Do You Wonder Where You Stand with Your Team? (#287)

The Confident Leader

BOOST YOUR LEADERSHIP IN UNCERTAIN TIMES

Do you quietly wonder what your team thinks of your leadership?

Do you internalize each interaction with your team as a referendum on your leadership? 

• They smile: you’re doing great. 
• They are distant: they don’t like your leadership.

 Instead of guessing…just ask them! 

“Leadership is not about being in charge. It is about taking care of those in your charge.” — Simon Sinek

This Week’s Edition

Leaders may not be as intentional about developing themselves as they are about wanting their team to develop.

Clarify Your Thinking

At the end of each year, confident leaders take time to reflect.

What worked.
What didn’t.
What could they do differently.

That kind of reflection matters, but it doesn’t capture everything because it’s one-sided.

You can only assess your leadership from your vantage point, which necessarily means it doesn’t include how your leadership lands with others.

Because you don’t know what it’s like to be led by you, you may not know when you are hitting the mark, when you are totally off base, or when you are missing something crucial.

The “not-knowing” can cause leaders to spin, spending mental cycles guessing how they’re doing in leading their team. Confident leaders don’t guess…they ask!

Old Thinking
If something were wrong, I’d know. I’m self-aware enough to figure this out on my own.

New Thinking
My growth accelerates when I include the perspective of those I lead. Feedback isn’t a threat. It’s a gift.

Thoughts Lead to Actions

Feedback is the fastest way to uncover blind spots. But leaders aren’t conditioned to ask for feedback. Their skill lies in giving it. 

So, flip the script and ask for feedback as a direct path to meaningful growth for you as a leader. 

This may require double the courage and humility because this “high-risk” behavior sends you into unknown territory. You don’t know what they’ll share. 

Feedback doesn’t need to be formal, complicated, or overwhelming. It just needs to be honest.

Here’s how to invite it in a way that fosters trust and clarity:

1. Ask

• What do you want me to do more of?
• What do you want me to do less of?
• What do you want me to do differently?

2. Listen

• Stop talking. Listen.
• Don’t defend or explain. 
• Say “thank you.”

3. Look for Patterns and Themes

• One comment may be an outlier. 
• Repeated themes should get your attention. 

4. Choose One Area to Develop

• Don’t shut down.
• Resist the urge to fix “everything” 
• Identify one thing to improve that’ll have the biggest impact. 

5. Close the Loop

• Tell your team what you heard.
• Share what you are working on.
• Enroll them to help you adjust. 

The people you lead are the recipients of your leadership. Their perspective is essential if growth is your goal.

Boost Your Performance

This week’s video dives deeper into the discussion of how leaders can model the creation of a development plan.

What’s Your Opinion?

What’s one question you could ask your team this year that might change the way you lead?
Share your thoughts with me at robin.pou@robinpou.com.

If you are going to be a leader, you might as well be a good one. Don’t let doubt count you out. Have a confident week!

Robin Pou, Chief Advisor and Strategist

We live to make bad leadership extinct so forward this newsletter to others who strive to be confident leaders. 

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What is “The Confident Leader”?

During the Covid-19 Pandemic, I began a video series called “Panic or Plan?” It was designed to equip leaders to navigate the doubt they experienced and to rise in the confidence they needed to lead during turbulent times. It took off. I then started this newsletter to equip leaders in the same fashion each week for the doubt that crashes across the bow of their leaderSHIP.