WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.080 --> 00:00:04.240 Welcome to Backing Your Leadership. I'm Chris, Lorenzo and Lorenzo. 2 00:00:04.320 --> 00:00:06.839 In this episode, we're continuing our discussion that we've had 3 00:00:06.879 --> 00:00:09.199 for the last three mondays on kind of going through 4 00:00:09.199 --> 00:00:12.119 the backlog of questions that listeners have submitted to us. 5 00:00:12.759 --> 00:00:15.359 These are some great conversations with some great questions, and 6 00:00:15.400 --> 00:00:17.839 I feel like I wish we'd gone through them earlier, 7 00:00:18.480 --> 00:00:21.000 but I like that we're getting these answers out to 8 00:00:21.320 --> 00:00:23.600 the people who've reached out over the last few months 9 00:00:23.600 --> 00:00:25.800 and said that these things are important to them or 10 00:00:25.800 --> 00:00:29.280 they're curious about them. On this episode, the first question 11 00:00:29.359 --> 00:00:31.079 that I want to kind of get to is this 12 00:00:31.199 --> 00:00:35.960 idea of competing priorities in the workplace. And so a 13 00:00:36.000 --> 00:00:38.200 listener reached out to us a few months ago and 14 00:00:38.399 --> 00:00:42.520 asked about strategies they can use to keep people engaged 15 00:00:42.560 --> 00:00:47.560 and performing and working hard with there's a growing list 16 00:00:47.679 --> 00:00:51.960 of distractions and competing priorities. And I think it's a 17 00:00:52.039 --> 00:00:55.880 very relevant question because you know, I think a lot 18 00:00:55.880 --> 00:00:58.039 of it is driven by technology. I think in a 19 00:00:58.039 --> 00:01:02.320 lot of organizations, the access to technology and the access 20 00:01:02.359 --> 00:01:08.359 to communication is allowing employees to be inundated with things 21 00:01:08.439 --> 00:01:11.840 that are not work related even while they're at work, 22 00:01:12.239 --> 00:01:15.959 and the kind of the kind of meshing or melding 23 00:01:16.200 --> 00:01:19.159 of the you talk about work life balance, there is 24 00:01:19.200 --> 00:01:21.840 no work life balance anymore. There's just life and work 25 00:01:21.920 --> 00:01:24.560 is part of it. And those other things that are 26 00:01:24.599 --> 00:01:27.359 going on in a person's life are going on whether 27 00:01:27.359 --> 00:01:30.400 they're at work or not. And so those distractions and 28 00:01:30.719 --> 00:01:34.799 competing priorities can absolutely lower employee engagement. If they can 29 00:01:34.879 --> 00:01:40.760 lower productivity, they can lower the a person's you know, 30 00:01:40.920 --> 00:01:44.719 buy in to doing great work while they're there. But 31 00:01:45.079 --> 00:01:47.120 I think a lot of leaders go about this the 32 00:01:47.159 --> 00:01:51.280 wrong way because there the actions they take is in 33 00:01:51.319 --> 00:01:54.640 the spirit of trying to eliminate those distractions competing priorities, 34 00:01:55.000 --> 00:01:58.480 rather than acknowledging their existence and trying to work through them. 35 00:01:58.879 --> 00:02:00.640 And so I think this is it's a great question 36 00:02:01.079 --> 00:02:03.719 because it's not going to go away. The distractions and 37 00:02:03.760 --> 00:02:06.640 the competing priorities are going to continue to grow over time. 38 00:02:06.640 --> 00:02:07.840 They're not going to get less. 39 00:02:07.920 --> 00:02:11.520 Yeah, and I think it's for a while. Like things 40 00:02:11.560 --> 00:02:15.080 have always existed obviously, right, And even when we talked 41 00:02:15.080 --> 00:02:18.400 about like our culture acronym, like one of the elements 42 00:02:18.400 --> 00:02:20.479 of that is like what we call lending air support, 43 00:02:20.560 --> 00:02:23.759 which is you know, stopping so much of getting through 44 00:02:23.800 --> 00:02:27.199 to the team around distractions and things that would take 45 00:02:27.240 --> 00:02:29.479 them off course on you know, the focuses of the 46 00:02:29.479 --> 00:02:32.560 work that you have them doing. I think today though, 47 00:02:32.599 --> 00:02:36.479 what's different in this space is where there are so 48 00:02:36.520 --> 00:02:40.080 many distractions coming from so many different places, and I 49 00:02:40.120 --> 00:02:46.479 think the things that are happening around the workforce