A Template of Success For Your Business or Team
| Imagine if someone asked you “Will you go on a journey with me?” Now you could say “yes” straight away, but I bet certain questions would go through your mind. Questions like: “Where to?” “What for?” “How will we get there?” “What will we see along the way?” “For how long?” “Who else is coming?” “Why should I come?” And these are exactly the same questions people ask about your business or team every day. Sure they may not do it out loud, but unless these questions are answered, they ain’t going nowhere with you! Here’s a very simple model we’ve worked through with hundreds of teams over the years that will do wonders to engage people on your journey to success:  They’re all interrelated but they’re definitely not the same. Let's examine them in some more detail:  Higher Purpose (H.P)The very best businesses have more than just a Vision of where they wish to be by a certain time. They have a Higher Purpose that touches the hearts and souls of followers; that in some way addresses a community concern or need, a social condition or makes the world a better place. For example: Lion Nathan: “Make our world a more sociable place” Estee Lauder: “Bringing the best to everyone we touch” Ritz Carlton: “We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen” The Human Enterprise: “Transforming the way people live their lives, lead their businesses and leave a legacy” Setting a financial goal of $200 million profit by 2020 may get some people out of bed, but for most there is no ‘juice’ in it after a while. Inspire me! Make me and my work feel significant. Let me know what I do counts. That my work and our business has meaning. Give me a Higher Purpose. A Higher Purpose answers the question; “Why should I come?”  VisionThis is a summary of what the business will look like by a defined period. Like the word indicates, it is a vision, a picture of the future. A bold, compelling future to strive for. It helps to specify an exact date for your Vision and a specific goal. For example:
Because if there is one thing that isolates the top leaders, it’s the absolute clarity of their Vision and the authentic way they communicate it. By the way, just because you are clear on your Vision it doesn’t mean your people are. If your struggling to authentically articulate your vision or your people just don’t seem to ‘get it’ you might want to check out one of our new programmes Leading Out Loud™. Download the fact-sheet now.  MissionThis is the fundamental reason for the existence of the organisation that guides and inspires us in our everyday actions. It should be firm enough to remain intact for many years, and not confused with business strategies that can change dramatically every 12 months or so. Sometimes it’s called a “Strategic Intent”, but this doesn’t really sit with me. The mission is more of a day to day thing. You may also hear it referred to as the Business or Team Purpose. In our workshops we get participants to create missions for their business or team, focussed on four key elements:
“We provide a full range of financial services to high nett worth individuals to enhance their wealth and lifestyle. Our clients have the peace of mind and assurance that all our recommendations are backed by the most in depth research team in Australia. Additionally, our advice is truly independent and based on fee for service not commissions.” Your Mission answers the questions “What for?” and “Who else is coming?”  Drivers or Levers The Drivers or Levers in the business give people the opportunity to ‘focus’ on the key elements that need to be managed or measured to propel you to achieving your Vision and Higher Purpose. While values encapsulate the “feel”, the drivers are about the "deal”. For example:
 Values These are the guiding principles and tenets that provide the touchstone for our every action within the organisation. They are the way we relate to each other. They seldom change. They embody your business philosophy and should not be confused with operating practices and norms which may vary. Have too few (values) and it seems a little trivial, too many and you won’t remember them. There’s no absolutes here; 4-5 is good, 7-9 is pushing it. By the way if you do have more than 4, we suggest you use a mnemonic. Some people hate these but it helps increase memory dramatically. For example at The Human Enterprise we have 9 so we use the mnemonic TRANSFORM: Talent Blossoming Raving Fans As One Nurturing Leadership Small Tweaks Fun Filled Energy Ownership Mindset Respectful Compassion Mindful Awareness The words of course are not enough. They have to be explained and backed up by behaviours. Once again, whatever values you espouse will not come to life if you don’t have ways to reinforce and enforce them. We focus a lot on this aspect of team values in our workshop “OUR BEST: transforming high performance individuals into a high performance team” Learn more about this team experience here. Values answer the questions “Why should I come on the journey?”, “What’s in it for me?” and “Who else is coming?” The End of the Journey As a leader, it is all well and good to ask your people to come on a journey, but without followers you are just going for a good walk by yourself. If you want companions (followers) on your journey you’ll need to clearly articulate your:
I hope this “compass” helps you along the way. Your travelling companion, Paul Mitchell P.S You might recall that in one of our previous newsletter I talked about authentic leadership. Very soon (within the next 24 hours) I’ll be writing to you about a special public workshop that will help you discover your authenticity as a leader. Stay tuned… P.P.S. As always your feedback is welcome on our newsletter. I know they’re a little longer than most. We hope you see this as the “added value” it’s meant to be. Leave your feedback via our website or contact me via email newsletter@thehumanenterprise.com.au |
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I took the time last night to quietly read your “Beating the Depression” newsletter. Wow… Such a great piece and an important reminder of the power of optimism...Very timely, with so much “bad” news and negativity around the place...it’s hard not to get caught up in the doom and gloom.
Its tough times in our property business, but so important to remain upbeat and focused on your own sphere of influence that I have passed in on to my sales team and pasted it on my own message board. Thank you for the inspiration.
Jim Langford, Principal, Langford Property Partners
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Just wanted to compliment you on this outstanding piece of insightful writing. There's so much drivel out there in this field and yours is just superior....Glad to be on your list.
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