Leadership and Your Large Intestine
– by Coach Colle Davis
Think of your very personal relationship with your large intestine. If you provide the big dude or dudess with the correct balance of resources for its optimal health (fiber, water, exercise and some down time to relax) life is smoother and easier.
Problems come into play when you get pushy, withhold resources, or forget to listen to your magical gut. There is a direct feedback loop if you neglect the important issues related to your intestines, but I’ll spare you the biological list of the unpleasant extremes for not caring for your gastro-intestinal priorities (you know what they are).
Now let’s use this same idea for nurturing your gut when relating to your staff. Good leaders provide the resources, protection, and encouragement to their people and let them do their job to the best of their abilities. Any interference, change of focus, withholding anything related to the tasks, yelling, being silly or stupid, creating bottlenecks, or anything else that prevents them from fulfilling their job, is guaranteed to cause compromised productivity, and end in pain and suffering.
The large intestine is a self-regulating organ in the lower abdomen. When treated with respect, care, fresh air and exercise, it functions with quiet grace and distinct aplomb.
Your team has the same requirements. A leader’s job is to provide adequate support, resources, encouragement, and respect to their direct reports to assure their success in moving the product/service out to their clients.
What happens when you, the leader, runs off script? The results are predictable. Having a deep bench strength on your team, a good coach, and company support contribute to relief and returning to regularity.
What needs to happen for you to listen and respond to the early warning signs of problems and binding up the system? Ask your people what they think is the solution to their current blockage. Those in the field, responsible for completing the tasks are the ones with the best answers. They will not always be right, take their advice and if the suggestion doesn’t work, try something else until the flow returns.
There you have it, treat your team like your large intestine. Reduce the stress, hassles, and binding agents and see how everyone’s health and productivity returns.
On a serious note, colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among men and women combined in the United States. Please, have a colorectal screening.
For more in-depth techniques for progressing your career, contact Colle Davis. Your first session is FREE. This risk-free offer for career advancement is held in a relaxed setting in Richmond, Virginia, with a cup of coffee with Colle Davis, an Executive Coach with a thirty-year track record of success. Virtual sessions are also available.
Call or email me today for your FREE conversation. Colle Davis 804 467-1536, or EMAIL.
