“Are you serious? That is the question I ask teams after they have presented their plans. Their first reaction is: “Of course.” That is great - but we must then focus on the implications of translating their aims into action. After clarifying the pluses and minuses, the team is asked: “On a scale 0—10, rate to what extent are you are really serious?” Those that answer 8+ are more likely to reach their goals.

Imagine you are a leader. Your team has clarified its specific goals and strategies. Before pushing the button, however, ensure that people understand the implications. Here are three suggestions for taking this step.

1) You can clarify the pluses and minuses involved in reaching the goals.

Invite your team to tackle the exercise called Are we really serious? Looking at what is involved in reaching the goals, ask them to clarify the pluses and minuses for different stakeholders. They can focus on the implications for the company, customers, colleagues/ employees and any other groups. There will be both upsides and downsides.

“The biggest minus for some managers was making tough decisions about people who did not fit the future culture,” said one leader. “The strategy depended on employing people who took responsibility. This meant: a) We must encouraging people who demonstrated this quality; b) We must give clear messages to those who didn’t. Some managers found this difficult - but it was necessary if we were to reach our goals.”

2) You can ask the team: “Are we really serious?”

Invite the team to spend time reflecting on the points they have written. Peak performers consider the implications of reaching their goals. They then do three things. First, they consider how to build on the pluses. Second, they consider how to minimise the minuses. Third, they make a decision. Do they accept the whole package? Do they really want to go for the goals? If the answer is ‘Yes,’ they move into action and get an early success. Invite your team to take similar steps. In your own way, say something like:

“Are we really serious? Bearing in mind the pluses and minuses involved in reaching the goals, rate the extent to which you believe we are serious. Do this on a scale 0 - 10. Please be completely honest.”

Consider the final scores and discuss these with the team. If the ratings are 8+ - and remain so after exploring any outstanding key issues - your team is probably committed. If the ratings are less, you have two options: a) You can again consider how to build on the pluses and minimise the minuses; b) You can consider revisiting the original goals. Whichever route you take, make sure the final ‘seriousness rating’ is at least 8+. This is necessary to stand a fighting chance of success.

3) You can show you are serious by doing what is necessary to achieve success.

Now move into action. There are several steps you can take to show people you are serious. Some of these you will have already covered, but they include:

“The ‘zero tolerance’ part hit home for me,” said one leader. “Previously I thought I was serious. But now I realise this was 7/10 - and I hoped the rest would fall into place. Thankfully, many times the teams were successful - otherwise I wouldn’t be where I am today. Looking back, however, the times we failed were when we didn’t think through the implications.”

Great teams are ‘committed to the commitment’. This only happens, however, if they dare to consider the all the consequences. Providing your team has gone through this process - and score 8+ on the seriousness scale - you stand a good chance of success.

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