Are You Easy To Follow?
Are You Easy To Follow?
I just came from my daughter’s Spanish Immersion school dance festival where chaos reigned supreme. Don’t get me wrong, the program was very good but it was hampered by the same things that have blocked it for six years.
Now think about it- the outcome is to have Parents come and enjoy watching their kids dance some Mexican dances and to have the kids have fun doing it.
So besides teaching the kids the dances you want to think about how to make it easy on the parents. This would include:
1. Signs in the gym telling parents which side of the gym their child’s class would be facing. (They all dance in the gym where there are bleachers on both sides). I watch parents frantically wondering if they are on the right side and then scrambling over each other to climb down once they realize their child will be facing the other way.
2. Costumes decided on 3 weeks in advance with notification to the parents ahead of time. Our costumes went from white shirt and floral skirt one week in advance to black shirt and black pants 2 days in advance.
3. Clear signs in the hallway directing parents to the class rooms where they had to drop their children off 30 minutes before the program was to begin. The program was held at the high school so none of the parents were familiar with where the find room 213 or 237. We all spent time wandering all over the school.
4. Starting on time. We had to have our child their at 6:10 so they could start at 6:30 pm but it was 6:50 before they started. The festival then went to 8:45 pm. That is a long time for second, fourth and six graders to sit on a gym floor and watch dances without getting bored.
Because the parents didn’t know any of the above, they passed their anxiety to their children which makes the child enjoy it less.
So how does this apply to you as a strategic leader?
TAKE ACTION: Ask yourself if you make things EASY on the recipient? Do you make it so simple that they can’t help but be successful? Or do you do like the school and leave a lot of confusion for all?
Take the time to think, not of how to share information but how the recipient needs to use it so their SOLE focus can be on the outcome you desire.
Impression Management Professionals is a strategic leadership training company located in Minneapolis, MN. Grow how you think, listen and speak and attend one of our Outcome Focus Seminars on presentation skills, negotiation skills or strategic leadership. 952-921-9421