The Consequences of Mediocrity

​One of the major headwinds to a great summer is if you are only 50% of the way to your annual goal by now, you are actually behind the number.  This is because you will lose ground in Q3, and may not have the time to catch up in Q4.  Being below goal is not a happy place, and could even be considered mediocre. If you are the leader it is easy to blame your people, but in a recent article by Joseph Grenny he articulates why it might be the leader's fault, and he shares a couple of ways to bring the big middle of your team up a few notches.  Grenny is the co-author of one of our favorite books “Crucial Conversations, tools for talking when the stakes are high”. In this article he wrote for the Harvard Business Review he shares several ways to help the team visualize what their indifference could cause.

We think this hits the spot when it comes to larger group activities. The big middle is too....

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​easily swayed by the 'who cares' crowd, and the costs to change the bias by those in the middle is too great socially. As a consequence, a status quo of “slow it down” vs. “pick it up” is established. The ability to stimulate a “let’s pick up the pace” mindset rests with the leader, and Grenny shows us how to tease out the inner hard worker in your workforce.

No one wants to be average, and yet by rule there always is an average. However one of the synonyms for mediocre is the word forgettable, and seldom seen is the human who when presented with the option of being remembered or being forgotten won’t choose the former. Once convinced and bought in on being remembered, the leader then shows and teaches the tangible steps and behaviors that lead to success. Pretty soon your group may start acting like a team, and as the leader you may start to feel that surge that comes when humans care together at scale. 

Like all people puzzles it may be hard, but it’s worth it.

Check out our post on A Fresh Look at Goals.