I have a leadership team member who is incredibly enthusiastic and says yes to every Rock and initiative, but by the end of the quarter, they have failed to cross the finish line on almost all of them. How do we use conation and the Kolbe model to diagnose this execution gap?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This pattern of behavior is exhausting for a leadership team and destroys operational momentum. To fix it, you must separate a performance issue from a conative mismatch. Use the Kolbe A Index to analyze their problem-solving instincts. Often, an executive who overpromises is a high Quick Start with very low Follow Thru. In their mind, the moment they conceive the solution, the job feels done. They lack the natural instinct to build the systematic steps required to cross the finish line. To address this, use your weekly Level 10 Meeting™ to enforce operational boundaries. During quarterly planning, do not let this leader take on five or six Rocks. Limit them to a maximum of three, and force them to break those Rocks down into weekly milestones. If they are a high Quick Start, pair them with a high Follow Thru team member who can help translate their vision into actionable systems. This is not about micromanagement; it is about setting them up for success based on how their brain works. If, after adjusting their workload and providing conative support, they still fail to hit their goals, you have a GWC™ issue. They may want the seat, but they lack the capacity to execute at this level. You must then make the hard decision to move them out of that leadership seat.