99% of the time, you’re asking the wrong question. Re-frame your question. Re-evaluate the basis for asking it. If you ask the wrong questions, it doesn’t matter how good you are at finding the answers. They won’t matter. Just like in The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy – there’s the answer - 42, so what? This applies whether you’re trying to develop your business, going hiking, learning handstands, writing a book, or anything else....
Sales is creating a connection to one person to generate compliance. Salespeople lean on persuasive techniques innumerate, and (the good ones) excel in personal relations, empathy, and authenticity. When we talk about marketing, what we’re really talking about is how to create meaningful, authentic connections at scale. And the answer is rarely about tactics. It’s about being human, tangible, present. It’s about being vulnerable enough to open your business to the world....
There are 3 ways in which I can position myself, when I want to develop my team. I can work from the position of a teacher. I have knowledge that I want to share, and it can be effective to enter into a dynamic where I deliver this knowledge to the team from a position of power. I can work from the position of an equal. This is effective when examining an idea or operational issue, and seeking to generate multiple opinions, and push back and forth....
It’s too easy to lose sight of these basic foundations of leadership. Especially in situations where the leader shares in operational duties, the sacred duties can take a backseat. Somehow. As a leader of a team (assuming the team setup is working) there are two activities that should likely take up 80% of my time. Direct Everybody should know where we’re going, and why. Anyone who is tasked with directing work should be especially diligent in this endeavour, and in communicating it often, early, and far more frequently than seems natural....
Sometimes it’s easy to ask for help. Sometimes it’s hard. Maybe it’s a question of framing. When there’s something I can’t do at work, I reach out for help. It’s OK to say “I can’t fix this spreadsheet up, could you show me how?”, or “I think I’m missing some perspective here, could you take a look for me?” When there’s something I can’t work out how to express, I chew on it for ages....