Hancock Lumber has been harvesting and milling white pine logs into lumber since 1848. Across all of those years we have never processed the same log twice. Every pine tree is similar, yet none are identical. Each tree is a never-to-be-repeated, unique representative of its species. And so it is with humans.
Across the totality of human history there has never been another you. You are a one-time manifestation of the sacred energy of the universe with a set of experiences, perspectives, and aspirations that will never be duplicated. This is why your voice is so important. This is why leaders must free the voices of others, not constrict them.
One of leadership’s biggest responsibilities is to honor the individual voices of its team members. The goal, and the obligation, of great leadership is to make it safe for people to be themselves and speak their truth. The key to releasing the voices of others is simple: Stop judging what they say.
Thank you for sharing that is one of my favorite responses at work when someone makes a statement and shares their authentic point of view. As leaders, we don’t need to judge and evaluate the things our employees say. The truth is plural, not singular. The true voice of any great team is a symphony of diverse perspectives and experiences.
Often the most powerful things we can do when someone speaks is to simply honor what has been said without passing judgment on it. When we do this consistently, people relax and speak with their true voice. When employees speak freely, leadership is given what I call “the answers to the test.” The employees of any team know the truth about their organization’s strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement. All management needs to do is make it safe for people to say what they actually think.
No one knows the truth about a company better than the people who live in its value stream every day. Our company, Hancock Lumber, has 730 employee team-members, which means we also have 730 unique perspectives on what it’s like to work here. Hancock Lumber is never what any one person says, but rather a symphony of voices—a collage of experiences. When we release the voices of others, the truth surfaces, the work gets easier, and the stress dissipates.
Like pine trees, no two humans are the same. The goal is to release the most authentic voice in each person. Only then can a team truly soar.
