February 3, 2025 • 28 mins
New to managing a team?
This episode is packed with actionable advice tailored for new leaders.
Join Tonya D. Harrison as she answers common questions, from making time for one-on-one meetings to managing former peers, and offers practical tips on strategic delegation.
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Episode Transcript
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Tonya Harrison (00:11):
Hello and welcome to another episode of
the Operations Toolbox podcastfor business leaders.
This is the show where we helpbusiness leaders build high-
performing build teams and leadwith clarity and confidence.
I'm your host, Tonya D Harrison, and today we are taking a
(00:32):
different look.
During this podcast, we'regoing to do something different.
Today I want to answer some ofthe most common questions I hear
from new leaders of teams.
These are the top fivequestions that I hear and we're
talking about from making timefor one-on-ones to navigating
(00:52):
tricky team dynamics.
We'll cover practicalstrategies to help you thrive in
your role.
Let's get started.
The very first question I haveis how do I make time for
one-on-ones with so much to do?
Listen, I get it.
I get it.
I have been there.
You have this to-do list and itis extremely long and it's
(01:17):
overwhelming and it is easy tothink about.
How do I set aside time to nowdo something else, to do
one-on-ones?
But I want you to change theway you think.
One-on-ones are an investmentin your team's success and in
(01:37):
your own sanity.
Trust me when I tell you this,and it is going to require a
shift in the mindset, right?
So a lot of times we think Idon't have a lot of time.
It's easier or quicker for meto do it myself and I have been
there and I did it but I cantell you with 100% certainty
(01:59):
that there is a better answerand these one-on-ones can be
game changing when you learn thefoundational way to do them
right.
So we were always told you needto do one-on-ones, you need to
be meeting with your team, and alot of times we're not given
any structure to it.
So I want to color some of thisin for you so that you could
(02:21):
have some actionable steps thatyou can go back and start
implementing right now when itcomes to doing your one-on-ones,
and so that you could have someactionable steps that you can
go back and start implementingright now when it comes to doing
your one-on-ones, and so thatyou can start reaping some of
the benefits.
The very first thing you want todo is time block.
You wanna dedicate recurringtime on your calendar for
one-on-ones.
This is set aside as thatsacred time that is going to be
(02:45):
for one-on-ones.
If you know that there's a timethat you are extremely busy and
you're always interrupted orthere's always some type of
other meetings going on, youdon't want to schedule your
one-on-ones doing that.
You want to pick a time thatyou could do it and be
consistent at it.
Pick a time that you could doit and be consistent at it.
(03:10):
Now, a lot of times, peoplerecommend that you do
one-on-ones for one hour blocks.
For me, I learned that doingthem in shorter period of time
works.
Now, how frequent you do it isgoing to be up to you.
So, initially, if you're notdoing any one-on-ones, you want
to try.
You want to, you know, trydifferent times, try different
lengths of times and things likethat, until you find something
that works for you and your team.
(03:31):
Just to get started, I wouldrecommend doing them biweekly
and you could do 20 to 30 minuteblocks, right?
So If you have multiple people,everybody gets 20 to 30 minutes
every other week, all right.
So the first thing you're goingto do is you're going to time
block.
You're going to block out sometime.
The second thing you want to dois you want to set an agenda,
(03:54):
because this time it has to befocused time.
You don't want to get in therefumbling and talking about, you
know, things that may not be apriority, that may not add value
, about things that may not be apriority, that may not add
value.
You wanna have an agenda,something that you and your team
member are able to share, andsomething that both of you can
(04:14):
add to and review beforemeetings and after meetings.
So keep it simple, though,right?
So you're gonna talk aboutthings like the progress what
progress are they making?
Do they have any challenges?
You're gonna talk about whatlike the progress what progress
are they making?
Do they have any challenges?
You're going to talk about whatyour priorities are, another
thing that you definitely wantto include.
If you are meeting twice a month, at least once a month, I would
(04:37):
talk specifically about whattheir goals are.
What are their career goals?
What does that journey looklike?
How can you help them achievesome of the things that they
want to achieve?
This is critical when we'retalking about building
relationships and building trust.
You need to understand whattheir objective is, not just
(04:57):
yours.
These one on ones are not justfor you.
It's for both of you.
The second thing you want to dois leverage any tools, right?
So I mentioned having a setagenda and I mentioned having a
shared agenda, so it could be ashared document.
That's a tool that you coulduse.
You could also use projectmanagement platforms, so there's
(05:17):
so many of them Asana, basecamp, clickup.
You could use a projectmanagement software to kind of
help you to share agendas butalso to keep up with tasks,
because some of them have whereyou can have an agenda and you
can turn certain things that arelisted on the agenda into a
task.
So it is really easy to kind ofkeep track of all of the things
(05:42):
that you talked about For me.
Now, this last point may notwork for everyone, but this last
one worked for me Batch whenpossible.
If you have multiple peoplethat you are working with so say
, you have a team of five peopleyou may want to batch two or
(06:03):
three one-on-ones, one rightbehind each other, or have five
10-minute breaks if you need abreak in between.
Now, the reason why I like todo that is because when I'm
having one-on-ones, I'm in acertain mindset.
