In the National Football League (NFL), they place small microphones on select players so fans can listen to what players are saying during the course of a game. The revealed words provide insights into what players are really thinking as they do their job.
As an experiment, we put a microphone on an unsuspecting professional at a local company. The outcome was illuminating. Consider this abbreviated transcript from Maria’s audio:
“What the (censored) is leadership thinking?!”
“I can’t believe it. How do they expect us to get anything done . . .”
“No. Don’t say anything. If you do, they’ll make you pay.”
“Whatever. One day closer to retirement.”
Okay. We made this up. It never happened. However, it’s worth considering: If your teammates had microphones recording their words, what would be learned?
We fool ourselves if we think people don’t hear (intuit) what we’re saying. Those who deliver excellence live excellence. The microphone is always on.
