The alignment of leadership

From golf lessons years ago, I learned something important about swinging a golf club: everything starts with how you’re lined up. If your feet are lined up towards the target, your arms will naturally swing along that plane and you increase the chances that the golf ball goes where you (generally) want it to go. If your feet are aiming too far to the left or right, your arms will subconsciously overcorrect as you swing the club, and anything can happen: slices, hooks, lost balls, mid-course meltdowns.

The same is true in managing a team or a person. Alignment is 90% of the work. When a manager and their team are misaligned, the greater the chances for costly overcorrections: from micro-management to a lack of accountability, and simmering discontent to poor communication. The best golf swing cannot fix poor alignment and set-up, and the same is true in management. The mistake leaders make is by focusing too much on their day-to-day “swing mechanics” and not enough on carefully scripting those infrequent moments when they can align their team to the target.