Speak Up, Rinse, Repeat

From Adam Grant’s Originals book:

When Harvard professor John Kotter studied change agents years ago, he found that they typically undercommunicated their visions by a factor of ten. On average, they spoke about the direction of the change ten times less often than their stakeholders needed to hear it. In one three-month period, employees might be exposed to 2.3 million words and numbers. On average during that period, the vision for change was expressed in only 13,400 words and numbers: a 30-minute speech, an hour-long meeting, a briefing, and a memo. Since more than 99 percent of the communication that employees encounter during those three months does not concern the vision, how can they be expected to understand it, let alone internalize it? The change agents don’t realize this, because they’re up to their ears in information about their vision. If we want people to accept our original ideas, we need to speak up about them, then rinse and repeat.

So then … how often are you speaking up, rinsing, and repeating?

Can students articulate their individual learning goals and why they have them? What about their parents?

Can the class as a whole articulate the vision and beliefs of the teacher? Do they know the overarching goals for the school year?

Do teachers understand the vision and mission of the school, and their role in that vision and mission? What about the rest of the school staff?

Do principals and district leadership understand the vision and mission of the district, and their role in that vision and mission?

What steps are needed to make those answers all a resounding YES?

What’s your “speak up, rinse, repeat” strategy?