and 50 00:02:46.919 --> 00:02:49.919 just kind of where we're at from a society standpoint 51 00:02:50.080 --> 00:02:53.039 in social media and how much time we spend kind 52 00:02:53.039 --> 00:02:56.240 of in those spaces discussing those things, Like there's a 53 00:02:56.280 --> 00:02:58.919 lot more of that that I've seen now than ever before, 54 00:02:59.400 --> 00:03:01.919 where it's just like there's so many things that can 55 00:03:02.560 --> 00:03:05.199 you know, shift our attention. And again not not even 56 00:03:05.479 --> 00:03:08.759 not not so not not only just workplace distractions and 57 00:03:08.840 --> 00:03:12.560 maybe sometimes like too many strategies or competing priorities at work, 58 00:03:12.680 --> 00:03:14.840 or you know, things that are happening that may pull 59 00:03:14.919 --> 00:03:18.120 our attention away from a professional work environment, but just 60 00:03:18.520 --> 00:03:22.599 the the world and society in general is creating a 61 00:03:22.680 --> 00:03:25.080 lot of you know, ways to to pull all of 62 00:03:25.080 --> 00:03:26.879 our attention and it happens to all of us. And 63 00:03:26.960 --> 00:03:30.080 I think that you know, in those types of spaces, 64 00:03:30.960 --> 00:03:34.520 taking the time to engage human to human, taking the 65 00:03:34.599 --> 00:03:38.039 time to not just get to know people, but but 66 00:03:38.240 --> 00:03:42.680 talk to people daily, have pieces of your interactions that 67 00:03:42.680 --> 00:03:46.520 that that have to do with with them and life 68 00:03:46.719 --> 00:03:49.520 and the journey of life that they're on and things 69 00:03:49.560 --> 00:03:53.000 that are going on. Like that element of personal connection 70 00:03:53.800 --> 00:03:55.960 I think human human personal connection I think is so 71 00:03:56.080 --> 00:04:01.479 important to be able to create space where sometimes like 72 00:04:02.000 --> 00:04:05.639 just being at work is a distraction from everything else 73 00:04:05.680 --> 00:04:07.960 going on outside of work, right, you know, and like 74 00:04:08.000 --> 00:04:10.800 so it's almost kind of like there's a there's a 75 00:04:10.879 --> 00:04:13.080 there's a there's a connection here, there's a space here, 76 00:04:13.319 --> 00:04:19.319 there's a capability of having a shared goal and work 77 00:04:19.319 --> 00:04:22.879 in progress to get something done that can feel you know, 78 00:04:23.759 --> 00:04:27.120 satisfying and it's complete. It can feel you know, maybe 79 00:04:27.319 --> 00:04:30.839 tough to get through, but at the same time, you're 80 00:04:30.839 --> 00:04:33.160 doing something, and you're doing something with others that are 81 00:04:33.199 --> 00:04:35.839 also focused on the same goals. Like I just think 82 00:04:35.879 --> 00:04:40.199 that there's a lot of intention to be had now, 83 00:04:40.639 --> 00:04:46.040 specifically with with with connecting with people in a very 84 00:04:46.079 --> 00:04:49.360 different way that allows them to feel seen and heard 85 00:04:49.399 --> 00:04:52.079 and empowered while they're at work. And I think those 86 00:04:52.240 --> 00:04:56.480 are to me, like the pillars of engagement right now 87 00:04:56.519 --> 00:04:57.959 and kind of going forward right right. 88 00:04:58.000 --> 00:05:01.120 So there, this question can be or printed two ways, 89 00:05:01.199 --> 00:05:05.279 because you know, growing workplace distractions and competing priorities. You know, 90 00:05:05.360 --> 00:05:08.199 the distractions could be not work related, they could be 91 00:05:08.240 --> 00:05:10.720 coming externally. They could be coming from, you know, a 92 00:05:10.759 --> 00:05:13.480 text message that shows up on your watch from a 93 00:05:13.519 --> 00:05:16.600 family member who you know has an issue that maybe 94 00:05:16.680 --> 00:05:19.199 thirty years ago you may not have even seen until 95 00:05:19.199 --> 00:05:22.000 two hours later or three hours later, and now it's 96 00:05:22.079 --> 00:05:26.759 it's instant. And so this the the kind of the 97 00:05:26.759 --> 00:05:29.399 the arrows that are coming in from all over the place, 98 00:05:30.560 --> 00:05:34.560 all of which can make an employee feel like everything 99 00:05:34.639 --> 00:05:36.279 is the priority. And when and when you feel like 100 00:05:36.279 --> 00:05:38.920 everything is the priority, then one of two things happen. 