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Having run a big business, I have found myself in situations where someone might suggest that we don’t tell the whole truth. I have always told them we will not lie.
As soon as you lie, the respect ends, and you can no longer have the most valid of all business relationships, the one of collaboration. We need to partner with our partners to be successful, and not hold back information, either good or bad.
Napoleon Hill, the father of modern success philosophy, talks about the very powerful Mastermind concept, where people gather round to make things happen. In order for this Mastermind to be effective, everyone must be able to speak without fear of reprisal and have the truth.
I was at a Blind Children’s Center meeting last week. What a change of events. We have been holding a golf tournament at the Rivera Country Club for many years. We started, as most meetings do, with, “How can we make the event better and raise more money for the kids.”
We discussed many options, then one of us said, “What is the real purpose here?” To raise money for the kids. “What if we give up the prestige of Rivera and went somewhere else? Could we raise more money for the kids?”
Because of the openness, and being willing to give up prestige for our single purpose, to raise money for the children, we came away with a plan completely different than the one we thought we were going to come up with. At the meeting we were in a safe zone and everyone could say anything they wanted. Most of us are volunteers and give money to the Center. No one felt uncomfortable in voicing our opinions; no one was the “boss.” We had to come up with collaboration of the people involved.
Now in business I will admit that sometimes the leader has to make a decision that not everyone agrees with, understanding that if they make the wrong decision, it could mean their job, or the life of the business, or the life of the country.
People know when this type of decision is being made, and respect the one that has to make the final decision, for better or worse. We have fun and develop education in history second-guessing these decisions made by presidents and other leaders.
For the most effective leadership you must be able to gain the total respect of the people that work for you, by including them in honest conversations about the business, and hopefully everybody comes to consensus, a synergistic interaction among your group for the highest good.
When we take other people’s ideas seriously, they know it and respond with even more ideas, and ideas keep business moving. They need to know the truth, and they need to know that you are going to tell them the truth.
Moving toward excellence.
Who doesn’t in the business world want to move to business excellence? And how we can do it is through using everyone’s brain to the fullest extent, stripping away the fear of ridicule, or fear that an idea that will be summarily dismissed as not good without any examination.
How open are the people with you? Do you know how open they are? What have you told them by how you respond to the truth, both the good and the bad news?
Someone might say a small lie is justified, but what loss are you willing to give up when someone knows that you are willing to tell the “little” one. Do they expect that you can move forward to the “big” lie?
Is it easy to do the right thing? It is not only easy, but it is important if you are going to get the maximum from the people around you, who will eventually make a difference in how great your company’s long term successes will be, or not be.
We found the answer of open collaboration in a volunteer situation, at the Blind Children’s Center. It is just as necessary in your boardroom as you plan your business for the future.
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