It has been proven to me time and time again that the best way to raise the performances of those around me, is to lead by example.
The ones within a business who hold the strongest commitment to the vision, values and systems are the owners and managers. However as you employ more people to support your practice growth and delegate tasks away from you, it is easy to hand over complete responsibility of these tasks and never do them again yourself.
Often within my practice, I would notice little things occur. Sometimes the practice A-frame sign wouldn’t be put out. Or the floors needed to be vacuumed when leaves had blown in on a windy day. For staff, it is human nature to conserve energy, and sometimes we are so close to a situation we start to go blind to the little things. As the owner I had the option of directing a staff member to complete the task, however this would likely only work short term. I also had the option of raising the minor issue in a staff meeting, but by that time the relevance and importance would be difficult to convey.
Instead, I would perform the task myself. I would do it happily and without announcement. I decided to SHOW people what I expected, rather than TELL them.
The result was always instant. You could feel the raising of performance, even in very minor ways. The effect was lasting as well. (The A-frame sign, for example, was then out on time the following morning.)
As owners and managers it is up to us to set the standard. And you cannot achieve this with words alone. It is your ACTIONS that people will follow.
“A leader leads by example, not by force.”
– Sun Tzu – The Art of War