Over the last two weeks, Silke, my amazing team member who manages my website, blog, and newsletters, went on a well-deserved two-week vacation. I had planned to write all content for posting before she left, but wasn’t able to, due to other pressing commitments. Once Silke departed, I realized I would have to do the posting myself. Of her own volition, she had very kindly created a step-by-step manual for me to follow, so I wasn’t the least bit worried.
Friday morning, bright and early, my mind fresh and ready to take on the world, I sat down to post my blog. 4 hours later, with a lot of hairpulling, sighs and groans, I said to myself “Done is better and perfect” and clicked PUBLISH. Half a day wasted, I thought. On reflection, it wasn’t wasted at all. I have a much better understanding of what Silke does to post and make my blogs and newsletters look professional and go out on time, and the skills, expertise and attention to detail that’s required. Even more importantly, my appreciation for how she supports me has deepened – without fail, within 30 minutes of my sending her the blog, no matter how late, there’s a cheery email from her: “It’s all set up Marguerite. Let me know if there’s anything else you wish me to do.” She is truly a joy to work with.
This got me pondering – as leaders, do we really know (or remember if we used to do it ourselves] what our team members do? And what they go through to get it done when we say: “Send me the report by Friday.” Are we aware of and sensitive to what we are asking of them and what’s involved? Chances are, we are busy with our own deadlines, and just don’t have the time, or so we believe.
I am positing that every now and then, you walk in your team members’ shoes – choose to do something that they normally do, not just to get it done, but to reflect on and learn from what they experience. Here are 5 questions to ask yourself:
- Did what I asked them to do achieve what I intended?
- Are there any parts of the process that are not clear? For example, there were 2 instances in Silke’s manual that I just couldn’t figure out. Silke and I will be meeting in a few days to go through the process together.
- Is there anything that could be simplified, automated, or even eliminated?
- Is the timeline reasonable?
- Is there additional information or training needed?
You might be surprised that the frustration you feel about missed timelines, complaints of overwhelm and seeming lack of support are replaced by deeper understanding and empathy, and insights to improve efficiency and productivity, and make your team members’ lives easier.
Walk a mile in your team member shoes. It’s a great learning experience and a good use of your time.
