I recently finished the book, Change Anything by Kerry Patterson on how to create lasting change. Patterson and his team discovered 6 key elements required to achieve transformational change. When we think about changing our habits most of us think it all depends on will power. “If I’m strong enough, I’ll be able to make this change.” Patterson points out that will power alone will not be enough to create lasting change.

Developing new habits and changing old ones is a struggle for all of us. Our habits and desired changes may be different, but we all struggle with adopting new ways of living. As leaders, our job is to influence change for the better in our teams and in our organizations. While we can’t make someone want to change, we can create the right environment for the change begin, nurture, and grow.

Patterson’s 6 elements to implement and sustain change include:

• Personal motivation to change (will power!)
• Personal knowledge of what / how to change
• Social support
• External coaching
• A system structured for success
• Tools to help with the journey

As leaders, we’re responsible for the failures of our team. When a team fails, it’s the coach who should be questioned. Leaders should either improve the players they have or get new ones, but the result is on us. Reviewing Patterson’s list of the 6 motivating factors needed for success, I can see how leaders need to take full responsibility for 4 of them.

1. Social Support

Modeling encouragement to others for the team creates an environment of support. Sometimes we need someone else to believe in us before we will believe in ourselves. I used to golf with two buddies who would constantly harass me on my poor golfing skills. The environment was the exact opposite of encouraging. It was quite toxic. You might be thinking, “Come on Russ! They’re just busting your chops! You need to get some thicker skin!” And while that may be true, I can only share how it affected my game. It didn’t improve. It wasn’t fun. Nobody believed in me… including myself. Like I said, I used to golf.

2. External Coaching

The value of an external coach is priceless. Good coaching provides an outside perspective on your progress as well as expert feedback on how to improve. We won’t make an effort to change if we don’t know what to change! Even Tiger Woods has a coach. His coach may not be able to outplay Tiger, but his coach can see Tiger’s performance from another viewpoint and offer the right adjustments for improvement.

3. A System for Success

Leaders have the ability to change the environment. This could include the physical office space, the methods of communication, or even how weekly meetings are conducted. The environment you create will attract a certain type of person but it may also turn others away. Does the environment you’ve created motivate people? Does your environment creating commitment or just compliance? When was the last time you slowed down to look at the culture you are encouraging? Is the environment moving in the direction you want it to grow?

“ At the end of the day, what qualifies people to be called “leaders” is their capacity to influence others to change their behavior in order to achieve important results. —KERRY PATTERSON

4. Tools for the Journey

In any organization, tools are required to get the job done. Does your team need a computer to get their work done? If so, does it make more sense for them to have a desktop, a laptop, or a tablet? Does your sales team need a better quoting tool? Marketing materials? More user-friendly CRM software for both contact and opportunity management? Any job gets easier and more efficient when you have the right tools to get it done.

I learned my lesson…

Leaders who point the blame of failure at certain members of the team either don’t know what to change or lack the courage to make the change. How do I know that? Because that was me.

In the mid 90’s I was managing the Southeast region for another company which included several branch office locations. One office was obviously underperforming. I offered some advice to the branch manager and played the patience card just hoping it would be better next month. It took a call from our CEO before I realized I needed to change some of the players on the team and improve the tools for those who remained. We turned that branch around in 2 months and I learned my lesson in leadership. Leaders need to know what to do and have the courage to do it.

“ Leaders need to know what to do and have the courage to do it. —RUSS PETERSON JR.

Question for you:  Which of these four elements have you seen work well to improve team performance?

Please leave your comments below.

Still learning my lessons.
See you next week,
Russ

I post daily motivation and tools on Twitter and Facebook. Please connect with me there too.

P.S.  Kerry Patterson, et al. has written several books on communication, influence, and change. I recommend all of them. Information on their workshops can be found at Vital Smarts.

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