A LEADER’S STORY ABOUT ACHIEVING SUCCESS IN A CHALLENGING YEAR

In May 2021, during an E3 Aspiring Leadership course, I asked Mark and the cohort to close their eyes and fast forward to imagine it was New Year’s Eve 2021. “Think about where you are, who you are with, what you are doing and how you are feeling. Imagine you are celebrating everything you have accomplished this year. Think idealistically, not realistically! Don’t worry about what is or isn’t possible. Take your magic wand and consider any outcome you would love. Allow your chest to fill with pride. Revel in what you’ve accomplished. Take a deep breath, smile and toast your success.” With that feeling still fresh, I then asked them to open their eyes and write down the 2-4 things they were celebrating. I asked them to EXPRESS the desired outcomes. “What did success look like at the end of the year.”

Mark, someone I have always admired, clearly understood the assignment, and started typing. Later he tentatively shared it with the full group.

Fast forward 6 months, I received an email from Mark, “Quick note, goals accomplished, thank you.”

Mark had just been named Presales Leader of the year. I smiled with pride. I was not completely surprised; he deserved this honor because he was an incredible leader. However, he had never been officially recognized within the company he had served for several years. That year was different. He took the time to EXPRESS his goals, not allowing it to be an aspirational wish, but writing it down as a committed goal. I wish I could say that success is as easy as simply writing down the goal and poof, it happens. Even though the Law of Attraction says anything we envision will happen, the truth is only 8% of people/teams accomplish their goals because it requires execution. (Yes, you read that right. Only 8%.)

Why don’t the other 92% succeed?
1- They do not clearly EXPRESS the end state that defines the WHY/purpose. They do not think about the details, nor do they attach the personal feeling of accomplishment. Emotion drives action.
2- They do not EXECUTE and follow through to ensure it happens, i.e., putting periodic measurements and check points in place, removing obstacles, overcoming FUD (fears, uncertainty, and doubts) or prioritizing tasks.
3- They forget to ENGAGE others to help them on the journey, they want to do it alone.

Mark did clearly EXPRESS his vision and write it down. It is what he did next that brought it to reality. I sat down with Mark to discuss in detail how he made this happen.

He admitted that clearly expressing what success looked like helped make it real. Mark also shared, “What in the past was something that I would like to have as a by-product of my regular work, this year the goal became something that allowed me to focus and align my regular work towards.” That picture helped him make decisions and prioritize tasks that would drive the results.

As part of the exercise during the course, I had asked the leadership course attendees to look backwards and think about what would have to be delivered to ensure that success, “What logical next steps will you take to make that happen. What FUD or obstacles might get in your way and how can you address them?” Mark wanted to achieve at least 95% of quota. He knew it was important to break it down by quarter and even month, when possible. The numbers were further broken down by account and territories. Measuring those results often, tracking the progress, highlighting deviations, and adjusting as needed helps stay on track.

The true key to success for Mark was his ability to ENGAGE his team. Mark epitomizes the E3 Emotional Qualities. He is vulnerable and deliberate regarding his engagement with his team. He knows that investing in his people improves the interactions with their prospects and clients which then ultimately drives stellar results. He puts his team first and they know he cares.

Mark shared a story about helping advance the career of one team member, which ultimately meant losing a strong team member to another group. Although it was hard, he knew it was the right thing to do. In return, that leader then recommended a replacement for himself (from a client), which then inspired Mark to help the client find their replacement. He commented, “It was a full circle of people invested in each other’s success.” A virtuous cycle. I refer to this as the E3 Endorsement Score. Mark is an E3 Leader that is highly endorsed by his current team, by those who have worked for and with him in the past, as well as his clients.

Mark talked about cultivating a culture of teamwork over the years. This year, as a result of the E3 Leadership Program, he shared that he made a more concerted effort to focus on his E3 Emotional Qualities: authenticity, awareness, courage, curiosity, empathy, empowerment, enablement, integrity, inspiration, and gratitude. This commitment helped account for the ‘no attrition’ achievement. He discussed that each year the team continues to learn and gain confidence to be curious and challenge with WHY questions. They also get better at prioritizing activities to maximize results.

Mark leveraged his ability to retain talent in the hiring process to attract the right talent and perpetuate the team culture. He is brutally honest up front about the team culture, the expectations, and his leadership style. He encourages the candidates to ask the tough questions and his team to be brutally honest so that the decision to join the team is mutual. He doesn’t want to bring anyone onto the team that is not going to excel by being a team player and bringing their full self to the team.

Congratulations, Mark!

Great leaders can be best described as inspirational, authentic, empowering, and courageous, but they are also the leaders that consistently deliver results. E Equals Why has built an E3 Methodology: Express + Engage + Execute to help drive outcomes, along with the E3 Emotional Toolkit to foster nurturing capabilities, which aid leaders to excel in this new, different, hybrid world.

Leadership is about winning the hearts of others to take the action you need them to take. It is about motivating them to take the path less traveled, to overcome their fears, to believe in themselves, to exude MTXE and accomplish things they crave but didn’t believe they could.

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