One reason change is difficult is because of our Human Brain’s tendency to see the GAP rather than Our Progress.

At the beginning of any change effort it is important to have:

• A way to measure our progress (a metric)
• A baseline - to measure your starting point
• A Goal - your Target

In many business settings, we are taught to make this a “Stretch
Goal” or even a BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) - one the team cannot reach without a major stretch.

As we move forward toward the goal, we will make progress and
create a measurable improvement from our baseline. AND we can make
LOTS of progress from our baseline and still not reach the
Stretch Goal.

There is a fundamental problem with the way we observe our course to reaching a goal … this challenge is a function of the way the Human Brain works. Here’s what I mean…

We don’t see the Progress as easily as we see the Gap between where we are now and the goal we have set for ourselves. This skewed observation is automatic and nearly universal for most people and a MAJOR BARRIER to effective Leadership.

The Team may be making HUGE improvement and it gets lost in the fact
that there is still that GAP between where we are and where we
want to be.

This produces three predictable negative results:

• We miss an opportunity to celebrate
• We get caught in a negative feedback loop 
• The Team loses momentum.

Here is a rule to live by;

Aim for the GAP
and simultaneously
CELEBRATE ALL PROGRESS

Head for your stretch goal and remember to reward all progress
along the way. Real progress has to be rewarded every time to
maintain the enthusiasm to continue stretching.

This coaching tool is one used by athletic coaches and parents all the time and can be paraphrased as, “Catch them doing something right!”

This tool is embodied in Appreciative Inquiry and supported by the pioneering research in the book “First Break All the Rules”

And it works very nicely with any team. .

As an empowering Leader, you must fight your automatic tendency to see only the remaining Gap between your current state and the Goal if you want the Team to do their best.

Remember to Celebrate all Progress, not just crack the whip.