Buy-in is often confused with compliance. Compliance says “I do it because I have to” whereas buy-in says “I do it because I want to.” When we want to do something, no one has to ask us twice, remind or prod us.

As a leader, it’s easier to get people to comply with your requests than to have them “own” them, but there’s a price we pay for accepting compliance. If people only do what we tell them to do, we have to continually tell them what to do. This means:

• We never get to let go of the task.

• If our team members don’t own the task, they won’t own the results.

• Being compliant isn’t engaging or inspiring, meaning people usually don’t throw their hearts and souls into this work.

Conversely, people bought into a task or suggestion don’t require hand-holding. They will:

• Throw themselves into the task and work hard to make it successful.

• They will make suggestions for improvement or point out real issues – not let it fail.

• They will reach out if they hit a snag and ask for help.

So, while it may take a little more effort to get people’s buy-in, it is worth it!

A few tips for leaders in gaining buy-in:

1. People buy into an idea, suggestion or request when they see the benefit TO THEM of doing it, or the cost of not. As a leader, it is our role in the process of change to help a person answer the question, “What’s in it for me?”

2. Sometimes, we have to get someone’s compliance first before we can get their buy-in. They have to see exactly what it is they’re being asked to buy into. The mistake we sometimes make is not circling back and elevating their compliance to buy-in by helping a person see the benefit.

3. Finally, this hard-won buy-in will be lost if we aren’t readily available to support whatever struggle a person has doing something new. Instead, we need to anticipate the struggle and welcome their requests for help.

• Can you think of a time when you thought you had someone’s buy-in and took your eye off the ball, only to find out the hard way that they weren’t bought in enough for you to let go?

• If you think back, what might have been some signs of lack of buy-in or compliance that you missed?

• Getting a person’s buy-in requires helping them see, based on what’s important to them, how what you’re suggesting will benefit them. This begs the question, do you know your team members well enough to make that connection for and with them?

• Sometimes, what we are asking people to do are non-negotiables meaning they have no say in the matter. These are things like safety protocols, rules or laws established outside the organization, or company policy. In these cases, we typically accept compliance. What are the risks to a leader who makes too many requests “non-negotiables?”