Discipline and Consistency as a Key HR Competency

Although I write about fundamentals often, I felt it was necessary to revisit the topic as we get closer to the start of the year. We’ll soon be talking about setting goals for 2025 and for many, that means adding more. But for most, we should likely be thinking about doing less but perfecting what we are already doing to get the most out of our efforts.

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Growing up as a dancer, I came to appreciate the beauty of fundamentals and perfecting the little things.? Advanced dancers start every practice with the same basic moves and techniques as beginners, infants, and toddlers. Day after day, we would continuously refine and dissect every small movement.?

The importance of the fundamentals?was reinforced when I started teaching ballet to small children. I knew I was setting their foundation for their entire dance career through the same repetition?I experienced. A big and important job I took seriously!?

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Years later, after seeing the Rockettes perform, I recognized that the only way they could deliver a flawless routine was to come together with basic movement that could be executed every time perfectly. For them, and other?top?dance groups, it’s the clean, synchronized movements that allow them to deliver a magical performance.

Certainly, when performing a solo or in small groups, dancers will showcase their talent by performing tricks that only few can execute after hours and years of practice. But these tricks are always rooted in a deep understanding and application of the basics.?

So how does this relate to HR? We must practice the basics daily and make sure our execution of them is flawless. We may complete a compliance document hundreds of times during the year, or conduct hundreds of interviews over our career, but we must have a firm grasp on the steps, sequence, and process so it is perfect every time. While we can add in some personality and customization in some of these cases (e.g. interviews, not compliance documents), we still need to follow a core framework consistently.?

Only after we can establish a consistent and perfectly flawless pattern of execution in these areas can we start to think about more interesting strategic initiatives to take on. Any creative approaches will be rooted in a deep understanding of the basics. For example, by applying basic candidate interview or investigation interview techniques to stay interviews or succession planning information gathering, we can apply our understanding of human psychology and sequencing of questions to get people to open up, share their true selves, and provide layered answers to our questions.?

Whether in dance or HR, it takes discipline to execute daily repetitive routines without taking shortcuts, trying to unnecessarily reinvent the wheel, or give up altogether.?Only the grittiest people, with solid resolve and focus, are cut out for this.?

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How would you rate yourself on the discipline it takes to ensure perfect, frequent, and consistent execution of the basics? And how would you rate yourself on your mindful application of those basics as you take on bigger and broader challenges to improve how you help the organization achieve its goals through impactful people programs and practices??