Leaders Say No To Good Ideas

I remember when our daughter was two and beginning to talk. One of the first phrases she would say to me and my wife was "wany, wany, wany" to indicate that she wanted something. Most of the time what she wanted was ok, but not always. The point is that she seemed to want everything in sight! Then, when she didn't get what she wanted she would throw a fit.

Times change, but people . . . not so much

Funny how we don't change much as we age. I have worked with teams of all types that display similar reactions when they don't get what they want. As people that lead it is our responsibility to chart the course that will help our teams complete the mission and grow team members along the way.

A true leader has to tell their team "no" to good things in order to achieve greatness because we know that the truly great ideas come from the sacrifice of good ones.

When we think of leadership in terms of our responsibility, we must be willing to disappoint our team members from time to time in order to complete the mission.

Actions to Consider:

• Identify one idea to say ‘no’ to to make room for a better one

• Identify a pet project that has been going on for too long that needs an end date and end it