We have plenty of issues on our weekly Level 10 list, but when we get to the IDS portion, the team stays silent or picks the easiest, least critical issues to solve first. How do we force the team to confidently tackle the thorniest, most uncomfortable problems?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When your leadership team avoids tough issues during IDS®, your Level 10 Meetings™ lose their value. Selecting easy, low-impact tasks is a sign of artificial harmony and fear of conflict. To drive real results, the team must confidently tackle the most critical issues first.

The facilitator must lead this change. Before you begin the Identify, Discuss, and Solve portion of the meeting, the Integrator must ask the team to nominate the top three most important issues on the list. Do not let the team work from the top down or cherry-pick minor operational items. Force a vote to identify the three items that, if solved, will have the greatest impact on your quarterly Rocks and long-term vision.

Once the top three are selected, start with number one and do not move to number two until number one is fully resolved. If the room goes quiet, do not fill the silence with your own voice. Let the discomfort sit. Silence usually means team members are processing or hesitating to speak raw truth.

Ask direct, open-ended questions to draw out the conflict. Address the elephant in the room by naming the tension. Remind the team of your commitment to trust and honest communication. Solving hard issues requires vulnerability and a willingness to engage in healthy conflict. By forcing this focus weekly, you build the organizational muscle needed to clean up operations and prepare the business for an exit.