101 00:05:39.079 --> 00:05:42.519 Either nothing is the priority, or you try to make 102 00:05:42.600 --> 00:05:44.879 everything the priority and you either burn out or you 103 00:05:44.920 --> 00:05:48.519 get frustrated, or you end up pathassing everything because you 104 00:05:48.560 --> 00:05:51.000 can't put your you know, your all of your efforts 105 00:05:51.040 --> 00:05:53.600 into one thing that you're focusing on. So that's the 106 00:05:53.639 --> 00:05:56.480 first part of it. And then workplace distractions, you know 107 00:05:56.639 --> 00:06:01.439 it it comes from I'm thinking about the quote from 108 00:06:01.480 --> 00:06:04.000 Office Space where he sits down with the bobs and 109 00:06:04.040 --> 00:06:05.839 he's like, ah, eight bosses and they go eight eight, 110 00:06:05.959 --> 00:06:09.959 Hey Bob, eight bosses, you know, and it's it's there's 111 00:06:10.160 --> 00:06:15.879 so much kind of separation of a lot of roles 112 00:06:15.879 --> 00:06:20.160 and support roles within organizations. Now that you might have people, 113 00:06:20.439 --> 00:06:23.199 you might have one in most organizations, you're only going 114 00:06:23.240 --> 00:06:26.240 to have one straight line to one boss, but you 115 00:06:26.319 --> 00:06:29.480 might have dotted lines to five or six other people 116 00:06:29.839 --> 00:06:33.199 who each have their own list of priorities. And and 117 00:06:33.360 --> 00:06:37.800 if you are feeling this pressure, honestly, that's on your leader. 118 00:06:38.040 --> 00:06:40.120 So if you're thinking about it from the standpoint of 119 00:06:40.240 --> 00:06:43.399 you as a leader, because everybody, if you're a leader 120 00:06:43.399 --> 00:06:45.040 of people, you also are on a team and you 121 00:06:45.079 --> 00:06:48.439 have a leader too, So from your standpoint, your responsibility 122 00:06:48.959 --> 00:06:51.920 is to make sure that that doesn't happen as much 123 00:06:52.000 --> 00:06:55.439 as possible for your team. And so if the person 124 00:06:55.519 --> 00:06:59.480 who reports directly to you also has several dotted lines 125 00:06:59.519 --> 00:07:02.279 to other people who are reaching out to them, it's 126 00:07:02.319 --> 00:07:05.120 important that you, as a leader reach out to all 127 00:07:05.160 --> 00:07:07.600 of those people, not to the employee directly, but to 128 00:07:07.639 --> 00:07:10.439 all the people who might be talking to your employees 129 00:07:10.839 --> 00:07:13.079 and make sure that they and you are on the 130 00:07:13.120 --> 00:07:17.279 same page with what the priorities are and that nothing 131 00:07:17.319 --> 00:07:19.959 is blindsided. So you know, if you have people reaching 132 00:07:19.959 --> 00:07:22.199 out to your people directly, you don't want to stop 133 00:07:22.240 --> 00:07:24.839 those those interactions from happening, but you want to make 134 00:07:24.879 --> 00:07:29.240 sure that there's absolute clarity between you and your employees 135 00:07:29.519 --> 00:07:32.040 on what the priorities are, so that when they hear 136 00:07:32.160 --> 00:07:35.319 something from other places and they think, oh, I guess 137 00:07:35.319 --> 00:07:37.759 this is a priority now, that their first thought is, 138 00:07:38.120 --> 00:07:39.720 you know what, let me let me talk to Lorenzo 139 00:07:39.800 --> 00:07:42.519 really quickly first, and let's make sure that this fits 140 00:07:42.560 --> 00:07:45.000 within the structure of the of the priorities. Because then 141 00:07:45.279 --> 00:07:47.519 it's on the leader to make that to call. And 142 00:07:47.759 --> 00:07:50.279 if if your employee comes to you and they're feeling 143 00:07:50.360 --> 00:07:53.000 all these this pressure coming from other places, and you 144 00:07:53.279 --> 00:07:56.240 provide them clarity and say no, don't do that right now. 145 00:07:56.399 --> 00:07:58.560 This is what you're focusing on. You can't just hang 146 00:07:58.639 --> 00:08:00.600 them out to dry either. Once you've on that, you 147 00:08:00.639 --> 00:08:01.920 have to go to the person who's reaching out to 148 00:08:01.959 --> 00:08:03.600 your employee and say, hey, I just want to let 149 00:08:03.639 --> 00:08:06.279 you know I told them this because I don't want 150 