As leaders, we’re often involved in BIG conversations, BIG decisions, and the BIG picture of our teams and work. So, it can be tempting to overlook the SMALL things in our team management.
But there are some SMALL things that will become BIG PROBLEMS if we don’t pay close attention.
1. Complaints
Sometimes, we’re quick to discount complaints we hear often. Or maybe we hear a complaint from our team about something we can’t control, so we disregard it and see it as “not my problem” or “nothing I can do about it.” Or a complaint may come from someone whose opinion we don’t value as highly, so we dismiss it. Sometimes, we don’t listen to complaints, because we assume people are just whining.
BUT, in every complaint, there is wisdom, data, and helpful information hidden within it.
Whether the complaint is right or not, it is an opportunity to either learn about the problem (even if the problem is not actually the topic of the complaint). This can help you diagnose real issues happening for or within your team or processes, and enables you to put out those metaphorical fires before they do major damage.
2. Frustrations
When we sense frustrations on our teams, there may be a repeating theme. If we don’t check in and get curious, we may risk decreased engagement levels from our team members. Or even the unexpected loss of a great employee. The solution here is to listen intently to the frustrations of people on your team, or to frustrations expressed by others in the company about you or your team.
If frustrations go unaddressed or are allowed to fester over time, people will begin to check out, get angry or volatile, quit caring, or quit trying. You, as the leader, have the opportunity to keep this from happening simply by listening well and resolving these frustrations before they escalate further.
Remember, the FRUSTRATION is not the problem itself. It is a clue to what the problem actually is – much like the dashboard light on a car. This will help you address the ROOT, not just the FRUIT, of the problem.
3. Energy Level
If the energy level of your team begins to erode, if people are feeling drained and uninspired, if they’ve lost their enthusiasm they once had, if they express feelings of burnout or hopelessness relating to the work, the processes, the outcomes, PAY ATTENTION.
You can sense this even when you walk into a room. Look for signs of positive or negative comments, facial expressions, etc. If you’re looking for those signs, you’ll find them. This gives you an opportunity to take those observations into private one-on-one, follow-up conversations.
Remember to go into these conversations with statements like “I noticed that” or “I’m curious about” to gain more insight from people and then help them find solutions on how to feel more inspired and enthusiastic about the work again.
4. Feedback
It might not be a frustration of a complaint, but if someone is offering feedback—especially more than once—and people aren’t paying attention or people seem to be paying attention but not doing anything about it, the person giving the feedback may stop speaking up. They may begin to think their voice doesn’t matter or their feedback isn’t valued. If people stop talking to you, it’s a possibility you’ve stopped listening.
Notice when this starts to happen. Regardless of whether the feedback is useful or not, it can be helpful to FOLLOW UP with the person giving the feedback to either provide context on WHY the feedback WON’T be acted upon or HOW the feedback WILL be acted upon. And then be prepared to FOLLOW THROUGH with any commitments you make in regard to that feedback.
5. Ineffective Team Members
If people on the team aren’t pulling their weight and the leader doesn’t address it, the rest of the team will lose respect for the leader and the motivation to perform well for that leader and their fellow team members.
Sometimes, ineffective team members are hard to spot, because other hardworking team members may be picking up the slack without you knowing it. But it’s important to protect your team and to make sure they know you have their backs when it comes to situations like these. The way you handle ineffectiveness on the team will either build or break trust with your effective team members.
Dealing with the SMALL things as leaders can sometimes fall off the radar—not because we have bad intentions, but because we’re just busy and trying to take care of a lot of things all at once. But if you make time to deal with the SMALL things on your team, you’ll find that it ends up being a path to BIGGER success!