A leader's silence on difficult problems doesn't preserve standards, it rewrites them. When you don't address an issue, your team learns it's acceptable to ignore. The only thing visible to them is that the problem drifted and you let it.
Think about the impact you have as a leader when you delay the truth. Leaders think that when we don't address something, nothing has really happened. And that's so wrong. I mean, our silence communicates something. Our silence teaches the people around us. And that silence establishes a specific precedent Given the circumstances that we're avoiding. And here's the thing. When we're silent, the team around us doesn't hear the internal debate that's going on inside of our head. They don't know that you or I are trying to be patient as a leader. They don't know that you're waiting for a better time. We've used that excuse how many times to address the situation. All they see— is that something drifted and that the leader, you and me, allowed it to sit. See, silence doesn't preserve the standard. Silence rewrites the standard.
