Business Buddhism

It’s easy to give a general direction to your staff member and then be disappointed with the results. “If only my staff would be better, but they just don’t produce up to my expectations,” you might hear a manager say. That’s not an acceptable response.

Sitting down and putting in writing what you expect from a staff-member or supplier takes time and effort. Your staff cannot deliver on a briefing, if there is no briefing.

There are standard things that a brief needs to cover (objectives, resources, constraints, etc.). Crucial though is your soul-searching on what you really want, what you are willing to give and what you are willing to see happen.

The task exists because you want some innovation/change. That means some things that are in place must be torn down and new things need to be built. The task exists because it is not clear what exactly needs to happen – the briefing is not an instruction. To innovate, your staff member needs to get an understanding of the radicalness with which to approach the task and what sacred cows to stay clear of. In most cases there is a bunch of organizational baggage and history attached to what can and cannot be changed.

Those taboos in the organization and in yourself are tough to acknowledge. It takes honest reflection and courage to express them and to commit to what’s allowed to happen.

Delivering that briefing is hard work. That’s what leadership is.