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team leadership

The Plateau

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Your team worked long and hard to achieve this milestone – they need some rest!

I recently finished creating a quiz for Project Managers. It’s called “What’s Your Project Leadership Type”. It took me months, lots of effort, some late nights, and a fair bit of revising & rethinking along the way. 

As the quiz neared completion, I was doing great – making quick decisions, easily hooking up the tech, and making huge progress every day. I was so excited when I went through it one last time and couldn’t think of any other adjustments – I was DONE!

But over the next few days, instead of building on that momentum and quickly taking the next steps to get my quiz “out there” in the market…I actually started to feel a bit adrift. I *wanted* everyone to take the quiz, and I *wanted* to start presenting the accompanying webinar on Leadership Types.

But I found my motivation was actually lower than normal.  Sleep in? Garden? Read a novel? Yes, please!

And to my frustration, I couldn’t seem to figure out exactly what the next step should be, so it was tough to hook onto some kind of action to keep me moving forward.

What in the world was going on??

That “lull” I was experiencing is actually perfectly normal. It’s the “plateau” you reach after making a big, long duration effort. Think hiking up a mountain trail. You keep climbing up with no relief until you hit that bit of level ground where the view is amazing.

This plateau is what your team feels whenever they hit a milestone.

Which milestones? Any that take effort. For example:

  • Blueprinting is done or requirements signed off
  • User Training is over
  • Data conversion is successfully completed
  • A major demo is given to the customer (or executives)

Your team worked long and hard to hit each of these milestones. They’re much more than a line item on the schedule.

Be aware that your people are going to lose a little momentum. They may slide backwards in the area of team development and start “storming” for a while. They may chat a bit more during a meeting, or seem unable to make decisions.

Don’t worry – just like when I feel the need to curl up and read a book all afternoon, your people need some time to recover.

When will they get back to “normal”? It depends on a few things:

  • How long was the heavy lifting…and how much effort did they put into reaching this milestone? 1 week of all-day testing might be draining, but if your team has been burning the midnight oil for 2 months, they’ll need longer to recover
  • How strong are they as a team? If part of the effort was dealing with each other, they may be hesitant to jump back into close quarters again (even if it’s virtual)
  • Were they able to recover from the last milestone before the current one began? My husband had a manager who used to tell the team they needed to “surge”. The team would grumble “when are we ever not surging?!”

Since they hit the last milestone out of the park, no doubt the team will eventually recover. But you have a big influence on their plateau’s duration and intensity. Remember to let them rest. And help them prepare for whatever comes next.

The Problem with Helicopter Leadership

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Do they really need the rescue?

I was listening to a podcast about children and anxiety. The host (a psychologist) said oftentimes parents tell their kids “Just do your best. If you are struggling with something, we’ll find someone to help you get better.”

She went on to say this is actually conflicting instruction. It tells the kids that sometimes their best won’t measure up and someone needs to swoop in to make sure they do better.

She gave the example of her nephew. He’s in the 4th grade. He was assigned an oral book presentation for class via Zoom.

His mom had two options:

  1. Option 1: Ask him about the book, set a schedule for first draft, final draft, and practice times in front of mom, make sure he goes to bed on time the night before and eat a good breakfast the day of the presentation. Afterwards, grill him on the details, how he could improve for next time, etc.
  2. Option 2: Be aware of the assignment. Ask how he’s feeling and if he needs anything. Listen if he wants to share – but don’t interrupt. Then, after the report, ask how it went and how he felt about it. Don’t worry about anything else – he’s only in 4th grade!

Option 1 sets up the child for anxiety and stress. Option 2 gives him a sense of accomplishment and encourages independence.

When Mom takes over in Option 1, it also teaches the child that he’s not good enough and someone else needs to be in charge. This is also known as “learned helplessness.”

My question for you today is this: when it comes to project leadership, what messages are you sending your team?

Are you listening, guiding, and letting your team learn so they’re more independent?

Or are you micro-managing – attending every sub-group meeting and telling them exactly what they should do so they don’t make a mistake?

We want our project to run smoothly and our team to succeed.

But it can be difficult to let go of the need for everything to be perfect. The truth is, our people won’t feel a sense of accomplishment, and they won’t be able to work without your guidance if they never do anything on their own.

How can we learn to let go?

When considering what to let your team work on without you, ask yourself these two fundamental questions:

  1. Is your team ready for this next level of independence?
  2. Is the risk low enough that failure won’t tank your project?

If the answer to these questions is “yes”, then let go of the reins.

If you have a good relationship with your team, they’ll ask you when they need help.

Be ready when their output isn’t perfect. Then be ready when the next item they take on is better!

Before you know it, your project team will be independent, strong, and successful.

