Lashing Down Your Goals With Commitment
Commitment is the social strap that binds your organization together. The essence of the mission and idea, values and vision that you aspire to achieve are all parts of a model shared in the minds of the members of your organization. A clear and appealing common vision will do wonders to inspire tightly committed teams that turn your organization into a living organism in its right.
It is important for leaders to understand the distinctions between the various aspects of commitment that relate to the organization. On the most basic level there is a commitment of the individual to the cause, this is the attribute that leaders look for in candidates for management and leadership positions.
Creating Commitment By Example
As a leader, you will be expected to exhibit a high level of commitment and serve as an example to the members of the team that you lead. Without this commitment by the leadership, it is impossible to accomplish anything but the most basic tasks. Without it, organizations have no competitive advantage over the individual and will even prove to be less productive than the lone sole proprietor, degenerating into petty squabbles and factions.
Commitment is the glue that makes it possible for an organization to achieve results that are beyond what each person could create alone. Truly committed teams pull off success on levels that surprise even the members who take part. It is like a double-sided adhesive strip in that commitment from the organization attracts commitment from the membership.
Commitment works in three different ways to bind the members into a cohesive force. Members of teams must be committed to each other and want their colleagues to succeed; effective teams are extremely supportive of each other; and a belief in the objectives of the team.
Finally, there must be a commitment to the greater good, a true belief in achieving the goals and objectives of the organization. This is the difference between low-performing team and the integrated, congruent organism that is fit to task, which emerges when all members of an organization are fully committed.
Holding The Vision Together
As with the development of common values, there must be a culture that takes root and features the elements, which members need in to be effective in their roles. An organizational culture comes down to the values that are at the core of the mission. By sharing and actively propagating those values, the mission leaders can gain the trust and loyalty that support full commitment.
The ultimate element required for true commitment to the organization is a sense that the member has a place and is valued. There must be respect for the role that the individual plays within the collective. It is the nature of most humans to need to feel needed and valued. Organizations that fulfil that need, and who make it clear what that role is, will often find that members outdo themselves in striving to achieve the goals of the organization.
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