“Honor your commitments with integrity.”
― Les Brown
In “The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork,” John Maxwell writes about the Law of Countability. This law is all about being able to count on each other. One of the things that I love about teaching a subject is that I have to learn it well myself. Read on for the fascinating concept that this brought to me.
If we’re not sure if we can count on each other, it could distract us, slow us down, or shut us down completely. If we can’t count on each other, trust is lost. A few characteristics of teams that don’t trust each other are; They don’t ask for help, they hide their weaknesses, spend inordinate amounts of time managing behaviors or walking on egg shells, and/or jump to conclusions about others intentions.
There are five keys to create trust so we can count on each other.
1. Character–that’s who we are when nobody else is looking. We bring our integrity to our team. Character is an inside job.
2. Competence–we know our jobs well and contribute our strengths to the team.
3. Commitment–we are committed to our team no matter what. We do what we say we will do.
4. Consistency–we don’t allow for gaps in our performance. Team members know what to expect from us.
5. Cohesion–as team players, we get along with members of the team.
Let’s go back to character which is the foundation of effective leadership…and self-leadership. I don’t have a problem showing integrity to others. When I commit to doing something for someone else, it gets done.
Here’s the fascinating concept: There are times when I don’t keep commitments to me. For example, I told myself I was going to Facebook Live daily about my book. I did…for about 3 days. Oh geesh, I couldn’t count on me! If I do not honor the word to myself, then I don’t believe myself. I don’t trust myself. Lack of trust in myself can hold me back AND if I continue to break those commitments to me, I can set up a pattern that gives me permission to not keep my word to myself.
What an awareness! I need improvement here. I may not get it right all the time, but I can change. I know the power of teaching my mind and body self-mastery is immense. I want myself to realize that if I commit personally to something, no matter what, I am going to do it.
When I asked the team that I was teaching that day what was their biggest “take-away,” many of them said it was the concept of self-integrity. They had never thought of it that way.
Neither had I.
Continually learning,
Jan
Jan McDonald
The John Maxwell Team
jan@jan-mcdonald.com
On Facebook https://business.facebook.com/janmariemcdonald/
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