The joy of trying

Every now and then I watch and listen in awe as people tell me they will "try" to get their tasks done; they will "try" to meet the deadline; or they will "try" to be at my party or meet me for dinner? What is this "try"? Have you ever tried to call someone? Heck NO! You either call or you don't. There is no such thing as try. What if the pilot said, on the last flight you were on, "well folks, we are about 100 miles from O'Hare and I sure will "TRY" to land this 757 on the runway. Rest assured, I will do my best and try to make it".

How good would you feel then?

It's the same with employees. If you accept the fact that they tried as a valid reason for not getting stuff done, then you have just subscribed to the "Try Club". And from now on, your employees will know that if they can convince you they tried, they will be off the hook.

Well, Coach, it's your job to show them that "scoring, getting in the goal" is what it is all about.

Otherwise, you and your business are just running up and down the field.