And you can feel proud to have helped them get there.

What Sets Your Virtual Meetings Apart?

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My PM mentoring program ran a virtual panel discussion recently. The topic was Lessons Learned…or Retrospectives, if you’re Agile-minded.

9 a.m. on a Saturday morning and 16 people took time out of their short weekend to hop on a call and talk project management!

You’d think the conversation would be, well, sleepy, at least. But it was an amazingly quick hour and we could have easily talked for another.

I was reflecting on what made it such a great meeting.

Yes, the panelists were knowledgeable and gave us practical advice. And yes, there was a feeling of camaraderie amongst the attendees. And, certainly, there was A LOT to talk about!

At the end of the meeting, one of the participants made a special mention of how great our Moderator, Helen, was.

This called to mind a conversation I had a few days ago with my father. He has been on a ton of Zoom calls lately. Like all of us, he’s getting a little “Zoomed out”. 

He told me in many of his meetings it’s hard to follow the flow of conversation or to know when to jump in with a comment or question. It takes extra effort to be focused and active in the discussion.

I asked him why.

He said that when you’re in person, you pick up on cues from other people’s body language. 

If you need to be heard, you can let the manager know with a simple action like raising you hand or catching their eye. And it’s easier for them to control the flow of conversation, too.

But when everyone’s virtual, it’s tougher to pick up on those cues. You need to rely more on the facilitator to guide the discussion. You can’t use eye contact to capture the manager’s attention well. And there’s no guarantee they’ll see a hand being raised on screen.

I get it!

If you don’t have someone skilled leading the meeting, it makes for a long hour.

What set apart the Lessons Learned discussion was the pacing and flow. Helen gave enough time for each panelist to answer a question and then moved people along, noting who hadn’t had a chance to participate and including them in the discussion.

She set the tempo and everyone followed. This allowed our panelists to share their advice and insight – and for all of us to take it in before we moved onto the next topic.

Whether it’s a Lessons Learned, a Team Meeting, Kick-Off Call, or any other interaction, the person in charge needs to, well, take charge. To lead.

The goal of a meeting is to make sure the objectives are met.  (Why else would you be holding the meeting, anyway?) Our role as Project Manager is to help the team achieve them.

At our best, we shift the spotlight away from us and concentrate on the needs of our team. Are they actively involved, focused, and moving together towards the goal?

We moderate. We facilitate.

We work hard to make it look easy.

Why is that important? 

Because we want the team to concentrate on reaching the objective, not worrying about how they’re going to make their point, or trying to follow everyone’s frantic grab for airtime.

The next time you’re a participant in a virtual meeting, observe how it’s facilitated. Is everyone sharing? How is the pacing? Is anyone allowed to drone on? Does it all feel rushed – or slow?

Then, during your own meeting, pay close attention to the cues your team is sending. Make adjustments if you need to. 

Remember that you have a big part in the success of the meeting, just by setting the pace and flow.

Clocks, Pie, and People

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First things first:  

Did you remember to turn your clocks forward?

For those of us who live in an area that still follows Daylight Savings, we shifted our clocks ahead one hour last night.

This elicits a groan from most people, and I honestly don’t know a single person who enjoys this semi-annual “mess up your internal clock” ritual.

And I have not heard a good argument for keeping it, now that we have harnessed the power of electricity (fun fact: Thomas Edison invented the electric light bulb in 1879).

Next:

Happy Pi Day!

I love Pi Day – it’s a great excuse to indulge in my all-time favorite pie…apple! 

My dad always loved chocolate cream pie…just checked, and it’s still his favorite. My husband enjoys apple – though pumpkin comes a close second.

None of us like pecan.

So you might be wondering, what does this have to do with Leadership?

Not everyone is going to like the same things. On your project, there will be some people with whom you just don’t connect.

Like turning our clocks ahead, maybe there is an executive who insists on 8 a.m. meetings (or 6 p.m.) or wants a detailed report of what every team member worked on for the past month, down to the half hour.

Or enjoying a slice of pie after a nice meal, sometimes you are served you own personal version of pecan. It could be a team member who knows what they’re doing, but you just don’t feel that connection. It’s tough to communicate with them. Or you find yourself on edge around them.

The reality is, to do our job and complete the project, we need to deal with these folks.

How do we handle working with them without frustration, resentment, or stress?

We can’t suddenly stop working with these stakeholders, just like we can’t suddenly love pecan pie. But we can get used to working with them and to make the best of the situation.

