Have you ever been celebrated at your work?  Have you been tolerated at work?  Which did you prefer?

No contest right?  We all want to be celebrated, to be valued, to be appreciated.  Nobody wants to be simply tolerated.  We want to know that what we do makes a difference, that who we are matters.

Sadly though, there are millions of people in North America who feel lost in a sea of anonymity at work.  They feel unappreciated, unacknowledged, and unaffirmed.  Perhaps that is how you feel?

Patrick Lencione said there are three things causing job misery:

1. Anonymity – does anyone know or care?
2. Irrelevance – does what I do matter?
3. Immeasurement – how am I doing?

Job misery is experienced when someone is simply tolerated in the workplace.

However, we hear a lot lately about “tolerance”.  Apparently we need to be a more tolerant society.  That may be the case, but I believe tolerance is not part of a good leader’s vocabulary or actions.  Let me explain…

Tolerate: “…to allow the existence, presence, practice, or act of without prohibition or hindrance; to endure, to put up with…”  (Dictionary.com)

To tolerate something indicates it’s not really what you wanted, but you’re willing to put up with it.  You are willing to allow it to exist even though it is in some fashion substandard.

“Well, it’s not really what we want, but we will tolerate it.”  Or, “You are not particularly meeting the expectations of your job, but I am willing to tolerate you because hiring someone new will be a real pain.”

“Tolerance” in the workforce smacks of mediocrity and complacency.

Great leaders don’t tolerate.  Great leaders educate, celebrate and terminate.

Great leaders clearly identify the who, what, why, when and how of the organization.  AKA mission, vision, values, critical path and strategic plan.  Great leaders ensure that the people in the organization know what is expected of them, why they are doing what they do, who they are doing it with and for, when it needs to be done, and how they need to do it.

Great leaders then mentor people by helping them to grow in capability, motivate them by continuing to wave the banner of mission and vision, and measure them with critical KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) to ensure everyone knows how they are doing.

In light of that, if someone in the organization is not performing to expectations, they will not be “tolerated”.  They will be “educated”: they are enlightened as to their shortfall and how they can change what they are doing, how they are doing it, or when they are doing it in order for them to begin meeting the expectations of their position.  They are given the opportunity to learn and grow to meet the standards and expectations of the organization.

They will then be celebrated along the way.  Great leaders practice AAA Leadership: they Acknowledge, Affirm and Appreciate their people.  That is another way of saying they celebrate their people.  And, if their people are not worthy of celebration they will be educated in regard to the changes needing to occur in order for them to be celebrated.

However, if people are not willing to make the changes necessary to be celebrated, they will not be tolerated – they will be terminated.  One of the critically important responsibilities of a leader is to get the right people on the bus, and that means sometimes asking some people to get off the bus.  Some people need their future freed up so they can find the right bus for them.  There is a bus for them, just not this bus.

Leaders are doing their employees and their organization a disservice when they are unwilling to make the difficult decision to terminate someone who is unwilling or unable to make the changes necessary to meet the standards and expectations of the organization, and be celebrated.

There is much that need not be tolerated within great organizations, one of which is a tolerant leader.  Tolerant leaders breed complacency and mediocrity.  Set the standards, train to the standards, celebrate those performing to the standards and free up the future of those who won’t up their game to meet the standards of the team.

Great leaders educate, celebrate and terminate – they don’t tolerate.