00:08:06.279 --> 00:08:07.759 you to think that they drop the ball for you. 151 00:08:07.959 --> 00:08:10.399 This was my call to do this because this is 152 00:08:10.399 --> 00:08:13.319 what they're focusing on right now and we'll do our 153 00:08:13.360 --> 00:08:15.800 best to get that in also, or or they come 154 00:08:15.800 --> 00:08:17.519 to you and you say, yeah, I like that idea 155 00:08:17.879 --> 00:08:21.639 that you can focus on that. So either way, you 156 00:08:21.759 --> 00:08:23.519 have to have the kind of relationship with all of 157 00:08:23.560 --> 00:08:27.120 your people that says that when they hear something that 158 00:08:27.199 --> 00:08:30.519 doesn't seem to fit in with the conversation you've had 159 00:08:30.560 --> 00:08:33.919 with them about what priorities are, that they want to 160 00:08:33.960 --> 00:08:37.159 seek clarity on those issues, as opposed to just thinking, 161 00:08:37.480 --> 00:08:40.080 no matter who gives me anything, I guess I have 162 00:08:40.120 --> 00:08:41.840 to do it all now, because that's a great way 163 00:08:41.879 --> 00:08:44.200 to burn out your employees and so kind of being 164 00:08:44.240 --> 00:08:47.720 that line of defense for them and and you know, 165 00:08:47.799 --> 00:08:49.639 taking that weight off of their shoulders I think is 166 00:08:49.720 --> 00:08:50.519 the right thing to do. 167 00:08:50.720 --> 00:08:55.919 Yeah, absolutely, I think it's. Yeah, it's it's such an 168 00:08:55.919 --> 00:08:59.279 important part of leadership and it always really has been 169 00:08:59.840 --> 00:09:04.360 to be able to take on the things that will 170 00:09:04.399 --> 00:09:08.919 just create noise or distraction for your team, and you 171 00:09:09.000 --> 00:09:10.639 have to be aware of them. Like you you also 172 00:09:10.679 --> 00:09:12.840 have to be in a place where you understand what 173 00:09:13.000 --> 00:09:15.399 is noise and distraction and let me let I'll let 174 00:09:15.440 --> 00:09:18.120 you it in a secret that noise and distraction might 175 00:09:18.159 --> 00:09:20.679 be really important to somebody else, right, like. 176 00:09:20.960 --> 00:09:24.200 Your noise and distraction is their number one priority. Yeah. 177 00:09:24.279 --> 00:09:26.080 Yeah, So like let's let's call it what it is, 178 00:09:26.279 --> 00:09:29.240 Like like that's going to happen sometimes, and you've got 179 00:09:29.240 --> 00:09:32.720 to figure out a way to navigate that relationship or 180 00:09:32.720 --> 00:09:35.759 that strategy or you know, not write somebody off, but 181 00:09:35.799 --> 00:09:39.159 like help them get what they need. But but by 182 00:09:39.240 --> 00:09:43.000 making sure that you're not continually just rolling down those 183 00:09:43.039 --> 00:09:46.320 requests to your team constantly and giving them so many 184 00:09:46.320 --> 00:09:48.679 other things to think about and to go do, when 185 00:09:48.759 --> 00:09:50.720 when you've got them hyper focused on the things that 186 00:09:50.759 --> 00:09:53.679 are really really important and so like that that's I 187 00:09:53.679 --> 00:09:55.960 think from a lot of leadership standpoints, like where I 188 00:09:55.960 --> 00:09:59.440 see leaders have a hard time is like it's it's 189 00:09:59.480 --> 00:10:02.679 not it's not tough to keep my team focused and 190 00:10:02.840 --> 00:10:05.720 attuned to the goals that we have. It's what happens 191 00:10:05.759 --> 00:10:09.879 when there's other people that are of other areas of 192 00:10:09.919 --> 00:10:13.159 authority or a job, you know, like bosses or bosses, 193 00:10:13.240 --> 00:10:15.720 bosses or somebody in this part of the work, Like 194 00:10:15.879 --> 00:10:19.679 when people are vye for your time and attention and 195 00:10:19.759 --> 00:10:22.399 for your team to get things done or to get 196 00:10:22.440 --> 00:10:27.279 information or data that ability to navigate those relationships and 197 00:10:27.360 --> 00:10:30.440 still make sure that other people in the organization get 198 00:10:30.440 --> 00:10:33.480 what they need, you know, in a way that's helpful 199 00:10:33.600 --> 00:10:36.519 so that they can achieve their goals, but not putting 200 00:10:36.559 --> 00:10:40.840 your team at risk of being distracted because there's so 201 00:10:40.919 --> 00:10:43.440 many things they have to get done. That's where I 202 00:10:43.440 --> 00:10:45.639 see a lot of leaders sometimes struggle is that it's 203 00:10:45.919 --> 00:10:48.200 tough to you know, they either want to say yes 204 00:10:48.279 --> 00:10:50.799 or they want to say no, and then try to 205 00:10:50.799 --> 00:10:54.360 figure out how do you say yes absolutely, but no 206 00:10:54.960 --> 00:10:58.679 not this way. It's kind of like the magic in 207 00:10:59.080 --> 00:11:00.399 figuring out that behave right. 