I've been on a team like that before where I often wonder,
do you guys even have any idea of what we do?
You've just made this so much harder.
Hey there, welcome to MakTV.
Where we of course we believe that that transformation from manager to leader is
such a crucial one because it's leaders that change lives and they are the ones
that have a profound effect on today's working environment.
So today is part two in the three part mini series for first time managers such
as yourself.
And last week we actually talked about how you can identify your strengths and
weaknesses through the SWOT analysis, which I hope you did.
As well as how you can leverage your team's strengths and empower them to run
with the ball wherever possible.
As well as the need to take ownership as a brand new leader.
So if you did not watch that episode, that's okay.
I will link it for you right here. And of course in the description box below.
Okay, so let's get started. Tip number four is to make it an aim goal,
whatever you want to call it,
to ensure that you are getting in the trenches with your team regularly.
Have you ever been part of a team where the leadership around you is making
procedures and policies that are making life really hard or to be honest,
just don't make sense.
I know I've been on a team like that before where I often wonder,
do you guys even have any idea of what we do?
You just made this so much harder. Now,
the core reason why leaders make these types of decisions or these knee jerk
reactions is because they have no clue what's actually going on.
They usually make these decisions based on hearsay or customer insights or
everything else under the sun.
And that's because they just don't have their finger on the pulse or they're
just far too distant from it. Now, in last week's episode,
we highlighted the fact that your job is to create an environment for your team
to bring their best and to do their best work every day.
That is virtually impossible if you have no idea what's going on.
You want to know what one of my favorite things was to do with my team?
Jumping on the phone and seeing who can outdo who.
Now I'm not going to say who would often win though. I'm sure you could guess.
Um,
but the point is I did this regularly and it was a ton of fun just sitting there
side by side with them, answering the phones,
doing what I used to do in the first place.
It did a couple other things for me that was really important.
It kept me humble. It kept me informed,
and it kept me sensitive to their needs because I was constantly in there.
Well not constantly,
but regularly in there with them seeing what was really going on. So yeah,
and now you have this promotion and you are the leader,
but that should never stop you from getting in there and being in the trenches
with them. You know Tony Hshieh, who I talk about quite often,
the CEO of Zappos, when I went for their culture camp,
I had an opportunity to sit with their call center.
You know what I found out that every single year Tony gets in the trenches with
them during Christmas time when everybody else wants to be off and he's
answering the phones with them. Now, apparently he's not really that good.
But the point is he's there.
What I found interesting about this is that he's right there with the most outer
most department.
The call center one that is often forgotten in a lot of companies and they love
and respect him for it. So here's my point.
If the CEO of Zappos who has 1500 plus employees can make time to get in the
trenches with his team, then what about you?
So tip number five is to learn to ask questions. Trust me,
learn from my mistakes. I had a very,
very bad habit of just when someone came to me and asked me a question,
I would get in there and try and solve it for them.
And this is just a really bad idea.
And it was one of the worst things that I could do for them and for me because
when I got in there and answered the question or did the work for them,
I wasn't allowing them to develop and I wasn't allowing them to stand on their
own two feet. I mean,
now when I look back and I really try and think of what the core problem was of
that symptom, I think it was definitely a validation thing.
I wanted to be their hero. But it was a bad idea.
And so I discourage you from doing the same thing.
Because here's what's going to happen if you get into the habit of doing things
for them.
When you do decide to pivot or as you get busier and you are not able to do this
work for them, you know it will be kind of hard on that because they'll wonder,
okay, are you mad at them? You don't want to help them?
Or what's the intent behind this? So it's much better to start off, you know,
bouncing back the question. So if someone comes to you, you could just say,
well, what do you think? Or you know, how would you like to do it?
And get them to just work it through in their head? I swear to you,
oftentimes you will find that they probably have the answer,
but maybe they were just too nervous to run with it themselves, or whatnot,
or they just wanted to bounce their ideas off of you.
So get into the habit of asking questions. So tip number six,
which is something that I am very passionate about look at me,
I'm getting all heated. Just thinking about it. It Is that you must,
as a leader, identify,
anticipate and plow down roadblocks that stand in the way of your team doing
their work. Arguably,
one of the biggest spaces where you should be spending your time is plowing down
those roadblocks for your team. Because if your teammate cannot do their job,
that's on you. So you have to develop the mindset of Roadrunner.
Think about what's impeding their way and just knock it down for them.
Ask them consistently what they need or observe what will make their lives
easier. And just do it. I mean,
there's absolutely no excuse for not doing this for your teammates.
I know managers that will spend a whole lot of time in meetings and doing things
that they think fit the managerial bill, but while they're busy doing that,
they are essentially leaving their teammates out to dry.
Let me give you an example of what I mean. If your teammate relies on let's say,
a document to help them give stellar service,
which is an expectation that you have on them and you think it is a higher
priority to be in random meetings instead of ensuring that that document is
updated. Well, if they give less than stellar service,
then that's actually on you because you didn't make it a priority to make sure
they have what they need.
So do whatever it is you have to do to ensure that their tools are updated,
that their workspace is workable. And that their computers work.
Do whatever it is you must do so that they can do their jobs effectively.
Now the good news is that going back to my first point in this video is that you
will be in the trenches with them on a regular basis.
So this will give you an edge as to what's really going on in the team and where
they need the assistance or the updates or the help.
But try not to be sensitive to what they need just in those instances when
you're in the trenches. Try and be consistently sensitive to this.
So when you know when you're in a one-on-one, ask them,
is there anything that's like impeding your ways or anything that I can do to
help so that you can do your job more efficiently. Just have that mindset of,
like I said,
Roadrunner of ensuring that you're making sure that the team can do their job as
effectively as possible. So even though this video is over,
I do encourage you to head over to makedaandrews.com where you will find a free
new manager starter kit,
which is an ebook devoted to you so that you can kick ass in this role.
In the meantime,
I want you to hit on that subscribe and notification bell so you don't miss out
on next week's video. As always, thank you so much for watching.
It was great to have you,
and I hope you have a fantastic rest of the week and don't forget to keep
smiling. I'll see you in the next one.