You can be directive without being a jerk

You can be directive without being a jerk

Sometimes, getting your team out of quicksand will require you to be more directive than empowering. Don’t worry: we can still approach this in a way that drives buy-in and helps your teammates feel heard, and know they have autonomy. Sometimes, being directive is the most empowering thing you can do.

Identify what you’re optimizing for

A team has a clear roadmap with well-defined projects and deadlines.

Identify the who, what, when, and how

Describe your role in outcomes, rather than describing how you will do your work

Before getting defensive, arguing, or shutting your teammate down, try spending five minutes using open coaching questions to understand where they are coming from

What feels most important to you about this?.

Avoid the word “accountable”

Use longer descriptors to describe what you actually mean

Empowerment vs direction

As leaders, it’s our responsibility to choose the approach in each new scenario that will work best for the work, the team, and the organization.

Define the who and what for your team

Describing your role in terms of outcomes will allow you to make informed “how” decisions that always tie back to the primary goal

Nailing down the when and how

If you need to communicate to particular individuals first: Prioritize communicating to different folks based on how much their reaction or input will affect your future messaging

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