If you’re in any kind of leadership role, there’s a reality check you need to be aware of, and it’s something I see a lot of leaders struggle with.

The reality check is this:  there’s a strong chance you’re not getting the full truth from people on your team.

That’s right. They’re holding out on you and not being 100% open and honest with you.

That’s a tough pill to swallow, but that’s why it’s an important issue to lean into. 

And that’s why it’s the topic for Episode 58 of Lead Thru Values.

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Hello and welcome back to the podcast. It’s so great to be with you again because we’re doing important work together here. 

Building a culture of performance mastery is one of the hardest things you’ll do as a leader because of all the nuances, challenges and personal growth you’ll have to do… but that means it also has the greatest reward! It rewards your employees, your customers, your bottom line and of course, you and the pride in knowing you’ve done it well, good and faithful servant. 

And that’s what we talk about on this podcast. I want to help you connect the 30,000 foot view of your business to what’s going on at the ground level.

When working with clients, the goal is to identify gaps: 

communication gaps 

knowledge gaps

leadership gaps

talent gaps

training gaps

...and then work tenaciously with the business leaders to close them.

Because there’s no shortcuts, no silver bullets to building a place where people want to come to, where they get a chance to do their best work and experience feelings of pride, fulfillment and accomplishment.

I blessed to work with some truly wonderful people. Business owners and executives who truly care about dignity, integrity and prosperity. 

And this brings me back to the topic for today which is the reality check that when you’re in a position of authority - whether that’s being a business owner, CEO, a manager, executive director - those positions put you in a spot where you’re not always getting the complete truth.

And for the people in those roles, that’s tough to hear even if they’re aware of it. The reason that it’s tough to hear is because they want to create a culture of open and honest communication.

The mistake I see being made, however, is a gap between intention and action. More specifically, I’m referring to leaders that say they want open and honest communication, that they want people on their teams to bring ideas, help them see new perspectives, even questions decisions they’re considering.

I have several people that are coming to mind right now that I know, without a doubt, want that.

And when they say it to their leadership teams or to their staff, they all agree. They nod. They smile. 

And I believe they believe they’ll do it.

So what’s the issue? The issue is rooted in the way we structure business. 

In 2009, I took a job for an upstart company as a marketing specialist. I was one of about 20 employees; a member of the team. At that time we were a pretty flat organization where all of us reported to both of the owners.

When we hit about 40 people, I moved into a manager role. And instantly the relationship dynamics changed. Now I had 2 direct reports that I managed, who just a day before were coworkers. 

We had 1:1 meetings and our little team of 3 would meet together, plus we’d meet with the marketing department. 

Being a manager now, I was invited to meetings that my team wasn’t. As a result, I had information they didn’t. Now, they knew that. It comes with the territory. 

But when people know that you know more than they do about the company’s health, direction, plans, etc., no matter what, it creates distance. A gap. That’s what I mean about the change in...