Date: 12/1/2015

Title: QUESTIONS LEADERS CAN ASK – Part 1

By Jennifer Erickson

As leaders, we get things done through other people. That is accomplished through a variety of leadership styles: charismatic, democratic, authoritarian, transformational, transactional, participative, etc. At times though, things don’t get done. Deadlines aren’t met. Meetings get missed. People show us their progress on a project, and we wonder what they are doing. That certainly wasn’t the way you explained it, when you had the project meeting!!

There is only one person we can control—ourselves. So if your people aren’t meeting your expectations, there are questions you can ask yourself to get to the root cause. These questions come in stages.

Before talking with your employees, talk with yourself first. Ask:

• What have I done to get them ready?
• What haven’t I done to get them ready?
• Have I explained what needs to be done, and why?
• Have I provided feedback?
• Have I repeated expectations?
• Did I tell them I support them?
• Did I remind them of our obligations to our customers?

Most of these questions are easy for us to answer. They require either a quick three or four word response, or a “yes”/”no” response. Some leaders may even gloss over the second question, thinking that we’ve done everything. And besides, this is part of their job. They are just supposed to get it done. If they can’t, they are responsible for approaching me and letting me know if they need more assistance or have questions.

To learn more about how to practice this understanding, contact Results Group, LLC at www.ResultsGroupLLC.com or 515-330-2866.