Got a great stump speech?
Awesome.
Now, here’s what you can expect when you chart a clear direction for your organization.
Twenty percent ("Top 20") of the people will just instinctively follow you. Some of this group will share your passion and resonate with your vision. Others are just happy to have clear direction. These people are in search of a leader and are happy to follow when they see one. It is fun to hang out with them. They are positive, engaged, and encouraging. They make you feel good about what you are doing.
But you must avoid spending too much time with this group. They are already on board. They just need a little encouragement from time to time to keep them engaged. You need to put the majority of your energy elsewhere.
Twenty percent ("Bottom 20") have no intention of following you anywhere. Why? Because you are too young to know anything. You are too old to know anything. You are not charismatic enough and everyone knows you have to be charismatic to be a good leader. You are very charismatic and everyone knows charismatic leaders are shallow thinkers. They have a better idea, or they don’t have a better idea, but they are positive your idea is terrible.
It really doesn’t matter and their rationale is rarely logical. They are just not going to go with you! This group is a huge time suck. Get over it and don’t waste your energy here.
Sixty percent ("Middle 60") need to be convinced that you know what you are doing. They aren’t being negative, they just don’t intuitively resonate with your vision. They need you to make it concrete, to show them why it is good, to clarify their role and the benefits they will gain by following you.
With this group, once is not enough. They are going through a learning process and you are the teacher. You have to find the learning style that works best for them and repeat, repeat, repeat. Even after they buy in, it takes a lot of work to keep the momentum up and ensure they stay on board. They are worth the time and effort. Their eventual buy-in means the difference between success and failure for the organization you lead.
Conclusion
Influence is the essential leadership skill we need to succeed in any environment: work, community, home – it doesn’t matter – we need to be able to influence others. Most people spend the majority of their time on the 20% that are already sold (Top 20) because it feels good and the 20% that will never be sold because they seem like the biggest challenge and make the most noise (Bottom 20).
The 60% in the middle is where the big opportunity for influence lies. That group (Middle 60) is where your energy should go. The Bottom 20 should be neglected, marginalized and isolated so as not to pollute the top two groups. Pandering to the bottom 20 infuriates and frustrates the Top 20, and confuses the Middle 60. Thank them for their input and move on (Matthew 10:14).