Dear John,

Disruption is here to stay - and it is going to come more frequently and with more intensity. The pandemic accelerated change by 10 years, and change is picking up pace.

Pray for rain.

Tom Watson, the great golfing champion, won five British Opens. He was asked why he did so well in the British Open and his response was simple: bad weather. He went on to explain that most golfers don’t like bad weather, but he loves bad weather. Why? Because it reduces his competition by over 95%! He knows when the bad weather comes he doesn’t have to beat the entire field, only the few who are playing well and who also like bad weather.

If you are going to be a successful leader you must learn now how to create the mindset of embracing disruption. Disruption is here to stay. Disruption is your friend, and thriving in disruption attracts and keeps top performers on your team.

Understand the friction between autonomy and authority.

The reality of uncertainty and the certainty of mortality caused by the pandemic has created a huge shift in values. The vast majority of people no longer accept that everything revolves around work. Family, friends, faith, and both mental and physical health are taking priority in the decision-making process. People want autonomy to choose what they do, where they work, when they work, and how they work. Top down, command and control, old school, output-driven, results-only leadership is dead.

The T-Rex leader (short arms symbolizing control and sharp teeth representing fear) is going extinct. The Coach Leader is the leader of the future and thrives in disruption. Unlike the T-Rex who uses control, Coach Leaders develop top performers and build teams with relationship-based accountability.

Coach Leaders build strong relationships with each team member by asking great questions and discovering their dreams, goals, and aspirations and then offering to help them reach their dreams, goals, and aspirations. Coach Leaders then co-create the goals and growth-focused action plan unique to each team member by asking the team member what they need to do to develop themselves to become more successful in their job role. Once the team member has created their own goals with guidance from the Coach Leader, the Coach Leader simply asks: “Can I hold you accountable to your goals?” This is a powerful way to give the team member what they want - autonomy and ownership of their future!

Quality of Life = Quality of Work

Coach Leaders know that in times of disruption their team members are facing more anxiety, worry, and fear than ever before. Burnout and stress are performance killers. People who are in good physical shape, get plenty of rest, have great relationships, and who take time to refuel and reflect in their personal lives are more creative and make better decisions in their professional lives. Coach Leaders make quality of life a priority with everyone on their team, and with themselves.

Love your people.

The question is HOW? Loving your people and showing empathy is not a thought or a desire, it is an action. Coach Leaders walk their talk by living out the virtues that demonstrate love and show empathy. Coach Leaders know that how you run a meeting, handle conflict, and lead a hybrid work team can either intentionally demonstrate love or ignore what every person needs. If it is true that people don’t quit jobs, they quit bosses, then perhaps The Great Resignation is simply people leaving T-Rex leaders and seeking autonomy and a Coach Leader that will help them achieve their dreams.

The #1 Problem. The #1 Skill.

The #1 problem facing business today is attracting, developing, and keeping top performers. The game has changed and top performers now have the leverage and can work for anyone in the world from anywhere in the world. Top performers deliver outcomes and they choose to work for companies that recognize this and empower their Coach Leaders to equip, support, and develop top performers.

In order to do this successfully, Coach Leaders constantly develop in themselves the #1 Skill they need to grow top performers: Intentional goals and growth-focused coaching conversations done weekly. Coach Leaders know that top performers thrive when held accountable to their goals through an intentional coaching process.

As a leader, here are some questions for you to ponder:

Do you relish disruption and believe it creates more opportunity for you to serve your team members and your customers?

Are you walking out the virtues that build relationships based on trust and do you demonstrate love and empathy to your team?

Are you having intentional weekly goals and growth-focused coaching conversations with each of your team members?

Would 2022 be an incredible year if you were able to answer the previous three questions with YES at the end of every week in 2022?

Choose To Win! You are a Coach Leader!

Tom

___

Tom Ziglar is the CEO of the Zig Ziglar Corporation and the author of 10 Leadership Virtues For Disruptive Times - Coaching Your Team Through Immense Change and Challenge. Released in December of 2021, this book reflects 18 months of research detailing the changes in business and the leadership needed to thrive in disruption. You can find the book on Amazon or www.ziglar.com