Stepping Forward Together: Creating Trust and Commitment in the Workplace. Mac Ph.D. McIntire
as if testing my theory against situations in his past. “They didn’t just step forward together; they ran. They were the best sales team in the company, and their results proved it. They worked hard together. They even played hard together.”
A smile spread across Paul’s face as he remembered another defining characteristic of this star team. “The thing that really amazed me about that team is everyone made sure everyone else on the team reached his or her sales quota. That’s almost unheard of in our industry. They really did function as one.”
Yet Paul had also seen the opposite of an effective team.
“I’ve seen all the maneuvers, political and otherwise, in the corporate world: turf wars, empire building, people who take all the credit and others who place all the blame. I believe most people in most businesses aren’t stepping forward together.”
“And of the non-team behaviors you just listed, are you experiencing any of those at your manufacturing plant right now?” I asked.
“It’s one thing when your front-line employees don’t see eye to eye,” Paul began, “but even the managers at my plant don’t work as a team. Departments march off in different directions, pursuing individual tasks and neglecting the goals of the group. Managers bicker among themselves. Some even refuse to work with peers who don’t share their opinions. Some of my managers are just as bad as some of the employees; maybe worse.
“But let’s face it,” Paul said, his skepticism bolstered by memories of his current work situation. “In every group there are always some employees who are strong and others who are weak. So I’m not sure it’s even possible to get every single person in an organization to step forward together as a team. Remember, I have over 200 people at my plant.”
“That’s the problem, isn’t it,” I stated. “The more people you have in an organization the harder it is to get everyone to step forward together as a team. It’s easy to step forward together by yourself. For example, when you’re single you pretty much get to do whatever you want and go in any direction you want. But when you get married, life changes. Now two people have to work hard at becoming one. You have to coordinate your activities. You have to make sure you are not at odds with your spouse. Couples often struggle until they become unified in their views, goals, expectations, values, attitudes and beliefs. But then you have a child and the ‘team’ changes again. Driving three people toward a common goal is harder still. With each subsequent child added to the family come additional challenges to creating harmony in the home and unity in the family.
“Getting two, or 200, or 2,000 people to step forward together can be difficult,” I agreed. “How would you like to be the President of the United States and try to get over two hundred million people to step forward together?”
“That’s impossible!”
“Ah, nothing is impossible,” I said, in my best Jedi Master voice. “Some things are just a little harder to do. You ought to consider yourself fortunate to be general manager over only 200 people.”
“Go ahead and rub it in: I can’t get a measly 200 people on the same page,” Paul bemoaned. “It seems like the only time I see my workers stepping forward together is when they’re stepping toward to pick up their paycheck. All they want to do is put in their eight hours and do the bare minimum to keep their jobs. They’re not enthusiastic or committed. They’re only interested in themselves.”
“Are you sure about that?” I questioned.
“Well, that’s the way it seems to me,” he said solemnly.
“You may be right,” I offered. “But my experience tells me your employees may be more capable and more motivated than you think. I’ve worked with hundreds of companies across the country and thousands of employees throughout the world; and I’d venture that you’d be surprised at the sleeping giants you have within your company.”
“Yeah, so how do I wake them up?”
“Ah! That’s the fun part. There’s nothing more exhilarating than turning employees who appear to be unmotivated and non-caring into enthusiastic, highly committed, self-managed team players. Now we’re getting to the good stuff. It’s definitely possible and I’ll tell you exactly how to do it. And the best part of all is that the process is exactly the same for getting commitment from employees, managers, your boss, your customers, and even from your spouse and children.”
I looked down at Paul’s ring finger and noticed a gold band.
“Are you married?” I asked.
“Yes.”
“Do you have children?”
“Yes. I have a daughter who is 15, and an 11-year-old son.”
“Would you like your spouse to be fully committed to you and to your marriage?”
“I hope she’s committed to me by now,” Paul said. “We’ve been married for 23 years.”
“The length of a marriage doesn’t necessarily indicate a committed relationship,” I countered, “just as the length of service of an employee doesn’t necessarily mean he or she is loyal to the company. Some people stay in marriages or employment relationships long after their commitment has waned.”
“That’s encouraging,” Paul said, sarcastically.
“How about your kids?” I continued. “Would you like them to be committed?”
Paul roared with laughter at the alternate meaning of my question. “Yeah, sometimes I would like them to be committed: committed to an institution somewhere! At least until they get through their teenage years. Then I’ll take them back,” he joked.
“Paul, I promise that what I’m about to show you will benefit you both professionally and personally – at work and at home. I can guarantee if you want to be a better company general manager, you can be if you listen carefully to what I’m about to tell you and then apply it in your work life.
“But I’ll go even further than that. I will promise you that if you want to become a better husband to your wife or a better father to your children, you can if you apply in your personal life the concepts I’ll share with you tonight.”
I expressed to Paul a paradox that has puzzled and saddened me for a long time. I’m shocked at the number of managers who appear to be great managers at work, yet they’re estranged from their spouse or children at home. They communicate brilliantly with their employees and colleagues; they have unlimited patience and potential at the office; they are highly respected and loved by their staff at work; yet at home they alienate their spouse, ignore their children, and interact poorly with the members of their family – the very people who should matter most to them.
On the other hand, I also know people who are wonderful husbands or wives, outstanding fathers or mothers, great leaders within the walls of their home; yet they are horrible bosses at work. They have the patience of Job with their children; they listen attentively; they’re understanding and compassionate; they are considerate and kind; and they’re wise and inspirational in their counsel. Some even coach their son’s Little League team or daughter’s gymnastics team. They seem to have an uncanny ability to motivate nine to twelve-year-olds to do anything; yet, at work, these same people can’t motivate their employees to do the simplest tasks. At the office they are impatient, intolerant, unsympathetic, demanding and demoralizing. The same person who is loved and respected at home, is despised and barely tolerated at work.
“How is it that a person so good in one situation can be so bad in another?” I inquired. “It seems to me that someone capable of being a great manager at work or a wonderful spouse at home ought to be able to transfer those skills and characteristics to the other side of the equation. The interpersonal skills required at work are the same as those needed at home; and the qualities that make someone a good partner or parent at home are the same characteristics needed at work. If a person is good in one location, he or she ought to be equally good in the other. Work and home situations are exactly