“But then one day you were gone, had no idea how much I cared, now being without you, is all a big mistake, you’re a hard habit to break.” ~Steve Kipner & John Lewis Parker
In 1984, the band Chicago was a leader in the music industry when they released their 17th Album, simply titled, Chicago 17. One of the biggest hits from the album (yes, album) was the popular song, Hard Habit to Break, written by Kipner & Parker.
The song is a love ballad about a man who is ruminating over a failed relationship. He took her for granted and is now wishing he had her back. But as love stories sometimes go…she left. And now that she’s gone, he is heart-broken, and wishing he could go back and do it all over again, only this time he wouldn’t take her for granted.
What is it about us humans that we get so comfortable with thinking people will always be there, no matter how poorly we treat them or how much we take them for granted. That is of course…until they’re not!
What Does This Have to do With Leadership?
Let’s just say, you have a great employee, you love the fact that they do their job, they don’t require a lot of attention, time, and they are achieving extraordinary results!
And then one day, they walk into your office, close the door behind them and say, “Do you have a few minutes” or the infamous, “We need to talk.”
Your gut tightens because you have a sense of what’s coming when they say, “I’m leaving.”
Your brain tells you to stay cool and not overreact because if you handle it right, you’ll might just get them to change their mind and stay, but…but they don’t.
After they leave, you realize you never gave them the attention they needed. You assumed they would always be there. Besides, you were to busy tending to the problem children, yes the employee or salesperson who is a pain in the butt, always has drama, doesn’t produce, makes excuses, etc. Why? Because you believe you’re a great leader and that you can turn them around.
Have you ever thought that you might be spending 80% of your time with the 20% of your employees who are actually creating 80% of your problems?
The Moral(s) of the Story…
Here are a few ideas to make sure you’re focusing your time and energy where it needs to be in order to retain your top talent:
- Stop focusing on the time zapping, resource depleting people who are diluting your leadership effort and causing you to focus on the things that give are a low return on investment (R-O-I). That is not being an effective leader.
- Start leading, guiding, and coaching your more talented people that produce more results and you will both be happier.
- For the next two weeks keep a log of who, what, and where, you are spending your time. Then make the necessary changes to get a higher R-O-I on your time and energy
In Summary
Look, I’m not saying you should ignore the folks who need some development. Just remember that you are not Gandhi, Jesus, or the All Powerful Wizard of Oz. In other words you cannot change water into wine. If someone isn’t working out and you’ve earnestly attempted to coach, train, and mentor them, cut the ties and move on, so you can spend your time where it counts..
Yes, being a leader can be difficult, especially when you have to let someone go. Make sure you don’t get stuck in the rationale that you already have so much time invested in them, or the difficulty of finding someone new, even in this crazy job market where talent seems sparse.
As difficult as it may be to let them go, it will be easier than losing one of your top performers because you didn’t give them what they needed.
Because losing a top performer…well now that would be…a hard habit to break!
