When Our Team Misses The Bus
Have you ever missed the bus?
I have.
When I was in 7th grade I was held after school because I slacked on my math homework and the teacher thought keeping me late would help. When I finished my work I realized I had a much worse problem to solve; I had missed the school bus!
In my case, I lived 9 miles away.
Fortunately I knew exactly how to get there. And I made a quick assessment of my situation:
• No cell phone and no access to a phone
• My parents would be expecting me at the bus stop and would be worried
I decided it was my responsibility to get myself home.
My plan was to get to the highway and hitch hike a few miles to take me the rest of the way. So I set off to reach my destination . . . .
When facing new problems, less experienced leaders may respond in ways that seem right to them, but their plan may be too risky.
Teams miss the bus too
Sometimes, our teams miss the bus too. In the face of new problems, they develop plans that seems right to them, yet are filled with great risk and little chance of success.
Without fully understanding the situation their determination and grit keep them walking with their eyes on the goal.
As leaders, we need to keep our eyes open for our teams that have missed their bus. As we we pay attention we can pick them up and re-position them for success.
My leader cared enough to be looking out for me
Fortunately when I was in 7th grade, my parents came looking for me. They found me, took me home and talked about better alternatives I hadn't thought. They prepared me for future success.
As a good leader, we take the responsibility to grow and mature our teams and keep them from needless damage.
Thoughts to consider:
• Is our team working hard without accomplishing much?
• Are they only reacting to the environment?
• Can they show us where they are on the map and where the team destination is?
• Do they have rest stops built in along the way to refuel?
When we do need to persevere, having grit can get us across the finish line. Angela Duckworth wrote a great book about it.