I don't want to have aone-on-one and then go off and
start working on this report andget all deep into it and then
(06:26):
have to stop and change mymindset or my mind frame to now
go back to another one-on-one.
For me it works when I havethem right behind each other.
That just works really well.
And then the other thing is myday isn't broken up.
I can get my one-on-ones done,I can make sure this time is set
aside for exactly what it's for, and then I can start doing all
(06:50):
of my other work.
So with that, you're reallygoing to have to play around
with it.
If you're doing them everyother week, I could do two this
week, three next week you knowwhat I mean and then every week
I'm doing it.
Or I can do five in one weekand then have a week off.
However, it works for you.
You have to determine what yourschedule is, but doing the
(07:12):
one-on-ones are extremelyimportant.
It gives you an opportunity tocheck in with your team, to
build a relationship, to helpthem, to let them know that you
hear them, you see them, you'rethere for them and you're going
to help them throughout.
Let them know that you hearthem, you see them, you're there
for them and you're going tohelp them throughout this
process and that you want to seethem be successful.
That's why, at least one ofthem during that month, you need
(07:34):
to be talking about them andwhat their goals are and what
their objectives are.
All right.
So remember this isn't justanother task to do.
This is an opportunity for youto address issues, to strengthen
your team's engagement and yourrelationship with each and
every member of your team.
(07:55):
All right, so that is numberone.
That is about how to make thoseone-on-ones work right Now.
The second one is I got promotedover my friends.
What's the best approach tomanaging people who were peers?
I have to tell you, talkingabout transitioning from peer to
(08:18):
manager, initially it can feelawkward, but it is extremely
common.
It is a common challenge.
A lot of us have gone throughit and you can successfully
navigate it Right.
So here's a couple of tips whenit comes to doing that.
First of all, congratulations,if that is you, congratulations
(08:40):
on your promotion motion.
One of the things that you wantto do is you want to acknowledge
the shift.
Don't act like it didn't happen.
Don't act like things are goingto be the same.
I can tell you right now, ifthings are the same, that means
that you are probably, more thanlikely, headed for some
problems.
There should be a shift andthere should be a change, and
(09:03):
you want to make sure thatyou're having an open
conversation about it with yourteam, letting them know that.
Yes, I understand that we werepeers.
Here's the new role.
Tell them a little bit aboutyour new role.
Let them know that you respectthe past relationship, but you
understand that there has to bea change and that you are
(09:24):
committed to being fair andtransparent as possible.
The second thing that you wantto do, after you acknowledge it
and you have an openconversation, you want to set
boundaries.
Now you definitely want to beable to continue to have a
relationship but, like we said,that the dynamics of that
relationship are going torelationship are going to shift.
(09:46):
They're going to change.
There's going to be some thingsthat you probably can't tell
them or some conversations thatyou may not be able to have,
where you may have had openconversations with them before
you got promoted.
So there's going to be a shiftand, while you do want to keep
that relationship going, youdefinitely want to make sure you
(10:08):
establish professionalboundaries and this is going to
help you avoid favoritism andit'll help you treat everyone
equally.
So you are going to say whatthose boundaries are and you're
going to make sure that you areagain treating everyone equally
and the same Right.
(10:29):
So meaning you are going toexecute these boundaries the
same.
Be really clear on what yourexpectations are, be clear about
your role, be clear about whatyou expect from your team, and
this is going to help youminimize understanding.
So clarity is really going tobe your friend as you navigate
(10:52):
this transition.
One of the ways you can earntheir respect is by leading by
example.
We talk about this a lot, right?
So I have these boundaries,I've set these expectations.
I'm going to lead by example.
So if one of my expectations isthat everybody is at work on
(11:17):
time, I need to be at work ontime.
So you want to make sure thatyou are leading by example and
you're staying consistent andyou are focused on helping the
team to succeed.
Right?
So your actions is going tospeak louder than your words.
What you say has to be what itis that you do.
All right, so don't worry aboutit feeling a little different
(11:38):
At first.
That is normal.
That is going to happenEventually.
Everything and everyone willsettle in Over time.
People will adjust and they'llsee that you are committed to
the growth of the team and thesuccess of the team.
So just make sure you remainconsistent.
(12:00):
And again, I just want toreiterate that this is a gray
area and sometimes it can betough when you got promoted over
a friend and over your peers.
But I will say this if theywere truly your friends, they're
going to be happy for you andthey're going to understand that
(12:20):
a shift needs to happen.
All right.
Question number three I have alot to do.
I have a lot on my plate.
I don't have time to navigate.
Do you have any advice?
Yes, I do so.
This is a classic leadershiptrap, right, where we feel like
(12:42):
again, I can do it quicker,faster, better, I don't have
time to delegate.
Delegating is extremely timeconsuming and you know,
initially there is some upfronttime that has to be taken, but
it's long-term success, right.
So when it comes to delegating,this is a long game, even
(13:06):
though you still feel therewards in the short term, right
.
So when it comes to delegating,this is a long game.
Even though you still feel therewards in the short term right,
there's still some effort thathas to be exerted upfront.
So let's talk about how do youmake it manageable when you have
a lot going on.
Start small Nobody said that youhad to start delegating entire
projects.
