Follow Through

A number of studies have shown that over the last fifty years, 83-percent of all corporate slowdowns were attributable not to external economic forces but to the lack of follow-through within the organization itself. You will never catch me saying "stop pushing the envelope, stop innovating or stop creating;" however, I do think that we need to remember a simple rule... Follow Through.

Here are some things that I have found over the years to help me stay in tune with Follow Through.

Hire the right people, then get them in the right seat!

Once you have the right people you can work with them. Hire the right people, put them in the right role and empower them to take action. As you assemble teams, it is very important to have the right leaders in place.

Be clear and specific.

Know your vision and your direction first. Then share it clearly and specifically with your team. If you don't know where you going and your plan to get there, then surely your team won't.

Motivate, Motivate, Motivate.

As a leader, you must constantly be casting your vision. Motivate with your vision, and allow your vision to create passion. Passionate staff members will take ownership.
   
Inspire Ownership.

Your staff must take ownership in their responsibilities. Don't make it optional, it must be required. I say inspire ownership because I think it is deeper that a "requirement". For true ownership your staff must be a part of the entire vision and be inspired by it.

Require Results.

Become results oriented with everything. True follow through will ultimately require you to focus on results. Track, measure, and monitor like there is no tomorrow. Get freaky when it comes to results.

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tags: Leadership