In this Lean Learning Leadership Lesson:

• The difference between talking about it and making it happen

• What it takes to actually move value (getting off the sidelines and into the game)

• The 3 Cs for Action and the 4 Criteria for Making it Happen

On paper this is the simplest of all the leadership conversations. The mechanics of it are quite straightforward. However, it is the leadership conversation that is most often executed poorly. 

That’s because it has an impact. There is an effect on the other. You are asking somebody to do something. There is a cost involved. 

And for you there is risk. There is the unpredictable nature of the reaction you might get, and your desire to protect and maintain the relationship.

Put simply it can be a difficult conversation. Or at least you can perceive it as difficult. For those reasons it can be easier to talk around required actions than visit them directly. 

The Action Conversation is about forming agreements that lead to making something happen. It's about moving value through your organisation, and it's about making tangible progress.