IAre You Bridging the Gap Between Aspirations and Actions?

Welcome to this week’s Whatif? Wednesday Thought Letter. As we venture deeper into the new year, let’s tackle a common leadership challenge: the ‘say-do’ gap. Many of us set ambitious resolutions aligned with the fiscal calendar in our professional lives. I, too, reflect during the holidays, pondering past achievements and future aspirations. However, despite best intentions, staying committed to new habits or changes is often harder than expected.

Understanding the Gap: Intentions vs. Reality

Why does this gap exist? It’s a mix of unforeseen events, competing priorities, and the daunting fear of failure. We start the year with high hopes, but seven weeks in, progress seems minimal. Our response? Rationalizing our inaction, inadvertently widening the gap between intention and action.

Striving for Equilibrium: A Path to Effective Leadership

What if we could strike a perfect balance, enhancing accountability, subduing inertia, and embracing risk as a pathway to growth? Envision creating a culture where calculated risk taking is encouraged, and mistakes are viewed as learning opportunities. Remember, organizations do not create the environment, leaders do.

Five Key Strategies to Narrow the ‘Say-Do’ Gap

1. Vision Integration: Align your long-term success goals with immediate and near-term actions.

2. Prioritize Effectively: Balance short-term tasks with strategic long-term initiatives. Empower through delegation.

3. Cultivate a Growth Environment: Foster open discussions about successes, failures, and future strategies.

4. Clear Accountability: Balance expectations between ourselves, our teams, and our peers.

5. Proactive Leadership: Focus less on obstacles and more on fostering stakeholder buy-in and collaborative problem-solving.

Barriers to change are high, but not insurmountable. A candid evaluation of your current stance in these areas can illuminate the path to better balance. This topic is an ideal focus for leadership team discussions. Your culture is shaped by what people feel they have permission to candidly talk about.

Your Personal Case Study: From Intention to Action

Reflect on your personal and professional goals for this year. What has contributed to your ‘say-do’ gap? Identify actionable steps you can take now to progress towards a more balanced approach.

Leading by example is key. As we bridge our own gaps and evolve into better leaders, we will inevitably build stronger, more capable teams which are the cornerstone of sustainable growth.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and experiences as we journey together in leadership.