One of the key aspects of being a good leader is determining the road forward and figuring out how to stay on that road despite the sometimes unfavorable conditions.
We often meet individuals who turn off the road to success for what appears to be an immediate gain without considering how this short-term diversion will impact their long-term goal. Each of these distractions puts them on the road to nowhere.
We’ve been working with a lot of organizations of late that have realized that they’ve been pouring money and time into an unrealistic future that has no foundational support. There are two things to consider when you plan for the future—the goals you want to achieve and the obstacles that are going to keep you from achieving those goals.
If you want to get to NY and you live in LA it’s not prudent to put aside enough gas money to get to St. Louis because, “Hey, it’s half the cost!”
This is a road to nowhere. (Nothing against Stephanie’s hometown of St. Louis!)
If you want to get to NY you have to budget for NY otherwise you’ll run out of gas and probably have to pay even more at a later date.
If you want to have an A-Team, you can’t pay third string wages. If you want an independent workforce, you can’t micro-manage them nor can you fail to manage them at all. Both take you on a road to nowhere.
Your job as a leader (or as a parent) is choosing the road that will lead to the greatest success. Being a good leader means you’ll be influenced by data that’s pertinent to the journey but you won’t succumb to quick gratification hits that come at the cost of your ultimate goals.
Success isn’t just defined by money—success is about building a solid foundation, creating powerful, lasting relationships, raising thoughtful independent children, and building an organization that can support all its members in leading healthy and productive lives.
There are no shortcuts. It takes guts and patience and sometimes it requires a good thought partner to help you stay clear about the road to success so that you can avoid the road to nowhere.
Tell us how you plan to stay on track. You can do this, we know you can!
Hugs,
Your Coaches and Allies at Carpenter Smith Consulting
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2 comments
Wow, how right you are. I have been down many a wrong road in my career. A “short” stint to cover the bills, becomes 3 years going nowhere.
Thanks for sharing Andre. Isn’t it amazing how quickly we can go off course?