Measure Things That Make Sense: 7 Data Points Every Leader Should Master

For more than 10 years as a contributor, I’ve never shared much of my personal life on Forbes.com. I consider myself more of a research-minded, business storytelling geek. Meh, I may toss in some inspiration from time to time, and I admit that have a knack for challenging ideas I consider stale or incomplete, like employee engagement, employee recognition, and the corporate world’s obsession with culture. However…

Yep, I’m going to do it. I’m gonna get personal. But it’s for a good reason.

Here it goes. I’m a dad. And?

My oldest daughter, Ava (a recent college graduate), just became the general manager at a fitness studio. She is a certified spin instructor. She was a spin instructor through college. She actually worked the front desk at the same studio during high school. But now she’s leading. What does that mean? Well, that’s actually a profound question.

“Dad,” my daughter said over the phone. “I want to be the person everyone wants to work for.” And she added, ”I want to create the environment that every single client loves.”

As a father, my heart grew a few sizes when she made those statements. But as a consultant and the writer of more business books than I can honestly remember (which have sold more than 10 million copies), my geek gene was on high alert. “Wait, my daughter might actually be interested in my business advice?”

Just to give context, in school Ava was the type of student who always did ‘well enough.’ However, since she was young, if Ava found something she was passionate about, she would chase it with absolute tenacity. “This is my thing now,” she told me on the phone. “I don’t know what it’s going to take yet. I don’t know how I’ll do it yet, but I will make CycleBar McCormick Ranch the best spin studio in the country.”

Yeah, I could linger and take a “Proud Dad” moment with my daughter’s intentions. But there’s something bigger happening right now. And it’s not about Ava, myself, or a fitness studio.

What is it? What’s bigger?

We all want to be the best in our space. We all want to be the best leaders. We want to be the best at our jobs. We all want to have the happiest clients. We all want people to be wowed by what we offer—the rockstars in our own unique endeavors. But how do we make that a reality? Maybe my daughter said it best as she continued on the phone, “I just need to keep adding value where it matters the most.”

What matters most? What data should you be measuring to make a huge impact?

1. Provide a common language. Language might seem like a silly thing to measure. But it also may be the most important thing you can track. Are we all understanding the words we use in the same way? In a recent post, I mentioned a company called Seity Health that has built a scientifically validated Core Values Assessment. And while that’s super cool, one of the founders told me that many of their clients are benefitting most because, “The assessment is just the start,” said Co-Founder Dr. Chris Hawley. “It provides each user with common language.” Think about that. Companies are finding ways to provide all employees with the exact same definitions to the exact same words. It’s important that your teams are understanding the same definitions of words as you do.
2. Be only sincere. Yeah, I understand ‘sincere’ sounds cliche and overcooked. It’s a concept we all understand, yet many (people and organizations) find so difficult to practice. Whether it’s an engagement program, recognition program, or team-building exercise, many employees just don’t believe in sincerity anymore. In fact, a recent article in Human Resource Executive revealed a major issue with companies offering wellbeing programs ( a necessary focus, in my opinion). What’s the issue? Employees aren’t actually believing that their employers honestly care about their wellbeing. If we don’t all start practicing sincerity, people won’t believe any of us about any positive steps we try to take. How do you measure sincerity? Start asking if people believe you.
3. Understand your impact on the actual recipient of your work. While many companies, teams, and leaders measure outward-facing data points (sales, customer satisfaction, etc), many don’t measure internal data points. Yeah, as a leader you might be tasked with performance reviews. That means you’re measuring an employee’s performance. But what if that employee’s work doesn’t personally impact you? For example, what if a certain designer is always late at presenting a sales deck to the sales representative who requested it? As a leader, you might simply assume the presentation wasn’t a success. Ask yourself who the recipient of your work is and start tracking the way in which they receive it. BTW, recipients of your work could also be your employees.
4. Know what failed and discover why. This might seem like an obvious thing to track—failure. However, the word ‘why’ in this bullet point is the important aspect. For example, if your employee engagement scores are low, you might try to increase them by giving employees more reasons to engage. Makes sense, right? Wrong. If you can’t figure out what’s causing low engagement to begin with, you might be spending pointless resources on a program that won’t work. Measuring failure means measuring your own thinking. And if you continue to try to solve the result of a different issue, you’ll just be running in circles.
5. Know what succeeded and always question how it could have been better. This might sound harsh and like I’m not endorsing celebration. I’m a huge fan of celebrating wins. However, I’ve also interviewed champions like Michael Phelps. Celebrate the success, but continue to seek ways to improve—cutting costs, improving efficiency, delighting customers, and keeping your teams excited about the next great achievement you’ll accomplish together. Perfection isn’t a goal. Constant improvement is. Measure the small wins.
6. Focus on improving the wellbeing of yourself and the people around you. Some people may need a ride at CycleBar McCormick Ranch to clear their head and get their heart thumping. Some, like me, might desire a snowy race down a steep ski hill. Others may enjoy watching a beautiful sunset. And others might prefer a spirited argument. The point is, we are all different. In fact, my new friends at Seity Health found that each of us have unique Core Values—you’re 1 in 37.9 million people. What does that mean? It means if we want to measure things that improve ourselves and the people around us, we need to start measuring the wellbeing of each individual person. We need to know people for who they really are, and we need to care about improving their lives.

“I want everyone who walks into the studio to understand I truly care about their experience,” my daughter told me. “That’s not easy. But I guess if I just start paying attention to what matters the most—to employees and customers—then I’m creating value.”

Yep. I’m a proud Dad.