Hi, I’m Dr. Colm Foster, Senior Associate at Dynamic Results, and with my colleague, Henry Evans, coauthor of “Step Up: Lead in Six Moments that Matter.” You can follow my current ideas by following me on Twitter, @DrColmFoster.
Sometimes we see our clients, with or without formal leadership titles, who doubt their leadership ability, because they find themselves in situations where they don’t have all the answers. In effect, they see indecisiveness as leadership kryptonite. Having had the privilege to work with many high-performing leaders, we notice that real leaders share the same doubts, concerns, and anxieties that we all feel some of the time.
The difference between them and us is that, even in times of uncertainty, they commit to decisive action. This can sound like: “Hey, I’m not sure that what we’ve decided will prove to be the right thing a year from now, but everyone need to understand that this is what we are doing. I don’t need your full agreement with this decision; I do need your full understanding that this is the decision that has been made, and also, your commitment to execute with excellence.”
If a decision is being discussed to death, you could try to identify the top five considerations you need to make. Once you reconcile four of those, you’re eighty percent home, and can probably make a decision and mobilize people into action. We do, of course, recommend that you keep the fifth one on the review, but don’t let that stop you from mobilizing.
Thank you for your continued interest, and we look forward to bringing you more insights from our experts in future blogs.
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