Leadership Wednesday 24 - Cross My Heart, Hope To Die

In a recent episode of Modern Family the Dunphy family competes to see who can abstain from technology like cell phones, computers and video games the longest. To sweeten the competition the parents, Phil and Claire, promise to reward their children if one of them wins; to their oldest daughter Haley they promise a car. Much to the dismay of Phil and Claire, Haley wins the competition and expects to be rewarded with a car. As the episode ends, however, Phil and Claire tell Haley that they didn’t mean what they had said and she wouldn’t be getting a car.

As leaders, when we make a promise, those we lead expect us to follow through on that promise. Our leadership can’t be like the recently concluded elections, full of hollow promises that never go anywhere. People are jaded by politicians because they hear all the promises but never see those promises fulfilled. This promise unfulfillment is almost expected in politics but shouldn’t be present in our leadership.

When we commit to something, when we promise something, we need to follow through on that commitment or promise. If we’re unsure if we can follow through on something, then we shouldn’t commit to or promise it. It’s tempting to promise those we lead the world, to show them that we’re moving forward; but if we can’t follow through on that promise we’ll hurt our credibility and damage the relationship.

When talking about the future or the potential for whatever endeavor we’re on, we should be honest about the potential and hopeful for what’s in store. But we can’t create a false sense of momentum and excitement by promising things we’re not sure we can fulfill. As leaders we need to create a picture for the future we’re trying to create without manipulating those we lead with hollow promises and empty commitments. We need to invite those we lead to help make that future a reality and commit ourselves to them instead of some motivating but ill-conceived promise.