The Best 1 Minute Investment You can Make in Your Employee

Defining Moment, def,

An event that typifies or determines all subsequent related occurrences.

It was a lightning bolt 20 years ago, yet I remember it clearly.

With one sentence I learned the meaning of accountability. It was an attitude adjustment that changed who I am and how I lead.

It was a defining moment.

People who experienced a defining moment often describe how it changed the arc of their careers, or how they instantly gained knowledge that would have taken them years to achieve.

Here’s what I learned.

When I was in my first operational role I was responsible for 50 people. We had excellent production output, but the worst safety results compared to the other units.

One day I met for a results review with Joe, the Operations Manager. He asked why my safety results were so poor. I carefully explained that ”accidents happen” and I didn't know why people kept getting hurt. As far as I was concerned, no one was to blame.

Joe thought differently and said, “Since you can't manage safety, I am going to stop all personnel promotions in your operations.”

I was horrified and embarrassed. I was responsible and I had let my people down. Now they wouldn’t get promoted because of my failure as their manager.

In the instant following Joe's directive, I became accountable.

I understood immediately what I needed to do to manage safety. I took a deep breath, and asked Joe for one chance to make it right.

I told him that I would change the results in three months, and if they didn't improve, I would personally halt all promotions. Joe agreed. Three months later we made a huge improvement in safety, and eventually became the safest production unit.

That was the best minute of my career.

Joe’s intervention changed the way I managed forever. And the moment I acknowledged that safety was MY responsibility, and the failure was MY fault, my operations became safer, and all future operations would become safer too.

That's defining.

Here's what makes a defining moment work

1. Intervene when there’s a fundamental disconnect in values.

   You teach character when you correct a significant disconnect in values or responsibilities. Poor leadership judgement MUST be confronted.

2. Confront immediately.

   The power is in the moment. The impact is lost if you wait a day or longer. Don’t wait even if there are other people in the room.

3. Intervene sparingly.

   A defining moment is a critical, sometimes once-in-a-career intervention. Don’t abuse it.

4. Be brief, clear and authoritative.

   It’s a correction. It's not a lecture, a conversation, or an apology. You don’t have to raise your voice or be angry, but you have to be firm.

There are few tools that can accelerate growth like a defining moment. Use it wisely and you will make a powerful and lasting change on the people you coach.

It will be the best minute of their career.