I have a colleague who reports to me . He is an energetic guy and loves to stretch and go the extra mile for things he is motivated on . Being healthy is a motivation for him and he is good at body building . But when coming to work (which is a sales role) I don’t see that motivation , focus , prioritisation on things that are to be done . How do you think should I approach this individual ??
As a teacher I believe I have 2 important beliefs to transmit to each participant in my programs:
- I can be good at this
- It is important to be good at this
Where a human being has these 2 beliefs, they are already on the journey and working on the tools and putting effort into what is necessary.
If someone doesn’t believe that they can… they won’t begin.
If someone doesn’t believe that it is important… they won’t begin.
This is context dependant. I can be highly motivated in cooking (I believe I can, I believe it is valuable) and terrible at cleaning up my mess (I don’t believe that it is important). No matter how many tools you give me to clean up, until I begin to believe that it is important, I will not make the effort.
As you think about your colleague – clearly in body building, he/she holds the two beliefs: 1) they can be good at this & 2) it is valuable to do this. In the work of your professional team – do you think they believe they are capable of being a good professional? do you think they believe that it is important for their life? If either is “No”… that is where you can help them think.
How to Lead a Team
I wrote a blog post (and shared a video) a few years ago on How to Lead a Team. It has 5 specific ways you can engage with the team members that report to you.