Start smallate a task thatdoesn't require much oversight,
(13:30):
that doesn't require muchtraining.
This is an opportunity for youto build trust and confidence
with your team.
Give them something that issmall, see how they do, see how
they respond to you, and thenyou start building up to
something that is a little bitmore detailed.
A little bit that requires alot more effort and a little bit
(13:53):
more oversight and maybe eventraining on your side.
So make sure you're building upto that.
Leverage strengths.
So this is the other tip that Iwould give right.
So all team members are notcreated equal.
Everybody bring different value, different skills, different
talents to the team.
Make sure that you areutilizing those.
(14:13):
And here is where thoseone-on-ones really help you
along getting to understand whatthey like to do, what they're
good at doing, some of the areasthat they may have challenges
on, and things like that.
So all of this works together.
But leverage their strength.
Assign tasks based on yourteam's skills and interests to
(14:34):
ensure that they feel empoweredand they are capable.
And that leaves less trainingon your end, less follow up on
your end, because you're playingto their strengths.
So there's going to be somethings that you don't have to to
teach them on.
So you want to play to theirstrengths.
And then you want to createprocesses wherever possible.
(14:57):
If you are delegating somethingto them and this is something
that is done more than once, youknow it is done consistently,
you know, and there's not aprocess for it this is an
opportunity to create a process,to break it down into steps, to
document it, and now youactually have somebody to help
you document the process,because you're not the only one
(15:19):
that's doing it.
They've been doing it.
They can document the process.
This is something that you cando together, shared.
You could provide your input,you can review it and approve it
, and now everyone has it to use.
So if that person is out, youcan delegate it to somebody else
and they have something tostart with.
The last thing is check in, notmicromanage.
(15:44):
So one of the things you do notwant to do is to micromanage
your team, but you do want tocheck in on them, but do it in a
way that's a little structured,so they understand from the
beginning that you're going tobe following up.
So schedule brief follow-ups sothat you can address any
questions that they have, soyou're available to answer those
(16:07):
questions and that you canensure that the task or the
project is moving forward.
You can ensure that the task orthe project is moving forward.
Do not hover over them everyfive minutes asking for updates.
And then the other thing thatyou don't want to do is assign a
task and run.
So you want to make sure thatyou're doing these follow-ups so
(16:27):
that they know that they haveyour support and they can ask
you questions if they need toask you questions.
So you're not dumping, you'redelegating.
Anytime you delegate, it's awin-win situation.
You are able to take somethingoff your plate, give it to
someone else to do it and youare able to help them grow as a
(16:48):
team member.
So this is a new skill thatthey may be developing.
It's an opportunity to empowerthem and allow them to take on
additional responsibilities.
So delegating is a win-win.
When you dump, only one personwins, and that is the manager,
because you're getting somethingoff your plate which really, in
the end, most times is not awin, because you find that you
(17:10):
have to go back and redo itbecause you didn't do a really
great job at providinginstructions and following up
and answering questions.
So the key to delegation is tomake sure you do it in a way
that's a little bit structuredand that you are developing your
team and you are freeingyourself up, so now you can do
more higher value work or someof the work that you really
(17:34):
should be doing but you weren'tdoing because you were busy
taking on other tasks.
Question number four All right,my boss is extremely busy and
doesn't have time for one onones with me.
So I'm going to tell you alittle story.
I had a vice president when Ifirst became a manager.
(17:55):
He made the attempt, greatattempt.
He made the attempt to try totake us through this six-week
course where we would meet Allof the new supervisors would
meet every week and we had abook that we read and a couple
of videos that we watched and wewould have conversations.
But one of the things that hetaught us was about managing up,
(18:17):
and this is the first time thatI had heard about managing up.
Many times we sit back and wesay, oh, my boss doesn't have
time for me and you know, and weallow that to stunt our growth
and we allow that to stop usfrom excelling.
And what he was saying is whosaid that you can't take it into
your own hands?
Who said that you can't be theone to initiate one-on-ones.
(18:40):
So I would say the same thingto you If you have a manager or
someone that is really busy,doesn't take the time to do
one-on-ones.
You can take the initiative toschedule one-on-ones.
But here's some things that Iwould say around it.
Right, make sure that if youare booking time on your
(19:03):
manager's calendar, that youhave an agenda, you are really
clear on what it is that youwant to discuss and that you are
letting them know that youvalue their time.
You understand that they don'thave a lot of time and you value
their time.
So be proactive with settingthe time, requesting the meeting
(19:24):
, setting an agenda so they knowahead of time what it is that
you want to discuss.
That's extremely important.
The other thing that I want tosay make sure you do as much as
you can before reaching out toyour manager.
So remember, now you'reelevated, now you're not
(19:44):
frontline staff, you are asupervisor, a manager.
You are at a higher level, sothe level of expectation is
higher.
Make sure you've done all ofthe things that you could do
before scheduling time orreaching out or what have you
right.
So do your job to the best ofyour ability and when you are
(20:05):
completely stuck and you needthem, then you're going to reach
out.
This is going to do a couple ofthings.
They know that you are aself-starter.
To reach out, this is going todo a couple of things.
They know that you are aself-starter.
