Foundational Leadership Beliefs With Our Friend Tim
Congratulations to Eagan Building Group on receiving the well-deserved Business of the Year award at the recent Washington Area Chamber of Commerce Banquet. Since owner Tim Eagan has been a valued friend of The Quality Coach® for more than a decade, I asked Tim to share his most important foundational leadership beliefs with our TQC readers. Tim shared the following:
1. Prioritize one-on-one meetings with the people you lead. These should happen quarterly and should never be labelled as an “employee review.” Do not underestimate how powerful this conversation can be. It builds trust, provides a safe space for ideas to be shared, and allows for the exchange of genuine feedback (feedback that you give AND get.)
Simply ask the question “What can I do to help you be more successful?” The value of those answers may shock you – they may delight you. Then provide the resources your people tell you they need. The ROI on providing the requested resources will easily justify any time or money spent.
2. Accountability isn’t a dirty word. It is a tool that aligns expectations and eliminates the likelihood of a project going off the rails. And don’t forget that accountability is a two way street. Your employees should be able to expect the same from you as you do of them.
3. Never underestimate the power of showing genuine appreciation. Employees don’t just want good pay and benefits. They want to know they are appreciated and that their work results in a positive impact. An average person only gets 40-45 working years. Ask yourself why they should want to spend that valuable time working with you. They can get paid anywhere. Genuine appreciation is a valuable and rare form of compensation.
4. Mistakes in business are generally not mistakes at all. They are almost always the result of flaws in the systems and established processes. The more your employees know that they will not be punished or terminated when something goes wrong, the more they will contribute to the process of identifying and eliminating flaws.
5. Role and process clarity are two of the most undervalued concepts in leadership. Too often leaders assume team members can read their minds on what an outcome should be and inevitably it leads to failure. Leaders should look no further than the mirror when trying to figure out who is responsible for a significant number of mistakes occurring.
6. Hire the person – not the resume. I’ve had very few experiences where hiring someone based solely on their experience has worked out. Almost all of my current team members came from completely unrelated industries. But their attitude, personality, and work ethic fit like a glove. We have a 100% success and retention rate when we hire for the right reasons.
7. Toxicity is a poison that spreads quickly and will cause you to lose your good employees if you don’t act quickly enough.
We are grateful to Tim for sharing his foundational principles. And it is quite obvious that he appreciates his team. What I wondered – and had to ask (without Tim knowing) is, “What do Tim’s team members think of him as a leader?” I didn’t get to touch base with all – but I got a good idea from several. They described Tim as Driven – Empowering – Personable – Visionary – Encouraging! And I would like to add the word, “Humble.” To me, having humility means remaining teachable, always learning – or just the opposite of a know-it-all! Tim joined his team in participating in TQC’s Leadership Development 1.0 Series. Tim also participates in and contributes to TQC’s VIBE - Visionary, Innovators, & Business Executives.
Congratulations, Tim, to you and Team EBG! We appreciate you and your commitment to your team and to our community.
If you’re interested in strengthening your leadership beliefs and gaining practical strategies to bring them to life, we invite you to explore our upcoming Leadership Development 1.0 series here!