Behaviours are bulldust

How would you react to this decree from the government:

These are the five ways we expect every citizen to behave.  All people observed not behaving in this way will be sanctioned, at first via discussions, then via bad ratings on the official record, and ultimately removal from the community.  The five behaviours can be found on government issue posters, coffee cups and lanyards which are freely available at your local post office.  You will be rated once per year on your adherence to these behaviours.

Does this sound like a community you want to be a part of?  Does it sound like a community where people are trusted to be adults and serve the best interests of each other?

You get the point.  And it’s full on.   It’s essentially an act of HR and Management sedition to suggest that all of this behaviour stuff might be bulldust.

But it is.

In the words of a better person than me: “Far out”

Well, actually, there’s a situation where behaviours are not bulldust.  If a group of people get together to discuss and agree behaviours for themselves, then fine.  What’s bulldust is the decreeing part.  The mandating.  The ‘we know what behaviours are best for you‘ part.  This is the bit that treats grown adults like they are in child care….which is eventually going to create child care behaviour, which is dependence and rebellion all at once.

And we’re that used to it, we actually expect it when we go to work!  That people greater than us will tell us how to behave!

I know what you’re thinking….we can’t have a free-for-all.  Some behaviours aren’t acceptable.  And to this I say…..YES.  In fact, I say this….there is only one behaviour which is not acceptable: treating people disrespectfully.

That’s it!  Every negative behaviour not related to results is derivative of this.  (Even failure to deliver is derivative of this, because to not deliver what was promised is simply disrespectful.)

Where we go wrong is that we treat behaviours as ‘positive’ things.  As things people should be doing.  When what they should be doing is keeping their commitments to deliver, while being themselves.

So what do we do?  Start seeing it like this:

Treating people with respect is a limit of the work.  

A limit of the work.  A boundary.  The fence beyond which is a no-go zone.  Just like the budget is a limit of the work, and the law, and policies, and physical reality….they are all limits that must be kept within when delivering the results promised.   The behavioural limit of the work is ‘treat people with respect’.  As long as you do that, you’re free to deliver your results in your own unique way.

• Do something that blows up another department while delivering your results?  Disrespectful.
• Use intimidation to move your project up the list?  Disrespectful.
• Don’t collaborate with other areas who you know deserve to have input into your project?  Disrespectful.

All of the above see results delivered.  But they break the limit of the work.  Which breaks the promise made to accept salary, which is ‘deliver results within limits’.

It’s all you need.  And it makes life a lot easier.

What do you encourage with this approach?  It lays a foundation for freedom, creativity, innovation….and community.  Which is what we’re all looking for.

This isn’t easy….decades of well-meaning HR work and leadership theory tells you that leaders need to define values and behaviours.  But we have to ask….is this working?

Time for a new coffee cup.