If everyone performs, success is certain

New Delhi: The bus technique can work wonders for an organisation by inspiring employees and team leaders alike to work harder and smarter and drive it to succeed, says award-winning educator Ron Clark. In "Move Your Bus: An Extraordinary New Approach to Accelerating Success in Work and Life," Clark likens a company to a bus filled with people who either help or hinder the team's ability to move it forward.

The distance the bus travels represents the goals and progress of the company. The people on board the bus are runners (who consistently go above and beyond for the good of the company), joggers (who do their jobs without pushing them selves), walkers (who are just getting pulled along), and riders (who hinder success and drag the team down).

And as the boss, it is the driver's job to steer the organisation, encourage the workers to keep the bus moving, and sometimes discard those who aren't pulling their weight, the book published by Simon & Schuster says. Clark teaches strategies and techniques needed to inspire employees and team leaders alike to work harder and smarter, maximize team performance, and take the organisation where one wants to go.

Depending on personal circumstances, the author says the bus could be a corporation, a small business, a sports team, the family or even a school. "Now, the bus has no gas tank and no gas, because your organisation is going nowhere without the people on your team to act as energy or fuel. So imagine that we are going to cut holes in the floorboards and move the bus ourselves, with our own efforts," he says.

"In other words, the movement of your organisation towards its goals depends entirely on the people who are on the team. And that includes you. If everyone is performing at the top of his game, success is imminent," he says. But, according to the author, not everyone is working at the same level when it comes to moving the bus.

"In every organisation, there are different styles of workers, which I mentally categorise by the amount of energy they expend. I think of them as runners, joggers, walkers, riders and drivers." Move Your Bus" is an accessible and uplifting business parable that illustrates Clark's expert strategies to maximise the performance of each member of a team.

Clark has been travelling, consulting with innovative Fortune 500 companies, whip-smart business leaders, and talented individuals across all walks of life. He has been named "American Teacher of the Year" by Disney and was Oprah Winfrey's pick as her "Phenomenal Man."

He founded The Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia, which more than 25,000 educators from around the world have visited to learn about the extraordinary ways that teachers and parents of RCA have helped children achieve great success. "Move Your Bus" has 30 chapters divided under three parts – "Get on the Bus", "How to Accelerate", and "How to Map the Route".

According to author one can always find a way to contribute at a higher level and do a better job, even if he is hired to clean the windshield or put air in the tires of the bus. "You can support the runners, by volunteering to take over some of their basic tasks. You can look for ways to uplift the people around you – your colleagues, customers, clients, business partners, everyone you come into contact with during your workday.

"At the very least, you can find a way to complain less in order to change the conversation and contribute to a more positive environment," the author suggests.