Leadership Team Development #6 – Your Why

It is always a challenge to keep individuals and organizations focused, but that’s what great leaders do. Distractions abound, but great leaders have an internal compass that keeps them from drifting off course.

Two things set our bearings – our why and our what.

Focused organizations share a clear why – a common purpose, cause or passion. If your purpose is making money, you’ll change course the moment a better money-making opportunity presents itself, and unfortunately, that happens to many individuals and organizations. So, what’s yours? Why do you and your people invest about one third of your lives together? Are you engaged in something that matters?

Here are your takeaway points for this week:

• You will never be a great leadership team if you don’t share a common purpose, cause or passion. When distractions come, your team will quickly drift off course in different directions, and if your leaders are getting distracted, there’s not much hope for keeping the rest of the troops in line. So, if your team isn’t focused, find or come back to your why.
• Simon Sinek has done some great work on this topic. When you get a chance, I encourage you to watch the video below. He also has a great book, Start With Why.

Encouragement: Finding your why may take some effort if you’ve been operating without it for a while, but I assure you, life will be a lot richer when you get your bearings back.