Small actions can have great symbolic importance when done by the organization’s top manager.
There's nothing more powerful and important in management than to see the top manager living what the core values of the company state.
And within those core values, there are practical steps and commitments that are expected to be performed by everyone in the company.
Mary Kay had made the commitment to her people that she would personally meet with every new employee within 30 days of their being hired.
Did Mary Kay live out her commitment? Yes she did; even when it cost her dearly.
One time she has planned a new employee orientation session that she had committed herself to a long time before it was to happen. In the meantime, she had received an invitation from the White House to come to a function.
Mary Kay's response? She turned down the White House invitation.
That's the type of action that is not only symbolic, which it was, but it becomes the stuff that company legends are made of. Long past her death we're still talking about the time she turned down a White House invitation because of her commitment to her people.
Don't think that this didn't spread among her people across the company and her contractors. These types of actions will speak more and have more impact than any words and motivational speeches could ever accomplish. Actions are sybolic for good or bad in a company. We need to make sure we're aware of the intense eyes that are always on us; whether we see them or not.
If we take these kinds of actions that we know are being watched, it will be far more important than anything else you can do for your company or workers.
The bottom line is our people will do as they see us do, not what they hear us say. They instinctively know that it's your actions that you really believe in, and not your words. They will do what we do far beyond any other method of teaching or motivation.
Other Mary Kay Resources:
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