They know that you must reallyneed them and their attention if
you are scheduling a meeting,because this isn't something
that you do very often and whenyou do it it is focused and it
(20:27):
is something that will stopprogress, right?
So you want to make sure thatyou are conveying this
information to them.
I'm at a point where I can nolonger proceed with the project.
I really need your assistance.
So you take the initiative, youreach out to them, you schedule
the appointment, you set theagenda.
(20:47):
So now you're taking thingsinto your own hands.
So, basically, you're beingproactive and you want to find
creative ways to communicate.
If you know your boss is reallybig on email, they communicate
via email.
If it's Slack or projectmanagement software, then use
the project management software.
So you know, work within theirparameters as much as you can,
(21:11):
but you take the initiative todo so.
Question number five, and thisis our final question for this
episode.
Where can I find resources ormentors to guide me in this role
?
So if you are new to managingteams, you probably have a whole
lot of questions way more thanwhat I have here, way more than
(21:33):
what.
So finding resources andguidance can make a huge
difference in your leadershipjourney.
So I've listed a couple ofplaces that you could go so that
you can get some of theassistance that you're looking
for.
The first one is to leverageinternal networks, so you're
going to seek out experiencedcolleagues within your
(21:54):
organization who can offerinsights.
One of the things that I didwhen I was in corporate and at
different levels so when I was amanager, I was mentoring
supervisors and team leads.
Find people who are willing toinvest the time.
I met with people because ourworkday was really busy.
We had a lot of things going on.
(22:15):
There were times where I wouldmeet with people on lunch break
or take a 15-minute break andmentor them, or even in the
evenings.
So you have people that areopen and willing to do this and
want to see you be successfuland succeed.
You just have to seek them out,right.
(22:36):
So that's one thing that youcould do.
The second thing you could dois join professional groups.
There are some online groups.
Linkedin, I'm sure, hasdifferent groups.
You can do local associations.
You can do industry-specificcommunities.
This is an opportunity to meetwith people that are in the same
industry as you.
(22:56):
Usually they have multiplelevels of people, so you could
find people that you could notjust network with but identify
as a a mentor.
Reading and listening is numberthree books.
So I have read so manydifferent leadership books, some
that were recommended, somethat I went to Barnes and Noble
(23:19):
or online on Amazon and foundmyself when I was interested in
a specific topic.
You can listen to podcasts,like this one that you're
listening to now, and then alsothere may be some online courses
about leadership and operations, although there's not a lot
that have it blended the way wedo here, but you can have some
(23:41):
operations and some you knowleadership're doing one-on-one
right, because now you have thisperson's undivided attention
(24:15):
and everything is geared towardsyou, whereas if you join a
program or some type of groupcoaching, it's about the group.
You still have an opportunityto get some one-on-one, but it's
not at the level of aone-on-one, but usually it's not
as expensive either and you canstill get a lot of the
information that you need andyou want, and I'll talk to you
(24:37):
about my lead ops program that Ihave as well, which is a group
program.
The last one is attendworkshops.
So many organizations have theyoffer leadership training
sessions.
So if you have an interest inone specific theme, maybe you
want to learn a little bit moreabout delegation.
(24:57):
They may have a workshop ononly delegation.
Some of these are free.
Some of these are paid.
Usually, if you want a littlebit more in-depth insight, you
are going to opt for a paidversion, but though you could
find those kind of all over theplace, so make sure you are.
When you're looking for theseresources, make sure it's
(25:19):
something and someone thatresonates with you and your
style and things like that.
So the resources are definitelyout there.
You're going to have to do yourresearch to make sure that
you're finding something thatworks for you.
And, as we close, I want to tellyou a little bit about the
program I have, but I just wantyou to remember that this is a
(25:40):
journey, right?
So there are going to be somechallenges along the way and it
may seem intense at times, butjust make sure you know you have
the right strategies and thesupport, and that is going to be
something that is going tochange the game for you.
So, if you're ready to takeyour leadership journey to the
next level, I want to invite youto learn more about our Lead
(26:03):
Ops program.
This is a 90-day program thatuniquely combines operation
excellence with leadershipdevelopment to create real,
sustainable change, and that isreally one of the things that
sets us apart, because weunderstand that in order to
build high performing teams, youneed strong systems and strong
(26:26):
leaderships.
You know strong leadership, sowe combine them both together,
and the program is informationand implement implementation
focus.
So we're going to provide youwith information and then you
are going to be going back andimplementing the pillars and
principles that we share withyou real time and bringing them
(26:49):
back to the team, and then we'llhave some work weeks and some
time where you could really goback and assess how is this
working within your team, ifthere's some shifts or changes
that you need to make, andyou'll be able to do that as a
group under my guidance.
So if you wanna learn moreabout that, all you have to do
(27:10):
is really sign up for the teamnavigator email.
I share information.
During this newsletter, I shareinformation about the program
and about any other resourcesthat I have available.
So I want to thank you so muchfor joining the Operations
Toolbox podcast for businessleaders.
Don't forget to subscribe,share this episode and other
(27:33):
episodes with other leaders thatyou feel could use the
information.
Also, leave us a review andthen I also have an option where
you could text me questions.
I want to do more episodes likethis, where I'm answering real
questions that real leaders have, so you could share that with
me and then, when I get a couple, I'll create another episode
(27:56):
and share it with you, just likeI did this.
