Communication Breakdown

Leader A - "I have the notes right here...this is what we agreed to at the last meeting."

Leader B - "No it's not. We needed these pieces to be ready today."

Leader A - "Look, let me read through my notes. I have everything documented from last time."

Leader B - "That's not what I understood the plan to be. Let me read my notes...see, they're very different."

Organized Does Not Equal Accurate

The scenario above sounds silly, right? How in the world could two high performing professionals in the same meeting, taking the same notes, come away with such different expectations?

Impossible!

…except I’m Leader A… I did take great notes. I thought I had interpreted the details properly. But the messages could have been interpreted exactly the way Leader B understood them. We were both right…sort of…but because I didn’t ensure we both had the clarity necessary I ended up being wrong.

For the record, I really do not like being wrong.

Leading Means Learning Too

The obvious takeaway here is to make sure everyone is “clear” about what should happen next. That’s not my point. The real issue for me in this life lesson is to pace myself. 

I’ve discovered that I push myself hard in many areas. Trying to be the super-leader is difficult to sustain, and next to impossible to achieve long-term.

So the balance point has to be based on an open mind and a willingness to learn when I stumble.

Yes, I could have reconciled my notes better, but the root cause of me missing the deliverables in that meeting were more about my mindset than they were about the the task of checking everyone’s to do list.

How About You

What pace do you keep? Are you trying to constantly over achieve like me (not good 24/7!); or, have you found that sweet spot that allows for high tempo work that has a slower pace built in? If you have, you need to share your secret.

I’d love to hear from you.

No Excuses.

pic