Leaders who epitomize extreme ownership drive their team to a higher standard, and when it comes to standards, it is which of the following?

• A. What you tolerate
• B. What you enforce
• C. What you measure
• D. What you reward

Answer: (A)

What sets the standard for a team is what you will not tolerate. When a leader embraces extreme ownership, they elevate performance by drawing a clear line at what is unacceptable and holding the line consistently. If you tolerate subpar work, excuses, or lateness, those behaviors become the standard, and the team will rise only to that level. By not tolerating those issues, you signal that excellence is the baseline, and the group will strive to meet it.

Enforcement, measurement, and rewards all support that standard, but they don’t establish it. Enforcement responds to violations, measurement verifies whether the standard is met, and rewards reinforce outcomes that align with the standard. The starting point, however, is the threshold you refuse to tolerate. For instance, never tolerating missed deadlines, and backing that up with actions when they occur, drives accountability and raises performance across the team.