So until next time, keepbuilding high performing teams
and leading with clarity.
Have a great day.
Hello and welcome to another episode of
the Operations Toolbox podcastfor business leaders.
This is the show where we helpbusiness leaders build high-
performing build teams and leadwith clarity and confidence.
I'm your host, Tonya D Harrison, and today we are taking a
(00:32):
different look.
During this podcast, we'regoing to do something different.
Today I want to answer some ofthe most common questions I hear
from new leaders of teams.
These are the top fivequestions that I hear and we're
talking about from making timefor one-on-ones to navigating
(00:52):
tricky team dynamics.
We'll cover practicalstrategies to help you thrive in
your role.
Let's get started.
The very first question I haveis how do I make time for
one-on-ones with so much to do?
Listen, I get it.
I get it.
I have been there.
You have this to-do list and itis extremely long and it's
(01:17):
overwhelming and it is easy tothink about.
How do I set aside time to nowdo something else, to do
one-on-ones?
But I want you to change theway you think.
One-on-ones are an investmentin your team's success and in
(01:37):
your own sanity.
Trust me when I tell you this,and it is going to require a
shift in the mindset, right?
So a lot of times we think Idon't have a lot of time.
It's easier or quicker for meto do it myself and I have been
there and I did it but I cantell you with 100% certainty
(01:59):
that there is a better answerand these one-on-ones can be
game changing when you learn thefoundational way to do them
right.
So we were always told you needto do one-on-ones, you need to
be meeting with your team, and alot of times we're not given
any structure to it.
So I want to color some of thisin for you so that you could
(02:21):
have some actionable steps thatyou can go back and start
implementing right now when itcomes to doing your one-on-ones,
and so that you could have someactionable steps that you can
go back and start implementingright now when it comes to doing
your one-on-ones, and so thatyou can start reaping some of
the benefits.
The very first thing you want todo is time block.
You wanna dedicate recurringtime on your calendar for
one-on-ones.
This is set aside as thatsacred time that is going to be
(02:45):
for one-on-ones.
If you know that there's a timethat you are extremely busy and
you're always interrupted orthere's always some type of
other meetings going on, youdon't want to schedule your
one-on-ones doing that.
You want to pick a time thatyou could do it and be
consistent at it.
Pick a time that you could doit and be consistent at it.
(03:10):
Now, a lot of times, peoplerecommend that you do
one-on-ones for one hour blocks.
For me, I learned that doingthem in shorter period of time
works.
Now, how frequent you do it isgoing to be up to you.
So, initially, if you're notdoing any one-on-ones, you want
to try.
You want to, you know, trydifferent times, try different
lengths of times and things likethat, until you find something
that works for you and your team.
(03:31):
Just to get started, I wouldrecommend doing them biweekly
and you could do 20 to 30 minuteblocks, right?
So If you have multiple people,everybody gets 20 to 30 minutes
every other week, all right.
So the first thing you're goingto do is you're going to time
block.
You're going to block out sometime.
The second thing you want to dois you want to set an agenda,
(03:54):
because this time it has to befocused time.
You don't want to get in therefumbling and talking about, you
know, things that may not be apriority, that may not add value
, about things that may not be apriority, that may not add
value.
You wanna have an agenda,something that you and your team
member are able to share, andsomething that both of you can
(04:14):
add to and review beforemeetings and after meetings.
So keep it simple, though,right?
So you're gonna talk aboutthings like the progress what
progress are they making?
Do they have any challenges?
You're gonna talk about whatlike the progress what progress
are they making?
Do they have any challenges?
You're going to talk about whatyour priorities are, another
thing that you definitely wantto include.
If you are meeting twice a month, at least once a month, I would
(04:37):
talk specifically about whattheir goals are.
What are their career goals?
What does that journey looklike?
How can you help them achievesome of the things that they
want to achieve?
This is critical when we'retalking about building
relationships and building trust.
You need to understand whattheir objective is, not just
(04:57):
yours.
These one on ones are not justfor you.
It's for both of you.
The second thing you want to dois leverage any tools, right?
So I mentioned having a setagenda and I mentioned having a
shared agenda, so it could be ashared document.
That's a tool that you coulduse.
You could also use projectmanagement platforms, so there's
(05:17):
so many of them Asana, basecamp, clickup.
You could use a projectmanagement software to kind of
help you to share agendas butalso to keep up with tasks,
because some of them have whereyou can have an agenda and you
can turn certain things that arelisted on the agenda into a
task.
So it is really easy to kind ofkeep track of all of the things
(05:42):
that you talked about For me.
Now, this last point may notwork for everyone, but this last
one worked for me Batch whenpossible.
If you have multiple peoplethat you are working with so say
, you have a team of five peopleyou may want to batch two or
(06:03):
three one-on-ones, one rightbehind each other, or have five
10-minute breaks if you need abreak in between.
Now, the reason why I like todo that is because when I'm
having one-on-ones, I'm in acertain mindset.
I don't want to have aone-on-one and then go off and
start working on this report andget all deep into it and then
(06:26):
have to stop and change mymindset or my mind frame to now
go back to another one-on-one.
