Miscommunication on the Field

In a football game and in the corporate workplace there is a huge difference between teams that achieve great success and teams that become dismal failures. The answer is effective communication- teams that can openly share ideas, focus on the task, and communicate proactively should not be surprised by their achievements.
-Reed Markham

Could you imagine a quarterback throwing a pass but being sure that when he gave the play that his wide receiver was going to run straight down the field or say a fade route. The receiver is sure that he needs to run a slant towards the middle of the field.

Because of that miscommunication it looks like the QB just overthrew his target. But, the QB is not to blame for throwing a bad pass, it's the breakdown in the communication channel.



Same is true within a business setting, how many times have goals not been met simply because people within a team were not on the same page?


While obtaining my Undergraduate degree, our School's President David A. Bednar who was a Business Professor at Texas Tech and was the department chair of Business Grad School at the University of Arkansas, as well as being a business consultant gave 3 easy steps to avoid missing a team goal due to a break down in what exactly needs to be done by each participate.

Bednar explained that every leader needs to:

1. Outline Exactly What is Expected
2. Set Goals on How to Obtain What is Expected
3. Motivate to go Beyond What's Expected

By following these 3 easy steps we can see how misunderstandings on responsibilities can be greatly reduced which do affect the whole team.

It's simple, so simple, that it's easily over looked.