I came across an idea in one of my recent daily devotionals and had to share it with you all. It said that one of the biggest reasons teams fail is that team members act out of compliance rather than conviction. They only comply with directives from their manager, and they’ll only do that if the manager is constantly following up. In my opinion, this is management, not leadership.
Conviction-based effort, on the other hand, comes from employees or team members who want to do what they’re asked because they believe it’s in the team’s, the customer’s and their own best interest. They have enough information to understand that this is the best path, and they trust that they will achieve the desired outcome.
To inspire conviction-based behavior, leaders need to cast a vision. You have to explain the why. In my experience, if you tell them to do something in the old parenting way of “because I said so,” you might get short-term results, but you won’t get long-term buy-in or long-term results. So, share the vision, explain the why, and help them understand why this is the best path forward.
As always, measure everything you’re trying to achieve. If you’re not on the right track, make the appropriate adjustments. Showing them the way and getting the desired outcomes builds trust, conviction, and, in my experience, long-term success.
