BEHAVIOR #6 DELIVER RESULTS (pp. 172 - 176)

And...we're back!

The next few behaviors are based on a leader's competence. For this week, we're reflecting on the ability to deliver results and getting better.

Delivering results may very well be the area of business activity that business owners fixate on more than any other. After all, if we are not setting and regularly achieving our intended goals, we are a business lost at sea. Covey makes the important distinction between "activity" and "results". And this is critical.  In his experience, he learned to look for people who were "short on talk, long on delivery".

Covey gives the example of the business division of the Covey Leadership Center that was not really contributing revenue to the bottomline. He took a hard stance and set a difficult but achievable goal to make the division profitable within 6 months. However, after a bit of time, the team responsible for the results protested that the goal was unachievable. Covey did not waver. He held his ground and inspired his team to meet the stated goal. And they did!

Many times we need an outside force or entity to hold us to that higher standard of delivering results.

In some cases, we get fatigued from the number of problems we have and we dilute our energy across many goals so that none get accomplished. In other cases, we simply need the pressure of a deadline to force our brains to be more creative in solving problems. And in another case, (as Lencioni shared with us in ELI about his social influence theory) we simply need the pressure that others are watching and observing us and expecting us to produce.

And important point that Covey makes is his own personal definition of leadership = getting results in a way that inspires trust. With this qualifier, I think he would say that getting results at the expense of relationships or by compromising integrity is not appropriate. Insults, ignoring people or issues, coercion, lying, minimizing another person and other tactics may well get results - but not in a way that inspires trust.

Covey's summary of recommendations for this trust-building behavior:
* Establish a track record of results
* Get the right thing done (not just some things)
* Make things happen (be the change catalyst, take initiative and responsibility)
* Accomplish what you're hired to (be accountable to your job description, team, manager)
* Be on time and within budget (these are two standing constraints for all professionals)
* Don't over-promise and under-deliver
* Don't make excuses for not delivering results

What was significant to you in this section?