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As the years go by, I find it easier to lose focus myself, so writing out goals and plans is an extremely helpful and simple solution. We frequently hear about the results when sportsmen such as Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant get on the same page—championships are the result. We know that Coach Phil Jackson may have to sketch out 20 play diagrams during one game to be sure that players on the court dribble and shoot with one vision. But we who toil away in a small business with fewer than 20 employees often rely only on verbalizing what needs to be done to reach something called success. I even believe there is a role for the same-page-principle in our domestic lives. Recently, I read a fascinating article about two women from Chicago who credited writing down a family goal plan with helping save their badly damaged marriages.
But how do you get even a small group of people to create, understand and operate in a common culture? At Nelson Davis Productions, the core group of people who put their hands and brains into “Making It!” includes all races, genders and an age range spanning over three decades. So much about them is different that everybody searches for common ground, and we are stronger for doing that. There is a mission that guides us and a high degree of inclusiveness in our decision making. Everyone gets to participate in setting their personal goals that feed into the company goals. The office culture is built on respect for each other and an understanding of who we really work for, clients and viewers. The whipped cream on top is responsibility and hopefully satisfaction from work well done.
I think that one aspect of the mighty flap over illegal immigrants is really rooted in missing the “same page” theory. During much of our century of glory (20th), America was a country of many cultures wrapped around common aspirations and goals. Presidents and industrialists wasted no opportunity to paint a picture of the American Dream and how we could all taste and embrace it. A dangerous turn took place when millions of people began showing up looking for the opportunities in our great land while ignoring the responsibilities. When we think of truly great business leaders or politicians, they arrive at that place by uniting people around shared aspirations and visions. During World War II, as documentarian Ken Burns reminded us, all Americans shared the pain and the pride.
When was the last time you heard a U.S. President articulate true national goals laced with an exciting vision? The present White House seems to have trouble with complete sentences, not to mention galvanizing ideas. Presidents Lyndon Johnson’s “great society” and Ronald Regan’s “morning in America” were nice visions, but they didn’t have the necessary details. I liked John Kennedy’s “ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country” and “we will land a man on the moon and return him safely to earth by the end of the decade.” Since that exciting time, I’ve spoken with a retired aerospace engineer who told me he sat in his office and cried, not with joy, but because the challenge was terrifyingly large. However, that Kennedy vision of space exploration had a deadline and it put dreamy school children and slide-rule carrying engineers on the same page.
What do you do in your business to foster understanding common goals? What do you think we need from our leaders to inspire Americans to work on shared goals? Finally, is there anyone who you think has that ability? Let us know your thoughts.
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