4. Purposely allow for mistakes
Policies are easier to measure. They often have a pass/fail assessment attached to them. The less policies you have the more you have to allow for grace and forgiveness. But, people learn from their failures best when they know they can explore and create without the repercussions and fear of breaking a policy.
My bottom line on policies:
I’m not suggesting we can do without policies, or that we should try, but I am suggesting they should not be the “go to” solution to a problem. Most problems in an organization don’t need a new policy. Policies can weigh down progress. Granted, leading is more difficult without policies – even a little messy, but with less policies you’ll almost always have opportunities for greater success.
Here’s a challenge: Look through your policies and rules to see which were created to control people as a reaction to a problem, which should have been handled individually, and which is a policy no longer needed.
The real challenge is to lead towards an environment which empowers more than it controls.
This article on church policies originally appeared here, and is used by permission.
