— To follow is a bullet of wisdom on leadership. It comes from Tom’s rifle, named Shot, who has seen it all. You’ll get the drift by clicking Blog in the menu at www.tomnewhouse.com. —
DO RULES RULE? So, let’s suppose you hang a list of rules on my gun rack. You know, safety rules, standard operating procedures, post-action protocols, principles of performance. Behavior is about to shape up and show excellence. Right? You laugh.
Leaders, don’t preach it unless you live it. You gotta walk the talk. Everyone looks around to see if the rule is really followed. That makes it a real rule. Actually, I was wrong: People don’t look around, as much as they look up. The leader has to follow the rule or it doesn’t affect behavior. Oh, it might exist, but it lacks impact.