Some excellent coaches of winning athletic teams are very knowledgeable about how to help people achieve their individual best, highest performance. This makes perfect sense, in that getting an individual to perform at his or her full potential is the first step in creating a winning team. So, I sometimes look to the world of sports to learn a lesson or two on eliciting the best from the individuals that make up teams in the business world. That’s why Coach John Wooden is my “go-to man” on peak performance. 
One of Coach Wooden’s favorite maxims speaks to the important distinction between being fair and treating everyone the same. While we are all intent on being fair, it is true that fairness ≠ handling each individual equally. Here’s the maxim:
“Fairness is giving all people the treatment they earn and deserve. It doesn’t mean treating everyone alike.”
Somehow, in a culture where we are concerned about being impartial and politically correct, it seems that we have mistakenly drifted away from holding people accountable for their actions. No matter how often we hear the buzzwords pay for performance, the truth is that most organizations still don’t do it. Since performance matters more than ever, why not take the time now to create an authentic culture of accountability, where at all levels, people are encouraged to hold themselves and others accountable for living the values of the organization.
What do you think? Is it important to have a performance and accountability culture? Can you achieve significant improvements in organizational performance by tuning in to the people on your team, providing meaningful feedback, and rewarding them for their results?
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Thanks for a great article, Terry. Coach Wooden has always been one of my favorite sources of inspiration in my personal and professional life.
In my professional environment, I find difficulty with certain specific members of my staff to keep them looking at the bigger picture (of the company, values, code, etc.) rather than their smaller picture of “…show me the money.”
I absolutely believe that there is accountability on each employee at every level within the company. And I absolutely believe in rewarding them for outstanding performance in various measures. How do you believe we can further encourage and enforce the overall bigger picture for the employee’s; to help them recognize the true bigger picture for which we are all working?
Thanks for the great post!
Ron