

The bottom line is to treat your strategic plan less like a one-time event and more like a living, breathing part of your team. Like any employee, your plan needs support, attention, and ongoing development. The more you put into the strategic planning process, the more you will get out of it.

What’s Your Plan? (Part 3)

Posted on by Scott

implement-2372179_640Developing a strategic plan is a significant accomplishment. Most teams never get to the point of creating a step-by-step road map for success. Those that do improve their chances of achieving their goals exponentially.

But plans are meant to be executed. All of your team’s efforts in creating a great strategic plan are wasted if nothing ever gets done. Sadly, a great number of plans are simply filed away and forgotten. To avoid this from happening to you, you need to address three aspects of plan execution.

  1. FOCUS. I think it was Mike Tyson who said “no plan survives a punch in the face.” Every plan encounters opposition. There will be barriers. There will be setbacks. There will organizational changes that no one anticipated. How do you keep competing priorities from interfering with execution of the plan? How do we overcome the tendency to lose sight of the plan (any plan) in order to address the inevitable fires that pop up?

Things you can do:

* Set clear boundaries. Block out dedicated time on the calendar for working on the steps of your strategic plan. Keep other things from encroaching on your work by making them taboo during the allotted time.

* Communicate. Don’t just assume everyone is focused on the plan. Review progress during your team meetings. Ask for updates and encourage discussion around best practices.

* Create habits. Ramp up the focus to level 11 for a short period of time to help establish new habits critical to the success of your plan. You can back off once performance becomes routine.

  1. MOTIVATION. Even the most excited supporters of a project will start to lose momentum after a while. Yet motivation is a key part of a successful strategic plan? Plus, it’s linked strongly to things like profitability, customer satisfaction, and employee retention. How do you keep the team energized? How do you ensure each individual gives their part of the plan their best and doesn’t default to just going through the motions?

Things you can do:

* Give up control. People are motivated by autonomy, so where possible, allow them to choose how they complete their part of the plan.

* Give them the tools. Ask team members what resources they need to perform at their best, then work hard to see they get them. Nothing motivates like knowing your leader is behind you.

* Give them some competition. A little friendly contest might be just what the team needs to stay motivated. Spice things up by introducing periodic short-term incentives based on the activities in your plan.

  1. ACCOUNTABILITY? Yuck. This is probably the most hated word in all of management. Few leaders embrace this aspect of their role. However, top performers actually thrive in an environment of strong accountability. When everyone is expected to play by the same rules, the team is freed up to focus on succeeding. So how do you keep the team – the entire team – do what they are supposed to be doing?

Things you can do:

* Set clear expectations. Let the team know, in no uncertain terms, what acceptable performance looks like. Speak to the behaviors you want to see, not just the results.

* Praise the good. When you witness someone engaging in behavior that moves things in the right direction, let them know about it. People will give you more of what you praise them for.

* Address the bad. When you witness someone engaging in behavior that moves things in the wrong direction, let them know about it. Don’t assume it will stop. Letting things slide is tantamount to praising it.

As the leader, your job is not to just develop a strategic plan, it’s to see that it gets executed as well. Execution is actually the most important part of the plan. A poor plan executed well is worth more than a brilliant plan executed poorly. Make sure to keep your team focused, motivated, and accountable.