Every business must have a rhythm for people getting the right things done well together.
The rhythm includes
- regular, sane, productive meetings,
- a way to select, do, track, and course-correct strategic projects,
- communication and accountability norms,
- role designs that say what results (not tasks) we expect from each person,
- hiring people who understand and support the rhythm, and
- an organizational design (how to split up the work, who reports to whom) that supports the goals.
Our job as leaders of both new and existing organizations includes ensuring that this rhythm always evolves to match the age, stage, and size of our organizations, that people know how it all works, and that they work with the rhythm to succeed well, often, and happily.
It’s time to improve the rhythm whenever we see goals missed and people struggling, pushing hard, fighting, complaining, burning out, or leaving. We can tell we are doing this well when the right things consistently get done well, with ease, and we are hitting our goals.
In your corner,
Mike
PS: We may think that being the leader means being in charge. That is, we set the direction, make decisions, and delegate. Being in charge is an important part of leadership. Stewarding the rhythm is the other important part. If you prefer doing one part, consider hiring someone to take over the other part.