Too busy to involve the team? Think again, work smarter not harder!
Life is so pressurised and busy and we feel as if there are not enough hours in the day and still it feels as if we are not being productive, why won’t people work harder and take some of the load? Leadership can be lonely — but does it have to be?
Do you feel guilty when you ask for help or perhaps think it is your job to come up with all of the ideas? Could your team be part of this exciting move towards a new future?
Is this really possible, I believe the answer is “yes”. Let me share some of my top leadership tips with you:
Tip number 1: Talking about why change is needed?
In the past, as a Family Support Service Manager in a small community charity, I realised that a new direction was necessary. I had been attending multi agency meetings, listening to others and realised that in my small Family Support Service team, if our fantastic work was to be seen as credible by our stakeholders, we needed to provide evidence of distance travelled by our clients.
So I started to research evidence-based parenting interventions and then tried to persuade my team that this was our new direction.
My mistake, I did not realise that I should have informed them about what I was hearing at the meetings first, explored the reasons behind necessary change and then involved them in discussions and also searching for the right materials.
It is perhaps not that surprising that in missing out this vital step, I faced a lot of work trying to convince people that “my idea was a good one”! People nowadays want to be involved in change, to be part of the process, so set the scene first. I had a lot to learn!
Point Number 2: What are you already doing well?
We are all a little hesitant when we are faced with doing something in a new way and habitually want to hold on to what has been working well. When leading your team, the next re-assuring step is to examine all the strengths, skills and successes so far — to celebrate and carry these forward.
In the Family Support Service, when developing a multi-agency training event, there was no way I had the time or ability to do it all myself and so I shared it with the team and we allocated the organisation between us. We thought about the shared skills and knowledge in our group, we decided that we could do this together.
Everyone took part in delivering the training too and I was so impressed with the number of partners who attended and the energy and dedication of the team, it raised significant funds for our charity and the quality was fantastic. As a leader or manager, when developing a new direction, instead of withdrawing, open up and share the load — I believe the end result will surprise you.
You have some significant talent in your team. Give them some credit!
Point Number 3: What would the ideal situation look like?
As a leadership and management coach and mentor, I have taken over a year to get to know people in the voluntary, health and social and education sectors by coaching them and learning from them about the challenges they face to become more resilient.
I have been able to support them towards more positive outcomes and increased leadership confidence and at the same time I have been able to develop a specific programme that is designed to take my future clients on a journey.
This is all because I now have a clearer idea, through listening, about where the ideal place is for my clients. I gained feedback on what frameworks and tools worked well, this showed me how to move forward with an improved service, that I knew was effective.
Locking yourself away in your office and coming up with a master plan is isolation, might seem like the best use of your time so you can be clear what you want to achieve and then you try to sell it to your team and you see perhaps you could have worked smarter!
However, I have seen the best projects evolved when I sat down, talked to the team, discussed it with stakeholders and we drafted a plan in partnership. I realised that there is increased engagement, more support and that often other people have the very best ideas — celebrating the team as you approach change is vital for the success of any new venture.
Taking more time at the early stages is a vital investment and bashing on with a pet idea, is often difficult to take forward without the input of others and a shared vision, you are going to have to drag it along by yourself.
It is better to get the team behind a great idea you shaped together — you can all push it forward together.
Finally then, how can we lead our teams through change? I have found it is by starting where you are and thinking it all through together.
If you are a leader or manager, battling with busyness and trying to negotiate the changing requirements on your team while at the same time keeping people engaged and productive, I would really enjoy meeting you for a chat. Perhaps I can add value to you as you consider the future?
Why not arrange for us to get together on Zoom so we can explore my “Working Smarter Not Harder” programme, 3 months of bi-weekly coaching and mentoring support for leaders and managers who are looking for change and growth — a place where you can discover your own unique skills and strengths, consider your values and begin to craft a roadmap and preferred destination.
You can also take away useful team leadership tools and ideas to make the future feel more hopeful and exciting!
