I remember the first time I went shopping for baby cribs. I couldn’t lower the side rail on any of them. Now, to many people this is a pretty simple task. Yet, try as I might, I couldn’t do it. The salesperson would gently instruct me, “pull up on the rail while you push the metal latch with your foot.” No luck. I didn’t have the timing, the finesse, or perhaps the motor skills to make this happen. My child was destine to remain in his crib until he could successfully scale the side and jump to freedom.
Then something remarkable happened. No, I didn’t undertake occupational therapy to improve my coordination. I didn’t magically turn my ten thumbs and two left feet into normal appendages. It was much more simple. I put the crib together.
It was at that point that I saw the latch. I got a feel for what it looked like, how the bar fit into it, and more importantly, the path the bar needed to take in order to be released. It was like magic. On my first try with the newly assembled crib, I was able to lower the rail!
So, what happened? Why was I able to successfully execute the instructions that provided little guidance just weeks before? I had context. I now understood WHAT I was trying to accomplish. I knew what success looked like and what was required to be successful. At that point, the task became second nature. I hardly gave it a thought.
How often do you provide your people with context? Our world is full of to-do lists, process and “how-to” training, and directives. Yet, we don’t always get the response we need. People not only need to understand the bigger picture, they desire it.
Your people want to create value and contribute. The problem is that we often forget to tell them what that looks like. Instead, in the name of efficiency or speed, we just tell them what to do.
Smart, motivated people are incredibly resilient and very creative. Let them understand what they should achieve and most will find a way to achieve it. If you just bark out orders, no matter how simple and clear, they will just keep tugging away never knowing why nothing is happening.
