Recently, after a challenging stretch with my team, I’m reminded of the value of long-term outlooks. As a father, as a pharmacy manager, and as a semi-regular blogger, it’s so important to have clear goals in front of you.

I was out last weekend with my 7-year old in a grocery store parking lot. Having watched me prepare the past few years for the MS Bike Tour (click here for my fundraising page), she decided that this would be the summer to conquer the 2-wheel balancing act. We pumped up the tires and adjusted the seat height. Starting in the driveway, I ran along beside her for a couple of runs before making the 5-minute walk to the lot. I don’t remember details of my own learning experience with a bike, but hearkened back to my driving instructor’s advice from many moons ago: always look to where you want to go, and not the road in front of your wheels.

It took some practice. Being tentative, every time she watched her front wheel start to wobble, her sense of equilibrium followed suit and violent jerks on the handlebars failed to keep her upright. Soon enough, the chin came up, the arms relaxed a bit and she was able to pedal unattended for two seconds at first, then five. She was so excited to show her mother when she got home from work.

She taught me that my experience is no different. In my role, I’m expected to lead people. If I’m always looking at my front wheel, chances are I won’t be leading them very far, and the distance we do travel will be rife with wobbly or uncertain moments. At this point, I have this urge to expand on my meaning. I sense a bullet list coming on…

• A leader’s vision is enhanced by the relative vision of his/her subordinates – Have you ever watched someone walking with a dog that is seemingly distracted by or reacting to just about everything they pass? Having to circle back and regroup takes time and effort. If there is good communication, and staff are trained to look further down the road themselves, then they may recognize steps to take today that will directly impact how fast they get there. Say, if the goal was to give 1000 flu shots, then finding easier ways to triage patients and pre-populate administrative paperwork will certainly enhance that ability.
• Everyone has to have a long-term goal – In the same vein as above, the president of a company or the director of a university needs to be focused on long-term planning 95% of the time, to retain viability and competitive advantages. Perhaps middle-management needs to be about 50% focused on long-term and 50% on day-to-day functions. That trickles down to part-time front-line staff. They may fill a specific need 95% of the time, but they still need something to work towards over a 3-6-month period. I like to show these people aspects of inventory management, for instance.
• Braking and turning are still important to learn – So the vision is communicated and we’re making good progress down the chosen road. What happens if the path needs to veer off (changes in the reimbursement model, etc.), or stop due to a roadblock (Information Technology limitations, etc.)? My daughter still has these aspects to work on, and so does my team. Maintaining that balance and control through the unknown will keep us from hitting a wall or flying into the bushes.

I want to say that managing a team is as easy as riding a bike, but I have a feeling you may have already seen that coming  😉

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.