>Then, lead the way! Ownership means much more than being a legal shareholder. It comes from having an effective attitude, whether you own a business, or work for someone else who does. If you want to achieve different results, you need to change behavior. Before changing behavior, though, first examine your attitude and mindset both as a leader and as a team member. For example:
1. When a crucial deadline is missed, a major error slips through or there is a devastating break-down in service to a customer…do you observe a culture of finger-pointing, save-yourself (and your job) politicising and general excuse-making? OWNERSHIP is looking inward at you as the leader and asking, “How did I cause this? What can I learn? How do I better communicate desired results next time, hold others accountable and commit to providing necessary resources?” Being vulnerable in this way as the leader is about owning your communication. It builds trust among your team, and replaces any fear that exists with positive, effective attitudes.
2. When business is slow, quotas are missed and overall sales are down…do you ever say “September is always slow in our business”, “the economy is bad right now”, or “it’s just our industry…everyone has it tough right now”? Whether all those are true or not, OWNERSHIP is refusing to be a victim of your environment! It is asking “What new and unique marketing strategy could we start immediately? How can we improve our conversion of our existing leads to customers? What value could we provide to our existing customers to have them buy more often and in larger amounts? Where can we be more efficient in operations to keep more of what we make?” Small changes here and there can multiply to massively increase your bottom line when you view obstacles as opportunities and own your results.
3. When outcomes fail to match expectations and cause emotions to rise, tension to build and relationships to suffer…does it ever feel near-impossible to a build high-performing team that works well as a unit? OWNERSHIP is providing strong leadership with clearly communicated common goals and a detailed plan of action so the team knows who is doing what by when. Great teams may go as far as documenting their “rules of the game” and how they communicate and operate with each other. They support each other in taking risks and making decisions because there is 100% buy-in and mistakes are viewed as opportunities to learn. Every team already has a culture. Make yours powerful and empower your team to reach its potential.
Imagine the possibilities when all team members adopt an outlook towards their personal performance as if they owned the business! Not there yet? Attitude reflects leadership. Taking ownership of where you are is the first step. Acknowledge it, move on and lead the way with an effective mindset that will lift you and your team to achieve the results you choose! The choice is yours – OWN IT and enjoy the rewards!
