One of the Most Important Things Leaders Must Share

If you are reading Remarkable Results for the first time, please subscribe here to receive each weekly issue.? If you like what you read, please share it with others and invite them to subscribe.

When you think of things leaders must share, you likely think of things like information about the business, vision and goals, strategies, external factors, plans, and feedback. As important as all those things are, there is something else far less talked about but foundational to the understanding of all those other things. It’s context. And the best leaders share context first.

Share Context?

To share context is to let people know more about the situation they are considering. Here’s a familiar non-work example.

You are driving down the road, when you see someone in your rear-view mirror dodging and weaving and driving way faster than you. As they get closer, you see it is a younger man driving with a woman in the passenger seat. They scream past you and continue their fast speed - changing lanes like they are on a NASCAR track.

If you are like me, you shake your head and wonder what they are thinking (and are glad you don’t have them driving around you any longer.) It isn’t hard to make up a story about the situation, and it likely doesn’t bode well for the driver.

But what if…

That young man is trying to get his pregnant wife, who is in labor, to the hospital for their first child?

While you still might not love his driving approach, you would understand it, and think most differently about him and his choices, wouldn’t you?

Context has just entered the building.

There are many times when decisions are made away from the team that make no more sense than our young driver’s behavior does, in absence of context. As a leader, when we can provide context we can:

• Reduce conflict
• Reduce cynicism
• Reduce resistance
• Increase understanding
• Increase commitment

The Leader’s Position

So why don’t leaders share context more frequently and effectively?

There may be plenty of reasons, but there are two that I find most prevalent.

• They don’t understand how hard it can be to clarify and share context.
• They think people see what they see.

The biggest reason it is hard is that leaders don’t even know others don’t see it!

Leaders have information and a perspective about the business and a variety of situations that their team will never have, unless they share it. But because they see it so clearly, they assume others see it too.

This is why I say leaders have a birds-eye view, but their teams often have a worm’s eye view. The same tree looks very different in the context a bird sees from than what a worm sees. When you can help your (very non-wormlike) team members see the view you have, many things they are confused by or concerned about will make more sense.

While this doesn’t mean people will instantly agree with all organizational decisions or even the decisions you make, like looking at the speeding future father, they will start to see things differently, and perhaps more holistically.

Context matters… a lot.

How to Share Context

So how can leaders share context more effectively? Here are five steps to take.

1. Assume they don’t see what you see. Don’t let your understanding be a blind spot.
2. Ask people what they see and are concerned about. As you listen, you will start to notice the differences you might have in perspective, giving you a chance to share a new perspective and context.
3. Share the new context as data, not as an ultimatum. You want to share context so people see something new, but don’t assume that will immediately change their minds.
4. Create a conversation. The context or perspective you are sharing might be very different from what they had seen previously. Give them time to ask questions to understand the new (and perhaps foreign) perspective.
5. Give them time. Give people time to process the new context. Chances are that with some time they may come full circle and support what they initially resisted. But even if they may not agree with the decisions being made, with the new perspective and context, they will better understand the decisions being made.

There are plenty of things leaders need to share with their teams.? But context might be the most important of all.

A version of this article was first posted on our blog

What Do You Think?

Share your thoughts in the comments – How would sharing context change your success in communication and influence?

Join Me Live on Thursday Morning

This Week’s Video