what’s the why?

how do you view the answers of others?

by gary adamson

the very human tendency to assume that others think as we do can lead to great misunderstanding. in truth, the things that drive individuals – what makes it all worth it – vary widely. discovering what makes each team member tick and what he or she most desires and values is an important step toward creating a cohesive partnership and bridging the gap, not just between generations but among all members of the firm.

more: three strategies to keep emerging leaders energized | marketing: not just for partners anymore | leadership growth is a two-way street | each generation must change
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as firms wrestle with baby boomer succession, the differences in attitudes, thinking and motivators between current and future leaders can sometimes be great. more often than not those differences or gaps are major contributors to the absence of future leaders who are on deck and ready to step into the shoes of the retiring partners.

it’s pretty easy to spot a firm where it isn’t working well and major changes must occur for the firm to survive in an internal succession plan. taking a slightly different approach, i’d like to focus on a firm where it is working, where the current and future leaders have figured it out.

this is a client of mine; three current partners, one new partner coming in january 1 and one on deck. i interviewed dave, who is one of the “older” three partners, and linda, who will be the new partner. i wanted to know “what’s your why?” said a little differently, “why do you do what you do? what do you want your legacy to be? what is important to you? what drives you? how do you define success, etc.?”

linda is already very successful and on top of her game. here is what she told me about her “why”: although her career is very important to her, she does not want it to be her legacy. it’s as much or more about family and community. she wants the opportunity for personal growth and leadership and she wants to mentor and bring her team with her.

linda lives life in the “now” – she wants to do it now, not 30 years from now. she wants to be rewarded now based on her performance and results, not on how many hours she works or how many years she has put in. her drivers are taking ownership, feeling needed and contributing to make a difference. she loves what she does. she wants to be always learning and she wants to win!

dave is 58 years old and is one of the leaders of the firm. he has been instrumental in creating an environment where linda can thrive and be successful. what is interesting is that in the case of dave and this firm, they didn’t have to fix it or try to change people to make it happen. it’s just the way they are and the way they look at things. here are some of the answers from dave to the “what’s your why” questions.

dave used to be a grinder but he realized several years ago that clients were actually people who he enjoyed spending time with and that there was life outside work. balance is now more important to him. he still loves the work and the trusted relationships. he seeks continual self-improvement and he promotes change inside the firm.

for dave, it’s less about the money and more about feeling the satisfaction of achieving goals with the team. dave believes he has a lot to offer from his long experience and he enjoys coaching and mentoring the younger people in the firm. he wants to be relevant and a significant contributor to the firm right up to the end of his career. if/when the day comes that he isn’t, his words were “please tell me.” dave’s goal is to go out with grace.

so that is the short story of linda and dave, two very successful people from two very different generations in the same firm. linda exhibits many of the traits commonly seen in new emerging leaders in firms and we should try to learn from her “why.” dave may be somewhat atypical of many of the current leaders in firms today; we should seek to learn from his “why” as well.

it is through an understanding of the answers to these “why” questions that firms can begin to grasp the differing perspectives that drive behaviors and attitudes, and as a result, build intergenerational bridges of understanding.

discussion questions

have team members spend a few minutes thinking about their own answers to the “why” questions described in the article, and then compare answers.

1. which answers were most surprising or unexpected? were there some that you had never considered?
2. how many factors, other than age difference, can you identify that might contribute to the variation among responses? (gender, place of origin, educational or family background…?) how much do these factors seem to align with the consistency of responses?
3. what does your firm currently do to discover and meet the different motivators that drive individual team members, and what more can be done?

posted on october 23, 2022