Consistency

     We often hear how critical consistency is in the sports arena. Majority of coaches will choose a player that is consistent versus the player that may have a spike in performance or have the potential to do something good. Why is that? For starters, players who are prone to have a spike of good performance have an equal chance of having a spike of poor performance. So why does this matter in business and more specifically in leadership?
     Employees respect leaders who are fair. This does not mean leaders who always give their employees what they want or always agree with their ideas. But it definitely means that employees want a boss who will administer a decision or a policy the same way with each employee every time. Employees want their leaders to be consistent.
     When a leader asks an employee to do something that may be translated as policy but that employee does not see the policy administered to other employees—flags of inconsistency arise. When certain employees have the opportunity to take a longer lunch, arrive to work later, leave earlier, get exemptions to policies—fairness is questioned. When this begins to happen within a team, animosity begins to form, gossip begins to spread, negative feelings are fed, and ultimately, morale plummets.
     On the other hand, when a leader is consistent across the board—that leader achieves respect from his team. The employees know what to expect and there are never any surprises. This makes it easier for them to adapt to whatever polices may be created. The team understands that new policies and decisions are made with the interest to improve operations and not because of likes and dislikes for certain employees. There may always be disagreements, but there will never be unfairness. And with any team, a fair, consistent leader will always be respected. John Maxwell in his book titled The 5 Levels of Leadership states, “People follow others they respect, people who have credibility.” Unless you are consistent—you will struggle to be credible and you will lack influence, this will result in poor performance of your department, division, or organization.
     So whenever you are faced with administering a decision or a policy, always consider how you communicate the policy to ensure the utmost consistency. It is important to always understand the impact each and every decision will have not only on the employee you may be meeting with, but with all of your employees. Great leaders have the ability to view the big picture and understand potential impacts of every policy and/or decision they make.