By Al Mills

A couple years ago I had some tearing in my eye that wouldn’t heal and was likely to lead to a detached retina.  My eye doctor alerted a local eye care institute and within a couple days, I was seeing an ophthalmologist.  A quick laser procedure that took about 20 minutes took care of the issue and at a follow up appointment a couple of weeks later, I had the privilege of meeting the big cheese ophthalmologist at the hospital.  I liked him immediately, and as we talked, we realized that each of us had the same propensity to speak our minds and communicate in very direct terms.  We laughed together over some of the instances in which our direct communication style led to trouble for each of us.

I am a big proponent of getting issues on the table and having clear and healthy discussions about difficulties, both relational and professional.  I’ve seen organizations and teams bullied, manipulated, and coerced by poor leaders and managers.  Often, when I ask team members what their response was to poor treatment, they tell me that they really didn’t do or say anything, they just took the mistreatment, accepted it as the way things were, and went on stogging down the frustration and pain that accompanies this type of environment.

The consequences of speaking up in the workplace can be a pretty fearful concept, and while this type of hesitation is understandable, it’s really not good for anybody.  On top of that, we live in a time when the concept of consequences for actions doesn’t seem to be important anymore.  We’ve developed a consequence-free society in which concepts such as restorative justice, and gentle parenting have produced a lack of boundaries, and lack of respect both of which are contributing to anger and hostility.  We see people clearly in the wrong who blame their victim, and are indignant that someone would defend themselves, whether on the public roads, or people that cut in line at the local restaurant.  Great Big Sea, in their 1999 song said it well:

Wouldn’t it be great, 

If no one ever got offended?  Wouldn’t it be great,

To say what’s really on your mind?

I’ve always said, 

All the rules are made for bending.  And if I let my hair down,
Would that be such a crime?

I wanna be consequence free!

While a consequence free world would seem idyllic for some, we all know that our culture and society would devolve into chaos in a matter of minutes.  And that is why this issue becomes so important in our personal and business relationships.

We should absolutely insist on consequences for poor leadership, and some of them occur naturally anyway.  Bad managers and leaders seldom realize the type of organizational success that they desire.  They allow their craving for control or status to override what is best for the organization.  So, an OK bottom line could be a great bottom line if the leader valued, empowered, and developed people.  It’s pretty well established that satisfied and fulfilled people perform at a superior level.

It’s crucial for team members to hold each other accountable too.  When team members are all on-side for the best results, they keep each other sharp, instead of relying solely on the leader for accountability.  Find ways and language to bring out the best in your team mates by reminding them of the team goals, especially when they drop the ball, or don’t perform.  This requires humility and vulnerability, along with a dose of diplomacy.  And leadership sets the environment for peer accountability.

In this case, the consequences will lead to better organizational performance.

Al Mills is the lead consultant and founder of The Advantage Mill, a company dedicated to bringing out the best in the workplace. You can find the website at www.theadvantagemill.com.