As we drove through the streets of Bucharest, the young guide kept telling us of the history of Bucharest and some famous spots of Romania, including Transylvania, the home for Count Dracula. I asked him as to why he became a guide and he told me something that will remain with me for the rest of my life. He said, "I am a guide for over the last 2 years and I am a guide because I love my country Romania."
I have talked to people who have passion for their teams, their jobs, their companies, etc. There are not many who have love for what they are marketing. I was stunned how the love for what he was marketing came through in his words, his tone, his body language and everything that he did.
Emotion ran high in this young man and no money could buy it. I was reminded of the song that the Beatles had sung many years ago "Can't buy me love...". I was also reminded of the cry for Independence (Vande Mataram) in India in the 1900s when Mahatma Gandhi took centre stage. Thousands of people went to jail for the independence of the country. Thousands were moved by Gandhi's call for a peaceful way towards independence. Thousands believed in one objective. It galvanized the whole of India.
A cause and an emotion attached to it can galvanize a team. I have seen this in the past. The cause becomes an objective for the team. The reason for the team to exist. And an emotion attached to it will bring out the passion at work and the reason for coming in to office daily. I was setting up a new division within an organization that I worked with. We were to offer back office services to customers who were reputed global companies. The pressure was on. No one wanted to join our division as it was new and the risks seemed high. I managed to get one manager and a a team under him. The strategy was to bring pride in to the workplace through out-performance. We created a workplace and branded it and showed that there was no room for politics in the division. Only meritocracy prevailed. We rewarded and recognized. We never forgot to say "Please" and "Thank You". We said that this division should be the best place to work in. The branding and the fact that leaders walked the talk worked very well. The people saw the cause - we needed to be the best. It became the best. The division got talked about globally and was showcased as one of the best delivery teams.
What has worked for me has been to set clear objectives, bringing in clarity around these objectives, setting expectations and then motivating the team to achieve the objectives by giving them ample freedom to make choices. If the objectives are centred around a cause that has an emotion attached, nothing like it - it is sheer magic!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment