Legal news and trends for Canadian in-house counsel and c-suite executives
Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/1365049
34 www.canadianlawyermag.com/inhouse FEATURE THERE ARE many ways to determine how good of a job you're doing as a leader. One of my favourite ways is to evaluate the growth of team members. When the growth of a team member slows down, it means the leader or employee has lost their focus on the import- ance of personal development. This is important to note because a team that continuously develops not only lasts, its members also do great things together. This got me thinking: What are some other questions that all leaders should be asking themselves monthly, regardless of their experience level? Here are seven questions all leaders should ask themselves at least every 30 days. 1 Did you say 'thank you'? This should be the easiest question to answer. One leader of mine would write a handwritten note to every employee in the company on their work anniversary, just to say thank you. A simple "thank you" in a handwritten note, email, text or, better yet, in person goes a long way. How far? I still remember it and am writing about it to encourage you to do the same. 2 Did you give your team valuable learning material? Most likely you're in a leadership role because you are a lifelong learner. You were a sponge earlier in your career, and now you continue to consume content that improves you as a person. Are you sending your team blogs, podcasts, videos, books and ideas that will help them grow? 3 Did you change your mind because of a team member's opinion? If you can't put your finger on the last time you changed your mind because of a team member's perspective or opinion, it's a real problem. It means one of two things: Your team members aren't engaged enough in their job to come up with new ideas or you aren't doing a good enough job asking for their opinion and listening. 4 Did someone proactively ask for more responsibility — or just do it without asking? No team can reach its full potential without individual team members being proactive and seeking more responsibility. When this isn't happening, it's often caused by a manager who tends to micromanage and assume their team can't complete tasks as well as they can. On the flip side, if a team member does this, they feel comfortable approaching you and are confident you're going to be open to it. This is a true sign of growth for both the leader and the employee. 5 Did you say 'great job'? When you tell a team member "great job," it is typically tied directly to results or some kind of behaviour that produced those results. LearnLoft's John Eades outlines seven questions managers need to ask themselves each month to gauge whether they're leading effectively Questions all leaders should ask themselves