208 00:11:00.440 --> 00:11:04.840 Well, maintaining relationships is not just about saying yes. So 209 00:11:04.840 --> 00:11:08.480 so if you if you're a leader of people and 210 00:11:08.600 --> 00:11:11.879 your boss reaches out to your people directly to talk 211 00:11:11.919 --> 00:11:14.840 to them about something that is a priority, you know, 212 00:11:14.919 --> 00:11:17.320 your people might think, oh, well that that came from 213 00:11:17.320 --> 00:11:20.399 my boss's boss, so clearly that's a priority. That isn't 214 00:11:20.440 --> 00:11:24.159 necessarily the case because hopefully your boss came to you 215 00:11:24.240 --> 00:11:26.240 first and said, Hey, I'm gonna be talking with your 216 00:11:26.240 --> 00:11:27.960 people and this is what I'm gonna tell them, and 217 00:11:28.080 --> 00:11:30.600 you and your boss can align on something before those 218 00:11:30.600 --> 00:11:33.559 conversations happen. You can't always rely on that happening though, 219 00:11:33.720 --> 00:11:36.600 and so you as a as a leader of people, 220 00:11:37.279 --> 00:11:40.039 need to feel comfortable going to your own leader to say, hey, 221 00:11:40.240 --> 00:11:42.519 I've been hearing this. I just want to make sure 222 00:11:42.559 --> 00:11:44.919 that are you are you? Are you changing what the 223 00:11:44.960 --> 00:11:47.600 priority is? Because the how I'm talking to my team 224 00:11:47.639 --> 00:11:49.440 is based on the conversation we had two months ago 225 00:11:49.639 --> 00:11:51.879 on what these are the priorities are. But they're hearing 226 00:11:51.879 --> 00:11:55.159 something different from you directly, So do I need to 227 00:11:55.240 --> 00:11:58.159 change what the what the priorities are? Because and then 228 00:11:58.200 --> 00:12:00.440 if if your boss says oh no, no, no, yours 229 00:12:00.519 --> 00:12:02.399 yours is fine, and then this is this is this 230 00:12:02.480 --> 00:12:04.639 is what's happening too, then at that point you have 231 00:12:04.639 --> 00:12:06.519 to say, okay, well let me let me make sure 232 00:12:06.519 --> 00:12:09.919 that we're clear on what the bandwidth is of what 233 00:12:09.960 --> 00:12:12.639 they're doing and what the realities are of what they 234 00:12:12.639 --> 00:12:15.399 can get accomplished versus what they can't get accomplished, and 235 00:12:15.399 --> 00:12:19.720 you have a real realistic kind of thumb on the 236 00:12:19.759 --> 00:12:22.519 pulse of what that looks like and and not just 237 00:12:22.559 --> 00:12:25.200 saying no for the sake of no, because if they 238 00:12:25.200 --> 00:12:28.440 can get something done, that's a great way to strengthen relationships. 239 00:12:28.679 --> 00:12:32.360 But if what they're being asked to do is contradictory 240 00:12:32.720 --> 00:12:34.919 to something that you put in place, that's where the 241 00:12:34.960 --> 00:12:37.759 problem can happen. Because if employees believe they're being asked 242 00:12:37.799 --> 00:12:40.840 to do two things that aren't just competing with each 243 00:12:40.840 --> 00:12:43.519 other from a time perspective, but they're competing with each 244 00:12:43.519 --> 00:12:46.720 other from an actual outcome perspective, you will have a 245 00:12:46.759 --> 00:12:49.480 team of people who starts rolling their eyes at what 246 00:12:49.519 --> 00:12:51.960 they're being asked to do and telling their own story 247 00:12:52.000 --> 00:12:53.879 about oh, well here, yeah, how do we do this 248 00:12:53.919 --> 00:12:55.840 and this at the same time, like you're you're saying 249 00:12:55.840 --> 00:12:58.519 that the most important thing is sell, sell, sell revenue, 250 00:12:58.519 --> 00:13:01.879 revenue at all costs, you know, and then somebody else saying, no, no, no, 251 00:13:02.120 --> 00:13:04.919 we don't want to discount anything. It's profits, profits, profits 252 00:13:05.080 --> 00:13:07.080 at all costs. It's like, well, you don't get both, 253 00:13:07.320 --> 00:13:09.639 Like you can't have both. It's one or the other. 