Field notes
Field Notes
Our daily Field Notes email is just the kind of jumpstart you need. A fast read. Maybe less than a minute. Because sometimes it just takes one insight to change the trajectory of the day.
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By focusing on who people want to be, what they want to experience, and where they want to land, leaders give team members something only they can provide. The potential impact of this conversation cannot be overstated.
Many of the most important things in life are free. They just take some time and genuine interest. This special conversation is one of them. Consider having it with each and every person you lead.
Asking great questions is what great leaders do. To fully incorporate the Socratic Method into their leadership style, the best leaders also understand the importance of counterexamples to further refine thinking about an issue or topic.
Counterexamples attempt to disprove or rebut a statement of fact by offering a case or example where the viewpoint doesn’t apply or operate perfectly.
For instance, if a team member were to define a “strategy” as a plan of action designed to achieve a goal, a counterexample might be to point out how spontaneous decisions that address an immediate problem are imbued with strategy but lack planning.
Anytime a leader transitions to a new role, team members unfamiliar with them naturally become fixated on who they are and how they will lead the team.
Leaders instinctively know that establishing their credibility quickly with the team is critical to their short- and long-term success. Demonstrating that they are worth following and have the competence to inspire loyalty is job one for a new leader.
Sound advice, such as meeting with as many team members face-to-face and listening to their views about what has been successful and what needs to change, sets leaders up for success.
As a general rule, people resist big changes. It slaps them in the face, and they often find a way to slap back. The best leaders approach an organization’s transformation by first understanding that change means movement. And movement inside an organization creates more friction than they can see. Creating change almost always takes more time, resources, persistence, and education than leaders expect it to. Good leaders buckle in for the long ride of success.
The team respects whatever the leader inspects. Momentary measures garner a lot of attention and help to redirect the team to what matters.
What ratio, percentage, correlation, or estimate are you using to create a sharper focus for your team? Consider trying a novel measurement to start a brand-new conversation within your team. It just takes some data and a dose of your creativity.