The disengagement divide – why your team aren’t helping to row the boat

“The space between our practiced values (what we are doing, thinking, and feeling) and our aspirational values (what we want to do, think, and feel) is the value gap or disengagement divide.”

Brené Brown

Many people don’t value their jobs because they are not being fulfilled either personally or professionally. They are disengaged because they’re not learning. 

I loved the post from Monte Pederson on LinkedIn:

John Maxwell Company Facilitator and Coach, Perry Holley, said:

“The bottom line from our recent research indicates that, on any given team, about 70% of the people aren’t helping to row the boat”.

That equates to 7 of every 10 team members being disengaged, not knowing how to do their job, or just not contributing. How can we best describe or account for this disengagement divide? These are people who aren’t being actively developed. 

Holley goes on to share that

“as a leader, you can influence the engagement level of people on your team when you invest in developing them each as individuals.” 

When people are involved with development activities, they act on personal experience and aspirations as part of a plan that focuses on their individual development. They are closing their value gap.

So the question must be asked, are you developing your people? And if not, why not?

Developing your people helps with everything from improving day-to-day performance to providing them with new skills needed for personal and career growth. 

Development provides them with a worldview much larger than they could acquire on their own. It gets them excited about their work and its possibilities for their future. 

No one comes to work believing that they’re bad at their job. Here are the two main reasons why; 

  1. No one has ever given them constructive feedback on their performance
  2. No one has bothered to spend time with them on their personal development, working with them and allowing them to understand why they are doing what they’re doing. 

If the boat carrying your team isn’t moving as fast and efficiently as you know it could. Check to see who’s not rowing, and then ask them how their development plan is going.

The answer they share might surprise you.

Image from ATD.org:

I hope this helps shift your mindset on the value of continuous learning.

Andy.

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