Small adjustments go a long way to improving results.
A shy, fairly quiet manager, who I worked with, followed the same familiar pattern at the start of each working day.
After he parked his car and entered the office he picked up his mail, checked his answering machine, and grabbed a coffee before settling down to his paperwork.
He was pretty straightforward, very businesslike, he wanted to set a good example for his staff AND he also wanted to be well regarded as a leader.
I challenged him to try something different; to start a new, five-minute pattern to see what would transpire.
His new pattern required him to “hang out” at the coffee machine for five minutes to chat with other staff as they got their morning coffee.
His assignment was to talk about topics other than work; the weather, hockey, gardening, family; anything at all except work. It was a tough assignment for him as he was strongly focussed on work and deadlines and making sure results were evident. Yet, in spite of that, he was willing to suspend judgement and give this new approach a try.
In the space of just one week he began to notice a difference in the people he worked alongside and with those who reported to him. They were friendlier, more open, more relaxed with him, they smiled more, they began to come to his office to ask for his ideas and input and he felt much more connected to his team and his colleagues.
He, in turn, “came out of his shell” and began to look forward to the five minute warm up time each morning.
So… if you’ve been feeling disconnected, you might want to try the five-minute challenge, do something “out of your normal routine” and see what transpires.