254 00:13:10.000 --> 00:13:11.960 And if you want to see that both as a priority, 255 00:13:12.279 --> 00:13:15.240 then that's fine, but you have to understand that neither 256 00:13:15.360 --> 00:13:18.159 is going to be at the highest level because they're 257 00:13:18.200 --> 00:13:21.399 taking into account each other as they're rolling through those priorities. 258 00:13:21.440 --> 00:13:23.720 And that's a very simple, stupid example of it. But 259 00:13:23.759 --> 00:13:26.720 it happens all over the place where an employee can think, 260 00:13:26.960 --> 00:13:29.480 I've been told to do two different things here, and 261 00:13:29.559 --> 00:13:34.960 it's actually not possible to do both because each one 262 00:13:35.080 --> 00:13:38.639 is it works against the other, and so I can 263 00:13:38.679 --> 00:13:41.159 only focus on one of these two things, even though 264 00:13:41.200 --> 00:13:43.200 I have time to do both. It's not a time thing. 265 00:13:43.440 --> 00:13:45.679 It's a that the don't. They don't live in the 266 00:13:45.679 --> 00:13:49.159 same universe together because they can't. And so that conversation 267 00:13:49.679 --> 00:13:52.440 is different than the one you have about well, how 268 00:13:52.559 --> 00:13:54.519 much time do I have and how many things are 269 00:13:54.519 --> 00:13:57.639 being added to the plates of my employees. They both 270 00:13:57.720 --> 00:14:02.440 cause problems but want but they require different conversations between 271 00:14:02.480 --> 00:14:05.440 you and your leader to make sure that your employees 272 00:14:05.480 --> 00:14:08.120 are on the same page and that nothing kind of 273 00:14:08.600 --> 00:14:12.080 shakes that foundation of the core of what they are 274 00:14:12.120 --> 00:14:15.320 here to do, whatever their job is that needs to maintain, 275 00:14:15.480 --> 00:14:17.879 you know, at the top spot is whatever that those 276 00:14:17.960 --> 00:14:20.279 core values or core focus areas. 277 00:14:20.039 --> 00:14:21.960 Are, absolutely and with that it brings us to this 278 00:14:22.000 --> 00:14:24.000 episode's women in Hack. But first a few words from 279 00:14:24.000 --> 00:14:24.639 our sponsors. 280 00:14:25.600 --> 00:14:27.919 All Right, this episode's women ate hack is all about communication. 281 00:14:28.320 --> 00:14:30.600 When you have a discussion with your boss and you 282 00:14:30.639 --> 00:14:32.559 align on priorities that you have to then give to 283 00:14:32.600 --> 00:14:36.240 your team, send a follow up email kind of relating 284 00:14:36.320 --> 00:14:39.360 back what the conversation was about, what the priorities were, 285 00:14:39.399 --> 00:14:42.240 what you agreed upon, what the goal is moving forward, 286 00:14:42.279 --> 00:14:44.279 and the actions you're going to take moving forward to 287 00:14:44.320 --> 00:14:46.559 get your team aligned on it, so you can look 288 00:14:46.559 --> 00:14:48.799 back at that and make sure that what you're doing 289 00:14:48.840 --> 00:14:50.799 is in spirit of that. If your boss wants to 290 00:14:50.879 --> 00:14:53.879 change that, then it's important that you have that information 291 00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:56.440 to say, well, this doesn't seem like it aligns with 292 00:14:56.480 --> 00:14:58.960 what we talked about before, doesn't need to change and 293 00:14:59.240 --> 00:15:01.240 that's fine, and if your boss wants to change that, 294 00:15:01.279 --> 00:15:03.799 then they can change that. And then having that communication 295 00:15:03.879 --> 00:15:06.480 that says that you're on the same page, that you're aligned, 296 00:15:06.679 --> 00:15:08.960 allows you to go to your people to say, this 297 00:15:09.039 --> 00:15:12.159 is what we're supposed to be doing. It's important that 298 00:15:12.159 --> 00:15:16.600 you're doing this every single interaction you have, because conversations 299 00:15:16.679 --> 00:15:21.960 can get forgotten, and recapping a conversation, especially when it 300 00:15:21.960 --> 00:15:25.759 comes to strategic priorities or what the focus is moving forward, 301 