There is an old statement “What gets measured gets done.” Although it has become somewhat of a cliché, it still has a lot of truth to it, if you actually do what it says, and not just hang it on the wall of your office. Last week I wrote about the value of being prepared for tasks, events, meetings, etc. This week I want to come back around and talk about the other end of the process: follow-up. From the book, Lessons From the Top, by Neff & Citron (1999) Charles Heimbold, CEO of Bristol-Meyers Squibb states, “I ask a lot of questions. If you ask somebody to do something, you need to follow up fairly quickly to see whether it is done. You must let people know that you expect results in a given period of time. If you are inspecting and measuring, people are going to pay attention.” This is a very solid concept for managers and leaders, but I want to take it to another level. Let’s apply this same principle to ourselves.
It doesn’t matter how very prepared we may be, or how gifted and skilled we are at our task, or how charismatic a leader we have become, or how many volunteers we have inspired to follow our cause — if we fail to do the crucial step of following up on the actions we have set in motion, we will fall short. Many a sale have been lost because a quick follow up phone call wasn’t made, and potentially successful events fall short because the last of the to do lists was not carefully gone over. We can even miss out on a potential terrific volunteer to join our team if we fail to close the deal. As important as the planning, preparation, team building, training, and execution of tasks is to your project, without the act of follow-up you will miss the mark and run the risk of landing in the middle of mediocrity.
I’ve heard it said that there are many things done differently between those who do poorly and those who do well, but, only a few things done differently by the people who do well, and the people who do excellently. Both upper levels require effort, but for those who rise above, they seem to do a few more things to fully close the sale and bring their team across the finish line in the lead. I want to encourage you to apply this to how you personally approach your work, family, and personal life. Are there one or two things more to do that will set you apart? Can you rise to new levels just by a little better effort and follow-up? If we do this, we can expect the people we lead to do the same. Then, everyone wins.
Lead well.