Consistent Leadership: The Key to Building Team Buy-In

Daily, leaders, like me, are looking to take a team to a level of excellence. Not just good.
To get there, the team needs to be on the same page; we all need to be going in the
same direction, and all agree to the same destination. It is called getting “buy-in!”

If you’re leading and you’re not the owner of the company, you may have inherited a
group of workers you did not hire. Consistent leadership is even more important – it’s
how you earn trust and create a positive and productive culture leading to buy-in bit by
bit.

I have some workers just looking for a paycheck and others that have tremendous
passion for excellence. My job is getting high end results, but I start with getting buy-in
from them by consistently reinforcing the standards and expectations for each key area
and the individuals who lead that area.

After years of leading teams on the ground, I have learned that I need to consistently
invest and believe in my team because each day I am looking for consistent progress.
Unity and alignment give us tremendous momentum in the workday.

To that end, I recently started meeting weekly with key leaders in 30-minute sessions to
talk about work assignment alignment. During that time, we discuss some important
questions: Are we clear on what is expected? Do you have what you need to be
successful? What can I do to help you? In the weekly meeting I set the priorities, the
expectations to move forward.

Here are a few important ways to build buy-in:
-Lead by example. Show commitment to the vision daily. Keep your promises
and model the behavior you expect. Build trust.
-Connect intentionally. Give your key leaders some of your time. Keep a running
list of agenda items for each key leader so you can quickly check off and add
items. My weekly meeting agendas are on a legal pad. I have one legal pad for
each person I meet with.
-Communicate consistently. Repeat the meetings consistently to reinforce your
message. In addition to the weekly 30-minute sit down work alignment meeting, I
do a monthly 1-hour ride around meeting to view and discuss progress on the
grounds.
-Celebrate progress. Recognize small wins that build momentum toward the
larger goal. I try to encourage what I like to see such as naturally pruned shrubs,
good crisp bed lines, and properly spaced plantings. It is not always about
correcting and critiquing; it is also about small celebrations of what meets our
vision and goals. It confirms direction and builds confidence in your leaders.

As Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson once said, “Consistent hard work leads to success.
Greatness will come.” The same is true with leadership – when your team sees and
experiences your consistency they will follow with confidence – greatness will come.

Keep on keeping on,
Jeff