00:15:26.799 --> 00:15:29.200 it's really important to be able to bring that information 302 00:15:29.279 --> 00:15:32.759 up later on and say we're operating under these guidelines 303 00:15:32.799 --> 00:15:35.559 that we discussed and agreed upon, and that way, if 304 00:15:35.559 --> 00:15:37.720 they do need to change, you can at least say, 305 00:15:38.240 --> 00:15:41.679 you know, what I was doing was in spirit of 306 00:15:41.679 --> 00:15:44.879 this conversation that we had, and then we can change 307 00:15:44.879 --> 00:15:48.080 it if we need to change it. Having that two 308 00:15:48.080 --> 00:15:51.159 way communication, both to your people and to your boss 309 00:15:51.200 --> 00:15:54.120 directly is the best way to make sure that your 310 00:15:54.200 --> 00:15:58.360 people don't feel like they are on the receiving end 311 00:15:58.399 --> 00:16:02.080 of competing priorities. This work is done in advance of 312 00:16:02.120 --> 00:16:05.039 those priorities. If you're if you start from a standpoint 313 00:16:05.080 --> 00:16:07.639 of just hoping it works out and then reacting to 314 00:16:07.679 --> 00:16:09.720 them when they happen, you're going to be reacting to 315 00:16:09.720 --> 00:16:12.240 them all the time. People don't know what they don't know. 316 00:16:12.440 --> 00:16:14.840 And if your boss is reaching out to your people, 317 00:16:15.159 --> 00:16:17.080 or if you have a peer somewhere else who has 318 00:16:17.120 --> 00:16:19.720 a dotted line you know, directly to your people and 319 00:16:19.759 --> 00:16:21.879 you haven't spoken to them about what the priorities are, 320 00:16:22.080 --> 00:16:23.679 then they think they can just reach out to your 321 00:16:23.679 --> 00:16:27.120 people and start throwing things that they're played. Maybe they can, 322 00:16:27.440 --> 00:16:29.120 but it's important that you reach out to them in 323 00:16:29.120 --> 00:16:30.679 advance and say, hey, this is what I'm working on 324 00:16:30.799 --> 00:16:32.960 with my team right now, this is what the priorities are. 325 00:16:33.200 --> 00:16:35.480 If there's something that you need to get done that 326 00:16:35.639 --> 00:16:38.720 doesn't align with these priorities, I'd appreciate if you reach 327 00:16:38.720 --> 00:16:41.720 out to me first before just throwing something at my team. 328 00:16:42.000 --> 00:16:45.679 And that's a great way to make sure that you 329 00:16:45.360 --> 00:16:47.840 that you stop it from running into a potential where 330 00:16:47.840 --> 00:16:50.919 the relationship is degraded by having those conversations in advance, 331 00:16:51.120 --> 00:16:53.360 and then they are more likely to respect that interaction 332 00:16:53.720 --> 00:16:55.519 and then not reach out to your people directly with 333 00:16:55.559 --> 00:16:58.279 something that competes with the priorities you've put out to 334 00:16:58.320 --> 00:16:59.120 your own team. Yeah. 335 00:16:59.200 --> 00:17:02.679 Yeah, I think communication, communication, communication, you know what I mean? 336 00:17:02.799 --> 00:17:06.279 Like really and and especially with those that are from 337 00:17:06.279 --> 00:17:09.559 a work standpoint, looking to gain the attention of your team. 338 00:17:09.640 --> 00:17:11.680 And that's really what we're talking about, is like you know, 339 00:17:11.720 --> 00:17:14.720 where where's the attention going and what do you need 340 00:17:14.759 --> 00:17:16.839 to focus on? And a lot of you know, a 341 00:17:16.839 --> 00:17:19.160 lot of middle management to a degree, is a lot 342 00:17:19.160 --> 00:17:21.519 of this job. Sure of like what are the what 343 00:17:21.559 --> 00:17:25.039 are the you know, organizational things that are important and 344 00:17:25.079 --> 00:17:26.799 focuses that you want to make sure are getting done. 345 00:17:26.839 --> 00:17:29.359 Then what's your what's your boss's preference on how that 346 00:17:29.400 --> 00:17:32.799 gets done? Then what's the other partner's you know, preference 347 00:17:32.799 --> 00:17:34.960 on how that gets done. Like a lot of it 348 00:17:35.039 --> 00:17:38.839 is navigating these types of things, and to your point 349 00:17:39.000 --> 00:17:43.240 in the hack here, like that communication is absolutely critical, 350 00:17:43.559 --> 00:17:46.359 right and you have to spend