This one is for the Seasoned Leaders; if you've got a manager or multiple leaders who report to you, I have thoughts today.
I'm noticing a trend in some of the leadership around me; Seasoned Leaders are forgetting the steps it took them to get to where they are. They're frustrated with the learning managers, and feeling like they should know more and behave differently than they do.
When this comes up, I like to explore a bit and ask how the Seasoned Leader is dealing with this. What are they teaching? What is the manager they're frustrated with missing? Every time, the Seasoned Leaders get flustered, and respond that their managers know the expectations, they're just not doing it!
Really? Ok, let's explore it, then.
I ask what were the goals from their last 1-on-1. Oh. We haven't had one in a while, it's been busy and they haven't had time.... blah blah blah.
Or sometimes there was a goal from the last 1-on-1, but when I ask what was agreed upon as support or resources needed to attain the goal, they fall short in giving a clear answer.
The truth of the matter is, most of the time people want to do a good job. As much as Seasoned Leaders can get tired and start to look at it as "hand-holding," part of the job is always going to be over-explaining, setting clear expectations, and giving supports to get to the finish line until learning leaders can get there themselves.
It's easy to get jaded when you're frustrated, I have bigtime empathy for that. I understand the pressure of being a multi-unit leader and telling your GMs what they need to do to succeed and feeling the pressure when time after time they aren't getting it. It's worse when that's compounded with an area full of managers that aren't getting it and you're battling a corporate system that isn't conducive to giving space for lasting learning to happen.
While I get it, I also know that the sooner you get out of that mentality and find ways to get more of your managers further along in the race, the easier the job is going to be. It's one of those things that you have to invest in at the start to reap the rewards in the end.
The path to get there isn't hard, either, but it does take patience and diligence. It requires allowing some mistakes to be made so that those managers can learn in an environment that makes them want to keep winning. It means setting aside time for 1-on-1s consistently even when you have a million other things to finish. Sometimes it even means falling behind on other items while you painstakingly give your time and patience to these learners.
Think about the last time you were able to hand off a task and trust the person you handed it off to. What was different about that person vs. managers that are struggling? It's true that there are times when the difference really is aptitude, I can admit that. But more often than not I've found it's:
- Clear direction and expectations given
- Space for learning without (major) fear of making mistakes
- Support/resources available when needed during the learning of the task
- Proof of competence once the task is learned
This is why I swear by structured 1-on-1s on a consistent basis (I like weekly, even if it feels like a lot in the beginning at some point they become much quicker and easier to breeze through). I have a specific structure to my 1-on-1s that my managers could count on so they would know what to bring to the table each week. I spend time encouraging them and empowering them to tell me where they need support and specify what they will need. I let them list any roadblocks they anticipate so we can discuss them together and try to solve them. At the end of each meeting, we list the deliverables from both of us that we can come back to next week.
It's an investment that pays off in time, as you're able to rely more on the managers you've trained with this structure and stability to achieve on a higher level. If you want first-class managers, you have to give them first-class training and inspire them to achieve more with the confidence they will develop from feeling secure in their knowledge.
Get a peek at my 1-on-1 structure with a free download here: Leadership 1-on-1 Meeting
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