Will anyone call in for the meeting?

I'm not sure it will be enough.  I can show my team members that they can trust me.  I can show them compassion.  I can support them.  And I can give them hope.  But will they still show up to the meetings?

I often get poor attendance on conference calls.  This might improve as I apply the ideas in "Strengths Based Leadership" and "Stomp the Elephant in the Office".  But I'm not sure it will be enough.  Why?  Because these people don't report to me.  If I do everything right, they may want to follow my lead.  But they won't do this if their leadership pulls them in a different direction.

I often make the mistake of trying to persuade the members of the team to take a given path without first persuading their leadership.  I'm too eager to penetrate the details with the people who are going to do the work.  I'm not interested in describing the work in brief, general terms to get their leadership aligned.  But without getting their leadership aligned, I may build enthusiasm that ends with frustration when team members are told by their bosses not to participate.

I'm still going to work on trust, compassion, support, and hope for team members.  I want to see what happens.  It feels like the right strategy.  But I've got to work much harder than in the past to also align with leadership.