For me it works when I havethem right behind each other.
That just works really well.
And then the other thing is myday isn't broken up.
I can get my one-on-ones done,I can make sure this time is set
aside for exactly what it's for, and then I can start doing all
(06:50):
of my other work.
So with that, you're reallygoing to have to play around
with it.
If you're doing them everyother week, I could do two this
week, three next week you knowwhat I mean and then every week
I'm doing it.
Or I can do five in one weekand then have a week off.
However, it works for you.
You have to determine what yourschedule is, but doing the
(07:12):
one-on-ones are extremelyimportant.
It gives you an opportunity tocheck in with your team, to
build a relationship, to helpthem, to let them know that you
hear them, you see them, you'rethere for them and you're going
to help them throughout.
Let them know that you hearthem, you see them, you're there
for them and you're going tohelp them throughout this
process and that you want to seethem be successful.
That's why, at least one ofthem during that month, you need
(07:34):
to be talking about them andwhat their goals are and what
their objectives are.
All right.
So remember this isn't justanother task to do.
This is an opportunity for youto address issues, to strengthen
your team's engagement and yourrelationship with each and
every member of your team.
(07:55):
All right, so that is numberone.
That is about how to make thoseone-on-ones work right Now.
The second one is I got promotedover my friends.
What's the best approach tomanaging people who were peers?
I have to tell you, talkingabout transitioning from peer to
(08:18):
manager, initially it can feelawkward, but it is extremely
common.
It is a common challenge.
A lot of us have gone throughit and you can successfully
navigate it Right.
So here's a couple of tips whenit comes to doing that.
First of all, congratulations,if that is you, congratulations
(08:40):
on your promotion motion.
One of the things that you wantto do is you want to acknowledge
the shift.
Don't act like it didn't happen.
Don't act like things are goingto be the same.
I can tell you right now, ifthings are the same, that means
that you are probably, more thanlikely, headed for some
problems.
There should be a shift andthere should be a change, and
(09:03):
you want to make sure thatyou're having an open
conversation about it with yourteam, letting them know that.
Yes, I understand that we werepeers.
Here's the new role.
Tell them a little bit aboutyour new role.
Let them know that you respectthe past relationship, but you
understand that there has to bea change and that you are
(09:24):
committed to being fair andtransparent as possible.
The second thing that you wantto do, after you acknowledge it
and you have an openconversation, you want to set
boundaries.
Now you definitely want to beable to continue to have a
relationship but, like we said,that the dynamics of that
relationship are going torelationship are going to shift.
(09:46):
They're going to change.
There's going to be some thingsthat you probably can't tell
them or some conversations thatyou may not be able to have,
where you may have had openconversations with them before
you got promoted.
So there's going to be a shiftand, while you do want to keep
that relationship going, youdefinitely want to make sure you
(10:08):
establish professionalboundaries and this is going to
help you avoid favoritism andit'll help you treat everyone
equally.
So you are going to say whatthose boundaries are and you're
going to make sure that you areagain treating everyone equally
and the same Right.
(10:29):
So meaning you are going toexecute these boundaries the
same.
Be really clear on what yourexpectations are, be clear about
your role, be clear about whatyou expect from your team, and
this is going to help youminimize understanding.
So clarity is really going tobe your friend as you navigate
(10:52):
this transition.
One of the ways you can earntheir respect is by leading by
example.
We talk about this a lot, right?
So I have these boundaries,I've set these expectations.
I'm going to lead by example.
So if one of my expectations isthat everybody is at work on
(11:17):
time, I need to be at work ontime.
So you want to make sure thatyou are leading by example and
you're staying consistent andyou are focused on helping the
team to succeed.
Right?
So your actions is going tospeak louder than your words.
What you say has to be what itis that you do.
All right, so don't worry aboutit feeling a little different
(11:38):
At first.
That is normal.
That is going to happenEventually.
Everything and everyone willsettle in Over time.
People will adjust and they'llsee that you are committed to
the growth of the team and thesuccess of the team.
So just make sure you remainconsistent.
(12:00):
And again, I just want toreiterate that this is a gray
area and sometimes it can betough when you got promoted over
a friend and over your peers.
But I will say this if theywere truly your friends, they're
going to be happy for you andthey're going to understand that
(12:20):
a shift needs to happen.
All right.
Question number three I have alot to do.
I have a lot on my plate.
I don't have time to navigate.
Do you have any advice?
Yes, I do so.
This is a classic leadershiptrap, right, where we feel like
(12:42):
again, I can do it quicker,faster, better, I don't have
time to delegate.
Delegating is extremely timeconsuming and you know,
initially there is some upfronttime that has to be taken, but
it's long-term success, right.
So when it comes to delegating,this is a long game, even
(13:06):
though you still feel therewards in the short term, right
.
So when it comes to delegating,this is a long game.
Even though you still feel therewards in the short term right,
there's still some effort thathas to be exerted upfront.
So let's talk about how do youmake it manageable when you have
a lot going on.
Start small Nobody said that youhad to start delegating entire
projects.
Start smallate a task thatdoesn't require much oversight,
(13:30):
that doesn't require muchtraining.
This is an opportunity for youto build trust and confidence
with your team.
