strengths
Sometimes it is hard to manage to motivate, inspire and support others. What if there is a perfect, individual meeting which is motivating for everybody? What are the tactics and tools which can support us?
For several weeks now I have been dealing with leadership styles, goals, communication in the team and how to achieve corporate goals with teamwork. Our fast-paced workplaces leave little room for good-quality discussions. Teams – and the whole company – would become more successful if we focused on strengths. Wouldn’t it be good to have tools that allow you to respond effectively to each individual in a digital world?
Today, I had several back-to-back meetings, I was rushing from one meeting to the next from the time I arrived at the office until it was time for me to leave. I bet your day is not very different. In a busy day like this, how do you find the time to have good quality discussions? How do you get to really know your team members and what they are good at? Don’t worry, there are tools available that can support.
Team Space – one of the magic tools
Cisco is using a tool called Team Space for employees and team leaders. Once a week every employee logs in to the tool and writes down their priorities for the coming week and what support they need from the team leader. The tool also asks if there was a chance last week to take advantage of your strengths, what were the highlights and lowlights of your previous week and if your team leader has caught up with you about your priorities.
If you are a team leader, there is the possibility to see if your team members need your support, how they are feeling about their roles and where the priorities lie in the coming week.
My experience
At first, I used Team Space with great suspicion, as it felt strange to indicate it on a scale whether I had a particular success last week or whether I had used my strengths every day.
However, the more I came to grips with the tool, the more I’m convinced that it benefits employees and team leaders alike. After a few weeks I really saw the benefit, it helps me to prioritize, focus and reflect on my topics for the coming week, and to take a moment to acknowledge my achievements from the past week. I feel now to be more structured and productive and it reminds me to keep focus on the important tasks.
What if we ask questions?
What a digital tool like Team Space is doing: asking simple questions. This can also be something we as leaders can do:
- What kind of support do you need from me?
- What works and what does not? Or how do you do it?
- What are you working on, how can I help you with that?
I think we all ask far too few questions. We should also ask ourselves:
- Is this task important to achieve my goal?
- Did I use my strengths every day this week?
- The right questions can help you prioritize and focus.
This makes it easy for me to reflect and get closer to my goals. It also makes me happier and more motivated, and that turns into more productivity.
Now to summarize: Digital tools and asking the right questions can be really supportive for both, leaders and individuals, to work on the right things and to keep focus in a digital world.
How should a perfect 1:1 in a digital world look like? And how digital tools can support employees and leaders? This is something which I would like to handle in my next blog.
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