Turn the Ship Around!

Encourage Ownership: Start by assigning tasks or projects that allow team members to take full ownership. This means they are not just responsible for executing tasks, but also for planning, problem-solving, and making decisions related to their work.

Foster a Speak-Up Culture: Create an environment where every team member feels comfortable sharing ideas, concerns, and feedback. Regularly ask for input and genuinely consider it in decision-making processes.

Provide the 'Why': When assigning tasks or setting goals, always explain the reasoning behind them. Understanding the bigger picture increases engagement and allows team members to make more informed decisions.

Offer Autonomy with Support: Give team members the freedom to approach their work in the way they think is best, but be available to offer guidance and support when needed. This balance encourages innovation while ensuring alignment with overall objectives.

Celebrate Initiative: Recognize and reward team members who take initiative, solve problems, or improve processes. This not only boosts morale but also reinforces the behavior you want to see in your team.

A software development team operates under a traditional management style, with tasks and solutions handed down from the team leader. Shifting to an empowered model, the leader instead outlines the project goals and constraints, allowing the team to collaboratively decide on the best technologies and methodologies to use. This results in a more engaged team and innovative solutions.

In a retail setting, employees are typically told what tasks to do and how to do them. By empowering the team, a store manager might set sales goals and then let employees come up with their own strategies for achieving them, such as creating unique displays or personalized customer service approaches. This leads to a more motivated staff and potentially higher sales.

Start Small: Begin by encouraging your team to share their intentions for smaller, less critical tasks. This helps build confidence and understanding of intent-based leadership without risking major consequences.

Establish Clear Goals and Boundaries: Make sure everyone on the team knows what the overall objectives are and what limits they should operate within. This clarity allows team members to make informed decisions about their intentions.

Promote a Culture of Trust: Trust your team members to make decisions that align with the team's goals. This trust is crucial for intent-based leadership to work. Show appreciation for initiative and provide constructive feedback when necessary.

Encourage Reflection and Feedback: After actions are taken based on intent, encourage team members to reflect on the outcomes and seek feedback. This process helps refine decision-making skills and reinforces the learning of boundaries and goals.

In a software development team, instead of asking for permission to refactor a piece of code, a developer states their intention to do so, explaining how it aligns with the goal of improving code quality and reducing future maintenance time.

In a marketing department, rather than seeking approval for every social media post, a team member shares their intent to launch a series of posts aligned with an upcoming product release, ensuring their actions support the broader marketing strategy.

Create a Safe Space for Open Dialogue: Encourage your team to share their thoughts, mistakes, and lessons learned without fear of retribution. This can be done through regular team meetings or feedback sessions dedicated to discussing what went well and what didn't.

Implement a 'No-Blame' Policy: Make it clear that the focus is on the problem, not the person. When mistakes happen, use them as learning opportunities rather than moments to point fingers. This helps in creating a culture where people are not afraid to take risks or admit errors.

Celebrate Learning and Growth: Recognize and reward not just successes but also the valuable lessons learned from failures. This could be through shout-outs in team meetings, learning-focused awards, or simply acknowledging someone's effort to learn from a mistake.

Encourage Cross-Training and Skill Sharing: Set up opportunities for team members to learn from each other. This could be through formal training sessions, mentorship programs, or informal skill-sharing meetups. It helps in building a versatile and adaptable team.

A software development team conducts a bi-weekly 'retrospective' meeting where they discuss what went well and what didn't in the past sprint. They focus on understanding the root causes of any issues and brainstorming ways to improve, rather than blaming individuals.

A customer service department introduces a monthly 'Learning Lunch' where team members share stories of challenging customer interactions they've had, discuss how they handled them, what they learned, and how they could improve in the future. This practice encourages a culture of continuous learning and improvement.

Start Your Day with Intent: Begin each day by writing down at least one thing you intend to accomplish. This sets a clear goal and fosters a sense of ownership from the moment your day starts.

Implement 'I Intend To...' in Meetings: Encourage the use of 'I intend to...' statements in team meetings or discussions. This not only clarifies action plans but also encourages team members to take responsibility for their contributions.

Reflect on Outcomes: At the end of the day or after completing tasks, reflect on the outcomes of your intentions. Ask yourself, 'Did the action meet my intention? What could I do differently next time?' This reflection reinforces the habit of thinking through actions and their impacts.

Share Your Intentions with a Peer or Supervisor: Sharing your intentions with someone else can add an extra layer of commitment and accountability. It also opens up opportunities for feedback and support.

In a team meeting, instead of saying 'We should update our client outreach strategy,' a team member says, 'I intend to draft a new client outreach strategy by the end of this week, focusing on personalized communication.'

Before starting her workday, Sarah writes in her planner, 'I intend to complete the project proposal by 3 PM today.' She shares this intention with her colleague, who offers to review the proposal before submission.

Empower Your Team: Start by giving your team members more autonomy in their roles. Encourage them to make decisions that they are closest to, rather than waiting for approval from higher-ups. This could be as simple as allowing a customer service representative to issue refunds up to a certain amount without needing managerial approval.

Implement a Feedback Loop: Create mechanisms for feedback on the decisions made. This could involve regular meetings where team members can discuss the outcomes of their decisions and learn from each other. It's crucial that this environment is non-punitive and focuses on growth and learning.

Train and Trust: Invest in training your team members to ensure they have the knowledge needed to make informed decisions. Then, trust them to make these decisions. This might mean stepping back and resisting the urge to micromanage, which can be challenging but is essential for decentralization to work.

Clarify Decision-Making Boundaries: Clearly define which decisions can be made independently by team members and which should be escalated. This clarity will help prevent any confusion and ensure that critical decisions are still made with the appropriate level of oversight.

In a software development team, instead of having the team leader assign tasks to each developer, the team could hold a brief meeting where tasks are presented and developers pick the tasks they want to work on based on their expertise and interest. This approach leverages the developers' knowledge and fosters a sense of ownership over their work.

A retail store could empower its floor managers to make on-the-spot decisions regarding customer complaints and returns, within a predefined guideline. For instance, if a customer wants to return an item without a receipt, the floor manager can decide to accept the return based on the condition of the item and the customer's history, without needing to consult higher management.