It's healthy for people and organizations to celebrate victories—that's a given! Some managers miss the chance to lead effectively when it comes to setting and celebrating goals. Effective leaders focus on two things in this area. They decide what goals are worthy of celebration and how big the celebration should be.
I heard a story a few years back about how Tony Dungy told his young Tampa Bay Bucs not to pour the Gatorade over him again until they won the Super Bowl (they had just poured the orange drink on him for an important milestone they had achieved). He didn't tell them not to celebrate this milestone. He was ok with celebrating, just not the big celebration.
That's how I heard the story. I wasn't there, so I hope I got the important details right—but in either case, there is an valuable lesson here. Make clear to your people an important level one milestone you are shooting for now, and celebrate when you hit that. But also, point them toward the ultimate "Super Bowl" victory goal as well and talk about the celebration that will happen when they achieve that.
Be a leader—help your team know when and how to celebrate!
John Henley is Chief Operating Officer at The Center for Sales Strategy.