some time saying hey, 351 00:17:46.400 --> 00:17:49.119 like i've you know, tell me more about that, or 352 00:17:49.279 --> 00:17:52.480 or help me understand what you need specifically and when 353 00:17:52.480 --> 00:17:54.400 you need it buy you know, I want to make 354 00:17:54.400 --> 00:17:56.960 sure that that my team is you know, fully focused 355 00:17:57.000 --> 00:17:59.079 on this thing that we know as a priority that 356 00:17:59.079 --> 00:18:00.759 we're getting done. But I want to get you what 357 00:18:00.799 --> 00:18:03.079 you need, So give me some more details, let me 358 00:18:03.160 --> 00:18:04.519 know what this looks like when it needs to be 359 00:18:04.559 --> 00:18:07.759 done by what information, Like let me really understand what 360 00:18:07.799 --> 00:18:10.920 you're asking for, and then let me let me figure 361 00:18:10.960 --> 00:18:13.079 out how I'm going to get you that info while 362 00:18:13.160 --> 00:18:16.319 keeping my team fully focused on the larger tasks that 363 00:18:16.359 --> 00:18:19.000 we've got going on, or the major priorities that we've 364 00:18:19.000 --> 00:18:21.200 already established or whatever that might be. But that that's 365 00:18:21.240 --> 00:18:24.119 going to be a critical part of being able to 366 00:18:24.160 --> 00:18:25.440 get both things done right. 367 00:18:25.480 --> 00:18:30.720 And and keep in mind too that influence and getting 368 00:18:30.839 --> 00:18:33.839 things done that you need to get done looks different 369 00:18:34.759 --> 00:18:36.720 if you have a direct line to a person who 370 00:18:36.720 --> 00:18:39.000 reports directly to you versus if you have a dotted line. 371 00:18:39.119 --> 00:18:40.720 So's it's one of the one of the reasons why 372 00:18:40.759 --> 00:18:43.839 I think there's so much value in being put in 373 00:18:43.880 --> 00:18:46.680 positions where you have to lead and influence people who 374 00:18:46.680 --> 00:18:49.960 don't report directly to you, because because that's a way 375 00:18:50.000 --> 00:18:53.839 to show whether or not you whether or not people 376 00:18:54.480 --> 00:18:56.559 you know, not just respect. Respect is the wrong word, 377 00:18:56.640 --> 00:19:00.519 whether or not people, whether or not you are good 378 00:19:01.039 --> 00:19:05.319 at creating disciples or followers in terms of the values 379 00:19:05.359 --> 00:19:07.640 that you hold. Is whether or not people want to 380 00:19:07.640 --> 00:19:10.079 follow you when they don't have a direct line to you. 381 00:19:10.400 --> 00:19:12.759 And so people who are reaching out to your people 382 00:19:13.079 --> 00:19:14.559 who don't have a direct line to them, but they 383 00:19:14.559 --> 00:19:17.200 have a dotted line to them, throwing out different things 384 00:19:17.240 --> 00:19:20.880 and saying that these are priorities. They have a tough 385 00:19:20.960 --> 00:19:23.319 job because they have to get people to get the 386 00:19:23.400 --> 00:19:25.799 job done that has to get done without those people 387 00:19:25.839 --> 00:19:28.880 reporting directly to them. And that's a tougher thing to 388 00:19:28.960 --> 00:19:31.799 do than if they were just that's your team and 389 00:19:31.839 --> 00:19:33.319 you're the boss, and you can have them do what 390 00:19:33.319 --> 00:19:36.200 you want them to do. And so being respectful or 391 00:19:36.240 --> 00:19:41.880 at least cognizant of that and understanding that you want 392 00:19:41.880 --> 00:19:46.279 to preserve not just that person's belief that their role 393 00:19:46.319 --> 00:19:49.599 is important in the organization, but preserve the relationship that 394 00:19:49.640 --> 00:19:54.400 exists between them and your people, because the more open 395 00:19:54.400 --> 00:19:57.880 communication that your people have with everybody in your organization, 396 00:19:58.160 --> 00:20:00.880 the better it will be for them because they will 397 00:20:01.160 --> 00:20:03.559 they'll strengthen their network, they'll you know, be in in 398 00:20:05.119 --> 00:20:07.359 places where they can get more experience to get more 399 00:20:07.400 --> 00:20:10.240 things done. So it's not about hiding them away and 400 00:20:10.319 --> 00:20:14.519 preventing it from happening. It's about making sure that everybody 401 00:20:14.559 --> 00:20:19.160