Give them something that issmall, see how they do, see how
they respond to you, and thenyou start building up to
something that is a little bitmore detailed.
A little bit that requires alot more effort and a little bit
(13:53):
more oversight and maybe eventraining on your side.
So make sure you're building upto that.
Leverage strengths.
So this is the other tip that Iwould give right.
So all team members are notcreated equal.
Everybody bring different value, different skills, different
talents to the team.
Make sure that you areutilizing those.
(14:13):
And here is where thoseone-on-ones really help you
along getting to understand whatthey like to do, what they're
good at doing, some of the areasthat they may have challenges
on, and things like that.
So all of this works together.
But leverage their strength.
Assign tasks based on yourteam's skills and interests to
(14:34):
ensure that they feel empoweredand they are capable.
And that leaves less trainingon your end, less follow up on
your end, because you're playingto their strengths.
So there's going to be somethings that you don't have to to
teach them on.
So you want to play to theirstrengths.
And then you want to createprocesses wherever possible.
(14:57):
If you are delegating somethingto them and this is something
that is done more than once, youknow it is done consistently,
you know, and there's not aprocess for it this is an
opportunity to create a process,to break it down into steps, to
document it, and now youactually have somebody to help
you document the process,because you're not the only one
(15:19):
that's doing it.
They've been doing it.
They can document the process.
This is something that you cando together, shared.
You could provide your input,you can review it and approve it
, and now everyone has it to use.
So if that person is out, youcan delegate it to somebody else
and they have something tostart with.
The last thing is check in, notmicromanage.
(15:44):
So one of the things you do notwant to do is to micromanage
your team, but you do want tocheck in on them, but do it in a
way that's a little structured,so they understand from the
beginning that you're going tobe following up.
So schedule brief follow-ups sothat you can address any
questions that they have, soyou're available to answer those
(16:07):
questions and that you canensure that the task or the
project is moving forward.
You can ensure that the task orthe project is moving forward.
Do not hover over them everyfive minutes asking for updates.
And then the other thing thatyou don't want to do is assign a
task and run.
So you want to make sure thatyou're doing these follow-ups so
(16:27):
that they know that they haveyour support and they can ask
you questions if they need toask you questions.
So you're not dumping, you'redelegating.
Anytime you delegate, it's awin-win situation.
You are able to take somethingoff your plate, give it to
someone else to do it and youare able to help them grow as a
(16:48):
team member.
So this is a new skill thatthey may be developing.
It's an opportunity to empowerthem and allow them to take on
additional responsibilities.
So delegating is a win-win.
When you dump, only one personwins, and that is the manager,
because you're getting somethingoff your plate which really, in
the end, most times is not awin, because you find that you
(17:10):
have to go back and redo itbecause you didn't do a really
great job at providinginstructions and following up
and answering questions.
So the key to delegation is tomake sure you do it in a way
that's a little bit structuredand that you are developing your
team and you are freeingyourself up, so now you can do
more higher value work or someof the work that you really
(17:34):
should be doing but you weren'tdoing because you were busy
taking on other tasks.
Question number four All right,my boss is extremely busy and
doesn't have time for one onones with me.
So I'm going to tell you alittle story.
I had a vice president when Ifirst became a manager.
(17:55):
He made the attempt, greatattempt.
He made the attempt to try totake us through this six-week
course where we would meet Allof the new supervisors would
meet every week and we had abook that we read and a couple
of videos that we watched and wewould have conversations.
But one of the things that hetaught us was about managing up,
(18:17):
and this is the first time thatI had heard about managing up.
Many times we sit back and wesay, oh, my boss doesn't have
time for me and you know, and weallow that to stunt our growth
and we allow that to stop usfrom excelling.
And what he was saying is whosaid that you can't take it into
your own hands?
Who said that you can't be theone to initiate one-on-ones.
(18:40):
So I would say the same thingto you If you have a manager or
someone that is really busy,doesn't take the time to do
one-on-ones.
You can take the initiative toschedule one-on-ones.
But here's some things that Iwould say around it.
Right, make sure that if youare booking time on your
(19:03):
manager's calendar, that youhave an agenda, you are really
clear on what it is that youwant to discuss and that you are
letting them know that youvalue their time.
You understand that they don'thave a lot of time and you value
their time.
So be proactive with settingthe time, requesting the meeting
(19:24):
, setting an agenda so they knowahead of time what it is that
you want to discuss.
That's extremely important.
The other thing that I want tosay make sure you do as much as
you can before reaching out toyour manager.
So remember, now you'reelevated, now you're not
(19:44):
frontline staff, you are asupervisor, a manager.
You are at a higher level, sothe level of expectation is
higher.
Make sure you've done all ofthe things that you could do
before scheduling time orreaching out or what have you
right.
So do your job to the best ofyour ability and when you are
(20:05):
completely stuck and you needthem, then you're going to reach
out.
This is going to do a couple ofthings.
They know that you are aself-starter.
To reach out, this is going todo a couple of things.
They know that you are aself-starter.
They know that you must reallyneed them and their attention if
you are scheduling a meeting,because this isn't something
that you do very often and whenyou do it it is focused and it
(20:27):
is something that will stopprogress, right?
So you want to make sure thatyou are conveying this
information to them.
