Belief is a spectrum

Belief is a spectrum, not binary. It’s not a question of do I believe in this teammate or not? The better question is do I have enough belief in them? And if not, what’s the truth I need to tell them about why that is?

In a practice recently we unpacked someone whose direct report has been failing to meet an important standard, while still putting forth good enough work. The leader has been tolerating this chronic pain for awhile. Normal. The problem is, as always, chronic pain is the one that slowly kills you. It slowly eats away at your team as your A+ players begin to resent the fact that you’re lowering standards for others. Not good.

The leader has belief in their ability to perform, but no longer believes in their desire to meet the standards. Time to tell them that. I believe in your ability AND I don’t believe you are doing what it takes right now. Put the tension where it belongs.