Dedicated
The Washington D.C. mall added the WWII Memorial in 2004. This memorial is big, it honors the 16-million who served in the armed forces of the U.S., the more than 400,000 who died, and all who supported the war effort from home. Symbolic of the defining event of the 20th Century, the memorial is a monument to the spirit, sacrifice, and commitment of the American people.
Today, in our Landscape Leader-to-Leader session with the front-line employees, we discussed line number 4 in our Landscape Creed,
We Dedicate Ourselves to Professional Integrity.
My objective, for our 45-minutes together, was to get our front-line staff engaged, thinking, and talking about these 6 words. But why spend valuable time talking and not doing the job? It is simple, grow great people and they will grow great landscapes, work together, and increase output. I was extremely motivated by their input; I am so blessed to get to grow great people at work!
During our discussion, one of the best insights I heard from our team was about defining a professional in the landscape business. Simply getting paid does not make you a professional, they said, it is about the skill level when doing the work. You are a professional when you have high standards for the work being done and you finish the work to those standards. Your work is excellent, and your attitude is courteous – toward fellow workers and customers alike. Yes! Great answers.
I asked, “What does job integrity look like?” One 17-year work veteran chimed in, that you consistently do the work at the same high level of standards every day, and you don’t slack off one day because you don’t feel like doing the work. I think he answered it well. Ultimately, the discussion came back to being trustworthy. You build trust by being dependable, showing respect, being consistent, and being honest, and that is the definition of integrity in any situation.
Overall, the discussion made me more motivated. I wasn’t the only one. A first-day student worker came to me at the end of the day and said, “Thank you for taking the time away from the work to talk about the work. I got a lot out of this Leader-to-Leader meeting.” I was reminded of the impact these discussions make on our people.
King Solomon said it centuries ago, “As iron sharpens iron, so does one person sharpen another.” We grow stronger as a team when we focus on the right things, like core values that people want to understand. When we pour water and sunlight on those seeds of truth, they grow strong. It is about staying approachable, planting seeds and watering thoughts that foster team building and communication.
Just like in WWII, people today want to rally around values they believe in. People are looking for a bigger purpose, a greater vision, and good leaders. As humans we look for a cause to show our spirit, sacrifice, and commitment. As good leaders let’s facilitate that purpose and help our people become dedicated to professional integrity.
Keep growing leaders!
Jeff
