Entrepreneurial Elation

Three people on a table with reports two glasses of water and pens

One of the hardest challenges of those leading a business is keeping its “star players” happy, productive, and aligned with the mission and key objectives of the company.

This challenge is compounded exponentially in the Internet age – with fast shifting competitive and marketplace realities naturally necessitating that tomorrow’s key priorities and objectives will most certainly NOT be those of today.

As a result, it is almost impossible for everyone every day to be on the “same page.”

Even and especially when doing so seems to many in the company as being contrary to their personal self-interest.

And when these organizational “breakdowns” occur, the wise manager knows to proceed very carefully as these are the kind of “crowded hours” in which business success – and failure – are often defined.

So when this kind of trouble arises, the first suggestion here is to simply take a breath.

Things will fall apart, and even the highest performing employees, teams, and organizations will have their bad days.

Then, try to see these breakdowns as “positive crises.”

Crises that inspire the kind of reflective thinking that can drive organizational design and perspective breakthroughs.

Finally, never underestimate the power of engagement.

Everyone – especially star players – want their voices to be heard, their opinions valued.

Making this happen in an organization in a real, productive, and elevated way is hard and vexing work.

It can easily turn into unproductive airings of grievances.

Or gossip.

Or perhaps most insidiously just into an unproductive distraction from the customer – focused work that is so central to the fulfillment of the mission of the company.

But when these “difficult” conversations are properly moderated and bounded, and related and connected NOT to shorter term “selfish” agendas, but rather back to the mission and ideals of the company…

…well, that is when the magic happens.

That is when a team, an organization, and even its most “selfish” star players, truly get on the same page and do great things together.

It may not last for long, and without the continued exertion of spirited and principled and DAILY leadership, it will soon fade away.

But for those that are serious about building companies to last, it is a necessary and ennobling discipline.

And as a lovely bonus, all this hard, principled effort often creates the kind of togetherness, the kind of collaborative elation that we all seek from our professional work.

And dare I say, from our lives too.

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