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Integrity of Communication 165
CANDOR
J.C. Faulkner remembers a very early source of advice about the
value of honesty: “My grandfather—he was a coal miner—he said
something about integrity and truth that I’ve never forgotten. He said
that the very moment you feel like you have to lie; when you feel like
you want to be untruthful; when you’re so scared to tell somebody
the truth; when there’s that much at stake, that’s the very moment
you have to tell the truth. The fact you feel like you want to lie vali-
dates how important the truth is. It validates that you are dealing
with a real issue, something that is only going to get worse.”
Founders who say they value candor will eventually be tested as
to whether they mean it. One of the sternest and most unpleasant ex-
amples of this is the common need to confront performance problems,
to deal with team members who are not cutting it. Nearly every team,
it seems, has a member or two who are not performing up to par, or
who have burned too many interpersonal bridges, and whose struggles
are commonly known and discussed throughout the venture (except
when they are around). Mark Williams remembers the sinking feeling
in his stomach when he fully realized that a key team member was no
longer a good fit for Modality’s growth needs. After a period of ago-
nizing about how to address the situation, he was able to candidly
share his thinking with the person and negotiate a fair deal to transi-
tion him out of the business. As in many such cases, the exiting team
member appreciated the integrity of the process and was somewhat
relieved to no longer be straining in a role incompatible with his con-
siderable strengths.
When it comes to open communication, you may find that your
challenge as an entrepreneur is less about being truthful with others
and more about ensuring that others are completely honest with you.
With partners and team members, you will likely get back what you
project. “I have found that when people see you doing something as a
leader over time, that behavior becomes the expected norm,” says J.C.
“It’s what people think they are supposed to do. When you as a leader
are completely unedited and candid, about both good and bad things,
that candor opens the door for them to follow suit.”
American Management Association • www.amanet.org