Here are some techniques:

  • Learn their motivation. Observation is your friend. Why does that one executive need detailed reports? Pay attention to what they focus on in the report itself. They could be wrestling with a particular resource issue and really need the data. Or they’ve been burned on a past project and now they’re overly cautious. Once you understand their motivation, there may be more efficient ways to help them achieve their goals or reduce their stress…and achieve the same for you!
  • Stick to business. Bottom line here is that we’re not on the project to make friends. Yes, we will be closer to some team members, but at the base of it all is the work to complete the project. When there is a stakeholder I don’t quite connect with, it’s much easier to focus on having a pleasant interaction that only involves the task at hand.
  • Pay attention to how others react to them. Your responsibility is not only to get the project completed, but to help everyone achieve their best work. Are other team members avoiding your outlier? I take a look around the room and in the mirror: if a resource hits me wrong, it may only be me. As a consultant, I’m always heading into a new team. There are times when I’m put off by a team member’s actions or reactions, but learn “that’s just the way they are” and everyone else has figured out how to work well with them. Taking my cue from others helps me quickly adapt.
  • Put it in perspective. Is this resource critical to the project or an extended team member? Do you need daily interaction or just a periodic check-in? Is meeting at 8 a.m. once each month really that big a burden? Take a step back – is the issue really as big as it feels?
  • What’s the real impact? If your team member doesn’t communicate, are they avoiding responsibility? Or do they always tell you when something’s complete but aren’t inclined to check in just to…check in. The opposite could be true, as well: a team member demands too much communication and that doesn’t hit you right. Consider whether the extra communication is providing an ROI – spending the extra 15 minutes each week may help close some items faster, with fewer issues.

At the end of the day, each stakeholder on your project is uniquely human. You will get a blend of personalities, back stories, and preferences. Sometimes you get apple, but every once in a while you’re served pecan.

At the heart of leadership is seeing your team’s strengths and traits and knowing how to combine them to achieve the best project outcomes.

Does That Mean…Yes? Or No?

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The other day my husband Steve asked if I was ready to go for a walk. I replied, “And the dog’s more than ready!”

He said “that’s not what I asked. Are you ready?”

This tends to happen to us. He’ll ask a question. I’ll read into it and give a reply that assumes the answer.

But if he doesn’t hear the actual answer, he can’t interpret what I’ve said. And that is frustrating for both of us.

If I’d simply added 1 word, if I’d answered “Yes! And the dog’s more than ready!” he would have understood and been able to receive the further information. Instead, I assumed he understood that my “and” covered the answer.

We all know what happens when we “ass-u-me”.

As I have a tendency to do this at home, I need to be extra careful to avoid “assuming and extrapolating” at work, too.

Communication with our stakeholders should be concise, as we all have full plates already. In an effort to be brief, to not waste our reader’s time, we naturally make assumptions in our emails, documentation, reports, etc. However, being too concise increases the chance of misinterpretation.

Here are three key methods to keep your communication clear:

  • Answer the question first. If you’re replying to an email or writing a summary report, there was an initial question or intent you’re responding to. First answer the question, and only then add relevant information
  • Use formatting techniques. Specifically, use bullet points to group together information. But here’s the key: use a header topic to explain the information. (For example, these bullet points are under a header topic that says the grouping is all about clear communication.)
  • Re-read your document for assumptions. Do you remember your elementary school teacher telling you to write like you’re explaining to “someone who has never heard of the topic”? That remains good advice! Especially in our distracted world, our team members don’t always pay attention to the details. This is a good way to orient them to the subject before you give them important information

Clear communication takes effort. It’s a balance between data and human nature. If we are going to respond to a question, we must answer it in a way that the person asking can understand and absorb. No assumptions.

Am I ready to walk the dog? Yes. Is he excited, too? Absolutely! Time to get his leash…

Practice Makes…Perfect Practice

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Last week I wrote about starting to run Facebook Lives and how uncomfortable they feel. But, knowing that this is the only way to get better at them, my attitude must be “practice makes perfect” and press on.

Well, I had a comment about my post from Brent, who said that “practice actually makes perfect practice.”

He clarified that practice can only take you so far. You need the experience in a real-world situation.

I agree!

When you lead a meeting, for example, you can prepare for every contingency you can think of, but you just can’t predict everything your team will ask or what objections they may have.

Here’s another example: eventually need to stop running scenarios and actually go Live with your project. There is a point at which you stop reducing technical risk and simply increase the cost of delay. No project is perfect. Something unexpected will happen!

My take is this: when we practice, we eliminate the biggest risks. When we prepare for questions or complete all required testing, we take those issues right off the table. Then, when we’re in that real-world situation, we can focus our attention on the smaller group of unknowns.

So it is actually your practice that makes it possible to better deal with the unknown.

At the end of the day: prepare, execute, adapt.

Prepare as much as you can to eliminate risk.

Execute as you prepared.

Adapt to resolve new issues.