Agreement & Permission

When a leader has provided enough clarity of expectation in a quadrant and corresponding level, then a leader can engage two of the most powerful tools on earth: Agreement and Permission.

Agreement asks: “Do you agree to strive to meet or exceed this expectation at all times?”

This question moves the employee from mindless drone to invested contributor.

Permission asks: “Do I have your permission to bust your chops when you don’t meet the expectation?”

Even though the leader may have organizational authority to bust chops without specific permission, this question puts the employee in the driver’s seat. The expectations are becoming crystal clear.

These questions open the door for the individual to take ownership of their role and their behavior. One of the greatest things about people is their desire to be great; to be great people, and to be great at what they do. These questions of agreement and permission unlock or unleash the the desire to be great- and gives the individual permission to be great at what they do. When these two questions are settled, a leader will rarely need to correct or reprimand a person- the individual employee will self-reprimand and self-correct out of the unlocked desire to be great.

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