3 Questions To Ask When Your Plans Go Poorly
A few months back, I read a book called “It’s Your Ship” by Captain D. Michael Abrashoff. Captain Abrashoff tells an incredible story that speaks powerfully about the wisdom of making decisions based on rational thought. The experiences he shares emphasize the substantial amount of critical thought and consideration that formed the foundation of the often unpopular decisions he made as the commander of the USS Benfold, THE BEST DAMN SHIP IN THE NAVY.
I’ve always accepted the fact that strong leadership is a crucial component of the long-term success of an organization and have enjoyed reading about the valuable experiences and lessons learned by leaders successful in their own arenas. Now I want to share with you three impactful lessons I’ve learned through what I’ve read about Captain Abrashoff. I hope you’ll take the time to read through it and that you find as much meaning in it as I have, despite the fact that you’re likely at a different point in your leadership journey than I am.
The first lesson that felt like a punch to the gut, as most checks to the ego do, was a series of three simple questions that Captain Abrashoff strongly suggested considering whenever things under your command are going or have already gone poorly. Here they are:
- Did I clearly articulate my goals?
- Did I provide enough time/resources to accomplish the task?
- Did I give them enough training?
I don’t know about you, but I regularly and sometimes royally screw things up. I can’t think of a day that’s gone by in the past three years of owning and operating a business where I didn’t have at least one fire to put out. And when things go poorly, it’s not uncommon for us to feel compelled to find someone at whom we can point a finger and lay blame. If your objective is to “be the boss”, this might be an approach that gets the job done. But if you want to be a LEADER that holds themselves to a higher standard and one that guides your team to victory, you’d be well-served to take a few moments to consider those three simple questions.
DID I CLEARLY ARTICULATE MY GOALS
Personally, my communication skills when it comes to articulating goals is often far from ideal. I’m naturally very excitable and can get hyper-focused. I lock into visions that I can see so vividly that I’m often caught off-guard when others don’t see the same picture on their own.
It’s simple for me to delegate tasks that will form pieces of a puzzle but describing the finished puzzle itself is a crucial component I often overlook. I need to remind myself to take the time to step back and first paint that picture for them before I expect them to buy into the steps necessary to achieve my goal.
DID I PROVIDE ENOUGH TIME/RESOURCES TO ACCOMPLISH THE TASK
This is often an area where leaders get stuck. If you’re just starting out in business, you might not have the time or capital to deploy toward approaches that are experimental but that you feel confident will present a beneficial result. I’ve found that this is where creativity and open lines of communication are invaluable. It’s obvious that it’s in your best interests as a leader to be sure your staff looks to you as a source of guidance and support and it’s in no-one’s best interest if they’re intimidated by you. Be sure they know you are open to their questions, that you will provide any needed clarification for them and that you encourage them to present ideas, even if they seem silly or far-fetched. Sometimes an unexpected, off-the-wall strategy will produce incredible results, the results you were looking for but thought you didn’t have the time or resources to achieve.
DID I GIVE THEM ENOUGH TRAINING
This last question is where I find I often end up paying for my poor communication skills in the middle of a project. I will, once again, have assumed that everyone sees what I see and knows how to achieve the vision. It goes without saying that taking the time to provide people with the training needed to accomplish the task at hand is essential and never a waste of time.
Captain Abrashoff’s book has led me to immediately consider these three questions when things start to go poorly on even the smallest of projects. If you’re willing to take the time to audit your position as a leader, to be consciously critical of your approach to each task or project, I am confident that you’ll be both surprised and humbled to recognize that the problem ends up being you, and therefore, in your control.