When it comes to improving performance, whether individually or organizationally, it must start with awareness. You, or your team, will never improve something you are oblivious to and you’ll never fix something you aren’t aware is broken. Getting everyone on the team to acknowledge that higher performance is not only possible, but needed, takes the ultimate buy-in and believe-in.
You, or your team, will never improve something you are oblivious to and you’ll never fix something you aren’t aware is broken.
Once you have a collective awareness, every member of the team must get crystal clear on the following 7 questions:
- What is our North Star (where are we going and what are we trying to achieve)?
- What is our plan for getting there (what are the micro steps and process we need to achieve this)?
- How will we know how we’re doing (what will we keep track of or measure)?
- What are our core values (what do we stand for and what do we believe)?
- What is my role (how can I make a meaningful and maximum contribution)?
- What is expected of me (what is the standard of excellence I need to live up to in my work)?
- How will I know how I am doing (what is the process for offering real time feedback and evaluation)?
The answer to these 7 questions will give you a clear picture of ‘what winning looks like to us.’
In a sport like basketball, what winning looks like has already been pre-determined and agreed upon – the team with the most points on the scoreboard when the final buzzer goes off is declared the winner. There is no debate.
In business, and in life for that matter, ‘winning’ is much more abstract and evergreen. ‘Winning’ can look different from company to company… or even from teammate to teammate in the same company.
So it is vital to get clarity on ‘what winning looks like’… and you do that by making sure everyone on the team (regardless of title or position) is crystal clear on answering the above questions.
