Leadership guru, John Maxwell, often quotes the leadership proverb: “He who thinks he is leading but has nobody following is only taking a walk.” When it comes to getting buy-in (and thus followers) for our vision, new initiatives, new products, etc… we need to remember the Three “I’s of Buy-in: Inform, Inspire, Invite. I was talking with a colleague the other day about a recent initiative we had taken at the church, which had received tremendous buy-in and participation. He said, “You informed them clearly, you inspired them passionately and you invited them to participate.”
As he spoke the words, I remembered his dad setting for those three “i’s” years ago. I had forgotten the message, but continued to use the process. How vital it is for us as leaders to inform people clearly when we have a new idea or a new image for communicating our vision, or for rolling out a new initiative or product. One of the most challenging aspects about our new ideas is we have already bought into them. We typically have a clear idea of what we are thinking and want to do, so we can assume everyone else will be at the same place we are. This is impossible, because they haven’t been on board with the process of formulating the idea and perhaps the plan to make it a reality as we have.
The first step, then, is to inform people of what it is we are planning to do, or what new idea we want them to consider. In order for anyone to buy in to what we are proposing, he or she must first understand what it is we are proposing.
The next step is to inspire others to participate. If informing is telling them what we want to do, inspiring requires telling them why. Why is it important for them to participate in our vision, or why is this new initiative worthy of our pursuit, or why will this new product be of value to consumers and to our bottom line? If people don’t understand why they’re doing something, they may do it, but they’ll never do it with passion. As leaders, we may have leverage over others and be able to force them to participate in our vision or to produce the new widget we think is going to transform society, but if they don’t understand why, if they aren’t inspired as we are, they won’t become raving fans themselves.
I have always had an easy time promoting anything in which I believe fervently. Just last week I was talking with someone about my Fit Bit and how it has made a major impact on my overall health in just a little more than a month. After about three minutes the person said, “Wow! You really believe in that thing don’t you?” The short answer was, “Yes.” We all know the difference between being dragged along, or forced to participate in the organization’s latest idea or product roll-out and when we’re actually on board with the idea or product, and want to use it ourselves.
While leaders often think it’s enough to inform and inspire others to gain buy-in, even in the corporate setting where the line workers “have to” be on board, the final “i”–invite–is so important. When we invite people to participate in whatever it is that we know will move our organization to the next level, we appeal to their right to choose. When we say, “You will…” even if we have the right to command the person’s action, we will never get the same response as when we ask, “Will you…?” When a person has the opportunity to choose to buy in to whatever it is we’re presenting to them, she is much more likely to do it whole-heartedly.
At the end of the day, when we inform, inspire and invite the probability of others actually following our leadership increases dramatically. The next time you have a great new idea or initiative to present to your followers remember to inform, invite and inspire them.
Here’s to leading better by informing, inviting and inspiring others–today!