RULE 7: THE LADDER PART ONE
From the First Step: Inspiring Action and Nurturing a Winning Mindset
The 10 Ten-Minute Rules delves into the critical first steps of establishing a strong Leadership Ladder, focusing on how leaders can inspire action, foster trust, and cultivate a vital MINDSET for WINNING TEAMS. The core message is clear: true growth comes from connecting with your team's deepest motivations.
It’s now a well-established principle, thanks to business consultant Simon Sinek, that truly inspiring organizations communicate from the inside out, starting with their 'why'—their purpose and belief—before moving on to the 'how' and 'what.' This emotional connection resonates far more deeply than simply outlining tasks, creating a sense of purpose and belonging that drives lasting loyalty.
Often in our business or leadership journey we experience stunted sales growth. Some call it a “glass ceiling for growth.” My view is that it is the disconnect in our teams that causes this, we could refer to this more accurately as a "glass bottom" in the communication trail. Where the core vision fails to align with the self-interest of all team members. They are figuratively swimming under the glass bottom. The higher the glass bottom is in the rank and file, the harder it is to maintain progress.
Sociologist, Dr. Everett Rogers “Law of Diffusion of Innovations” theory divides a population into five groups based on how quickly they adopt new ideas: For example, innovators and early adopters are excited about new things, so you just need to show them what they are. At the other end of the spectrum, laggards need lots of proof and reassurance before they'll change their ways, if at all. At least 60% of the population fall into majority groups and this is where we need to focus our time to attain momentum in creating a buy-in.
To truly attain trust and emotional investment, we must acknowledge that whenever we interact with our team, individually or in small groups, we’ll need to understand how to navigate their anxieties or resistance to new opportunities, routines or experiences. Remember, 95% of the time we’re operating in the subconscious. We typically set down anchors and routines when we get to work, creating a safe space for regulating our feelings.
In The 10 Ten-Minute Rules we engineer four avatarial concepts of leadership to navigate the shoals and space our teams create.
THE ACTIVE COMMUNICATOR understands how individual team members are feeling and reinforces their self-confidence by empowering them with decision-making and ownership. They have the ability to recognise different ways of communicating, depending on how someone’s feeling.
The ROLE MODEL and SOCIAL INFLUENCER embodies the company’s values and vision, leading by example with empathy, acknowledging mistakes (showing vulnerability), and always promoting long-term goals. Crucially, this leadership style requires being transparent, authentic, and reliable.
The REFLECTIVE MENTOR passes on skills for encouraging introspective self-analysis to challenge sub-conscious thought processes and tackle their inner confirmation or negativity bias.
By fine-tuning these leadership techniques and fostering a culture of trust and support, leaders can effectively establish the foundations for a scalable leadership trail. An improved workflow is established, whereby the central thesis of the strategic plan is now reverberating across many hands, and a cohesive approach will begin to flourish. Where the boardroom intent meets those greeting the customers or delivering on deadline.