I'm at a point where I can nolonger proceed with the project.
I really need your assistance.
So you take the initiative, youreach out to them, you schedule
the appointment, you set theagenda.
(20:47):
So now you're taking thingsinto your own hands.
So, basically, you're beingproactive and you want to find
creative ways to communicate.
If you know your boss is reallybig on email, they communicate
via email.
If it's Slack or projectmanagement software, then use
the project management software.
So you know, work within theirparameters as much as you can,
(21:11):
but you take the initiative todo so.
Question number five, and thisis our final question for this
episode.
Where can I find resources ormentors to guide me in this role
?
So if you are new to managingteams, you probably have a whole
lot of questions way more thanwhat I have here, way more than
(21:33):
what.
So finding resources andguidance can make a huge
difference in your leadershipjourney.
So I've listed a couple ofplaces that you could go so that
you can get some of theassistance that you're looking
for.
The first one is to leverageinternal networks, so you're
going to seek out experiencedcolleagues within your
(21:54):
organization who can offerinsights.
One of the things that I didwhen I was in corporate and at
different levels so when I was amanager, I was mentoring
supervisors and team leads.
Find people who are willing toinvest the time.
I met with people because ourworkday was really busy.
We had a lot of things going on.
(22:15):
There were times where I wouldmeet with people on lunch break
or take a 15-minute break andmentor them, or even in the
evenings.
So you have people that areopen and willing to do this and
want to see you be successfuland succeed.
You just have to seek them out,right.
(22:36):
So that's one thing that youcould do.
The second thing you could dois join professional groups.
There are some online groups.
Linkedin, I'm sure, hasdifferent groups.
You can do local associations.
You can do industry-specificcommunities.
This is an opportunity to meetwith people that are in the same
industry as you.
(22:56):
Usually they have multiplelevels of people, so you could
find people that you could notjust network with but identify
as a a mentor.
Reading and listening is numberthree books.
So I have read so manydifferent leadership books, some
that were recommended, somethat I went to Barnes and Noble
(23:19):
or online on Amazon and foundmyself when I was interested in
a specific topic.
You can listen to podcasts,like this one that you're
listening to now, and then alsothere may be some online courses
about leadership and operations, although there's not a lot
that have it blended the way wedo here, but you can have some
(23:41):
operations and some you knowleadership're doing one-on-one
right, because now you have thisperson's undivided attention
(24:15):
and everything is geared towardsyou, whereas if you join a
program or some type of groupcoaching, it's about the group.
You still have an opportunityto get some one-on-one, but it's
not at the level of aone-on-one, but usually it's not
as expensive either and you canstill get a lot of the
information that you need andyou want, and I'll talk to you
(24:37):
about my lead ops program that Ihave as well, which is a group
program.
The last one is attendworkshops.
So many organizations have theyoffer leadership training
sessions.
So if you have an interest inone specific theme, maybe you
want to learn a little bit moreabout delegation.
(24:57):
They may have a workshop ononly delegation.
Some of these are free.
Some of these are paid.
Usually, if you want a littlebit more in-depth insight, you
are going to opt for a paidversion, but though you could
find those kind of all over theplace, so make sure you are.
When you're looking for theseresources, make sure it's
(25:19):
something and someone thatresonates with you and your
style and things like that.
So the resources are definitelyout there.
You're going to have to do yourresearch to make sure that
you're finding something thatworks for you.
And, as we close, I want to tellyou a little bit about the
program I have, but I just wantyou to remember that this is a
(25:40):
journey, right?
So there are going to be somechallenges along the way and it
may seem intense at times, butjust make sure you know you have
the right strategies and thesupport, and that is going to be
something that is going tochange the game for you.
So, if you're ready to takeyour leadership journey to the
next level, I want to invite youto learn more about our Lead
(26:03):
Ops program.
This is a 90-day program thatuniquely combines operation
excellence with leadershipdevelopment to create real,
sustainable change, and that isreally one of the things that
sets us apart, because weunderstand that in order to
build high performing teams, youneed strong systems and strong
(26:26):
leaderships.
You know strong leadership, sowe combine them both together,
and the program is informationand implement implementation
focus.
So we're going to provide youwith information and then you
are going to be going back andimplementing the pillars and
principles that we share withyou real time and bringing them
(26:49):
back to the team, and then we'llhave some work weeks and some
time where you could really goback and assess how is this
working within your team, ifthere's some shifts or changes
that you need to make, andyou'll be able to do that as a
group under my guidance.
So if you wanna learn moreabout that, all you have to do
(27:10):
is really sign up for the teamnavigator email.
I share information.
During this newsletter, I shareinformation about the program
and about any other resourcesthat I have available.
So I want to thank you so muchfor joining the Operations
Toolbox podcast for businessleaders.
Don't forget to subscribe,share this episode and other
(27:33):
episodes with other leaders thatyou feel could use the
information.
Also, leave us a review andthen I also have an option where
you could text me questions.
I want to do more episodes likethis, where I'm answering real
questions that real leaders have, so you could share that with
me and then, when I get a couple, I'll create another episode
(27:56):
and share it with you, just likeI did this.
So until next time, keepbuilding high performing teams
and leading with clarity.
Have a great day.
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