What Happens When You Skip Same Page Meetings

The very first time I meet with new clients in 90-minute discovery meeting, I emphasize how critical Same Page Meetings are to the success of a company.  Same Page Meetings, you may recall, are the periodic meetings between all owners, or between a Visionary and Integrator, to make sure you are in sync with regard to what’s going on in all areas of your company – with people (including each other), processes, customers, vendors, etc. – and solving issues.

You should be holding Same Page Meetings at least once a month, and perhaps more frequently if you are in a Visionary-Integrator relationship.  Unfortunately, these meetings are sometimes neglected for various reasons, whether it’s a busy season (or a pandemic!) or a desire to avoid discussing contentious issues.

The hard truth is that being busy or in the midst of crisis makes it more important than ever that you stick to Same Page Meetings.  When you skip them, you and your partners slowly slip “off-page.”  This creates a situation that threatens to sabotage your Traction and keep you from achieving your Vision in good times.  In difficult times, it unnecessarily increases already-high stress levels, and that’s the best-case scenario.  The worst-case scenario is that it could mean the difference between making it through a crisis or meeting with disaster.

Two ways being off-page ruins your Traction

1.  It constitutes a violation of your Core Values.

Core Values are the “rules” for working in an EOS company.  Most companies’ Core Values include something about teamwork and always thinking for the good of the company.  Even if not explicitly stated in your Core Values, it is implicit because it’s a basic requirement for any business to be successful.

The problem with violating your Core Values is that other people will know.  Even if they have no way of knowing you’ve skipped Same Page meetings, the evidence of being off-page will start to show in ways your team will see.

2.  It undermines your credibility as a leader.

When you don’t put forth the effort to stay on the Same Page, the rest of your team can tell.  It’s like gears that malfunction – they can’t generate consistent forward motion, and that’s impossible to hide.

Your employees are like your children – they are watching what you do, and their actions will reflect yours.  If you aren’t living up to your Core Values, why should they take you seriously when you talk about the rest of the disciplines of EOS?

Stated simply, it is your responsibility as leaders to get on the same page, stay there, and always present a united front to the rest of the organization.  It is impossible to build a great company culture with leaders who aren’t practicing what they preach.

Team health trickles down from the top

When a consultant I hired to solve my personnel problems told me my employees had nicknamed me “Hurricane Ken,” he said, “As an owner and manager, you must remember that you are on stage every single minute, and that everyone is watching you all the time.”

That was also the first time I heard the saying, “Perception IS reality.”  I learned that if I’m perceived by anyone to have a certain belief, even if it isn’t true, then it might as well be true.  So I had to get on the same page with my partner and resolve differences with him before allowing others to get wind of them.  Doing that made everyone a lot happier and more productive.