They all flew to town to celebrate a birthday. It was the birthday of a boyfriend of one of her best friends.
The weekend was going great. Meals, speeches, toasts, drinks, and dancing were all part of the celebration.
But then a mistake was made.
The boyfriend began flirting with a girl at the bar who wasn’t his girlfriend. Many of the party attendees saw it. But no one said anything.
Except for one friend.
That friend saw what happened. Others huddled together and were whispering about what they saw. But none of them were trying to help.
The friend stepped up and decided that truth had to win. She told the girlfriend what happened.
Because of her courage, that which was whispered about in a corner was now brought to the light.
That’s where problems get solved.
As a leader, consider your company.
What’s being whispered about in the corner?
Your team members have text groups—what are they saying there? In some of those corners and chat groups, they’re discussing hurdles and issues that exist within the organization.
How do we fix that?
How do we drag these problems into the light so they get resolved?
First, create a culture that encourages candor and devalues gossip.
Don’t just talk about candor—practice it.
As a leader, always build trust. That trust will allow your direct reports to bring issues that you can resolve. Without trust, nothing gets handled.
The two friends in the story above had built trust. It allowed them to be honest, even when the news could be painful.
Second, practice courage.
It took courage for her friend to approach her. The news wasn’t good, but it needed to be shared.
There are problems within your company that need to come out in the open.
Will it be easy to hear? No.
But will it make the company better in the long run? Absolutely.
Invite your team to be courageous. Help them understand the organization can’t get better unless someone points out what’s wrong.
Invite courage.
Third, celebrate candor.
When a team member does practice candor by bringing an issue forward, celebrate that. Do what you can to immediately address it. This will create a culture where others will step forward.
Thank the person publicly and privately.
By doing so, you are showing it is safe to use candor.
Always celebrate the actions you want in your team.
Finally, none of this will happen without strong relationships.
Healthy candor happens within strong relationships. People need to know they can trust you before they share issues.
Get involved in the lives of others. Know their names, names of their family, ask follow-up questions to important events, and show that you care.
Strong relationships take time and intention, but they’re worth it.
Call out the whispering.
Invite problems to come to you.
Be trustworthy. Celebrate those who take the risk to be honest.
Allow courage to fill the room and don’t shrink back when it is displayed.
Make room for this and you’ll build an amazing and impactful company.
Creating unparalleled experiences,
Chris Adams
Ellis Adams Group is always updating our blogs with the latest and greatest, view more below.
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