Are your oars in the water?
I recall a chat I had with a good friend who had recently made a pretty significant career change, and when I asked how things were going, he replied, “Really well. I am really happy to again be working with a group of people who all have their oars in the water.”
Well that got me to thinking: do you and your team have all your oars in the water? What does that mean for fast-growth companies like those we help in our coaching practice?
When you think about a group of rowers in a boat, what do you see? You see a synchronized, high precision team all with the same goal or destination at top of mind. They are “executing” a very well thought out plan. And who is that other person in the boat that isn’t rowing but rather is doing other mission critical tasks. That is the Coxswain. That person, according to Wikipedia, is commander of the boat, provides motivation and inspiration to the team during the journey, gives feedback on performance and provides coaching and makes tactical decisions. In essence, the leader. To further the point, this group of rowers didn’t just jump in a boat one day and were instantly a highly collaborative high performing team. It took practice, lot’s of practice, personal commitment, good communication and personal commitment. All the same things that high performing teams need to be winners.
Fast growth companies in order to be successful need to do the exact same thing as a boat full of rowers. They need to have a destination (Goal) and they need to have a well thought out plan on how to achieve that goal. They need to execute with a high degree of precision and be synchronized (Alignment) in that plan. And just like the rowers have a Coxswain, high growth companies need to have an inspirational leader who is providing motivation, inspiration, giving feedback and making tactical decisions.
Do you have a destination in mind? If so, do you have a highly executable plan to achieve that goal or reach that destination? Do you have the right players on your team. And, do you have a structured practice plan with checklists and milestones? If not consider hiring a business growth coach to help you chart your course to that destination.