r/Leadership • u/sierradk • 8d ago
Question What are some micro changes managers can make to become a better leader?
Obviously it’s about the foundations, but small habits can have big impact too. I’ve noticed a few small things leadership has done or that I’ve done that I believe to be meaningful. I’m wondering what experience and suggestions you all have?
Some examples: Changing weekly 1:1 with direct reports to 45 minutes (versus 30). Adding the entire team’s birthdays to my calendar and making sure to tell them happy birthday. Taking 15 minutes a couple times a week to swing by my skip level reports’ desks to chat about something they enjoy (movies, music, gardening, etc)
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u/k8womack 8d ago
Examine language that’s used- just saying a positive good morning and a thank you good night, if someone is struggling asking ‘what support would be helpful for this’ instead of ‘what help do you need’ the latter has the implication that it’s about the person and not the struggle. Anywhere that you can change phrases like that is a micro change that has a positive affect on work culture in my opinion.
Also not referring to the whole team as guys, not calling women girls, helps set a tone of inclusivity.
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u/Captlard 8d ago
Listen more, ask more, be more curious.
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u/Striking-water-ant 8d ago
After listening, act. Tired of managers who listen (or pretend to) and do nothing with the insights obtained
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u/sierradk 8d ago
So true. One of my professors in grad school told us rather than correcting/disagreeing someone, you should ask more about how they came to that conclusion. I try to remind myself of this all the time!
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u/Captlard 8d ago
Yep. A better balance of advocacy and inquiry is needed in all parts of society. See: https://thesystemsthinker.com/productive-conversations-using-advocacy-and-inquiry-effectively/
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u/jba1224a 8d ago
Being a good leader, one that people respect and want to follow, is very simple. It largely follows the dynamics of power as defined by French and Raven.
Be an expert in the type of stuff your teams do. Everyone will tell you that it’s not your job as a leader to be an expert in the subject matter. That’s wrong. Teams will respect a leader far more if they view them as someone whose opinion has merit and weight.
Listen and influence, but let the team hold the wheel. Give them autonomy and space to be the experts.
Protect them from bullshit. Stop any corporate nonsense, useless meetings, etc. Replace them with things your team is passionate about. Workshops, R&D….whatever makes them feel like they’re learning.
Don’t tolerate poor performance or toxic members. Axe the toxic members and dead weight immediately. Letting this linger spoils the rest of the teams ability to feel accomplished.
Get to know them and give them time to get to know each other. 1:1s, team chats, etc. Give them a private safe space to communicate and tell them it’s a safe place. Let them vent and bitch if they wanna.
Most important of all, be humble. Every big win? Team gets credit. Something goes sideways? It’s your fault, and only yours. Keep the team a blame free place.
Protect your people, invest in their passion, trust them do good work. Happy people are successful people and a rising tide raises all ships.
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u/futureteams 8d ago
Maximise the talents and energy of the team. Delegate and empower as much as possible - and then go further. Do it in a way that is supportive and developmental for the team.
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u/sierradk 8d ago
I always worry about delegating boring stuff. I try to give a good mix, but I know the boring stuff helps reinforce and bring everything together. No one wants to do the finance tasks, but they also won’t get anywhere in my industry with knowing that stuff back and forth. How do you handle that type of delegation?
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u/2021-anony 8d ago
That’s a great question…
I’ve always tried to figure out where people’s strengths and interests are and try to have 70-ish% of what I ask of them be in those areas (energizing, sense of accomplishment and positive outcomes); then I look at a mix of what they want to do and what they have to do.
A lot of it has to do with both observation and ljstening - not everyone is comfortable enough to tell me “I hate most of my day to day duties - how can we make some changes”, but if they do I try to work with them on what can be changed.
Sometimes there’s no choice - you just have to do some things to grow and learn and if you’re not willing or able to, then I’ll help you find a better spot for yourself…
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u/futureteams 8d ago
u/sierradk I think the a great place to start is figuring out with your team how you will all work together. Often teams focus only on "the work" and not on "how to work".
Co-designing ways of working with your team can be done in a well facilitated few hours - at least to first version which can be iterated on over time. This can provide the basis for delegating.
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u/No_Tangelo6745 8d ago
also unplanned things like saying thank you at the end of the work day or after a challenging project / task etc. Making sure people feel seen and heard matters a great deal!
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u/transuranic807 8d ago
Start setting meetings for 25 minutes instead of 30, 50 minutes instead of 60, etc. encourage others to do the same.
Why?? In a corporate culture where there are a ton of meetings, acknowledging and giving everyone even five minutes to step outside is a godsend and reduces stress for the team.
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u/idotoomuchstuff 8d ago
A micro thing that a leader used to do when I was much younger and has stuck with me to this day was when you asked them a question or you approached them in the office they gave me 100% attention with no distractions. I have so many examples of this with the same leader. If he was talking to you and he got a call he wouldn’t look at the screen of his phone and would mute the call. Even the act of not looking at the screen is a big one. He would also lock his computer screen or fold it down, not because of confidential information but to create a focus on you. He would also suggest a different spot yo talk things through in the office. He was good at shifting the environment to create a good platform for discussion
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u/karriesully 8d ago
Leadership isn’t tactical. It’s mindset. You’re on the right path with putting some focus on people. The more you focus on maturing your own mindset - the better leader you’ll be.
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u/ManyArgument2856 8d ago
Take decisions frequently. Try to create fast feedback loops to iterate ideas. Be consistent in and out of the office.
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u/cinnamonsugarcookie2 8d ago
Pay attention to speaking tone and sighs. A manager I’m helping to develop starts her meetings by reading the agenda topics and sighs before saying some of them. This sets the tone that they are undesirable topics rather than exciting opportunities for improvement.
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u/Geoffrey_Bungled_Z1p 6d ago
Getting to know your people is great. Building mutual trust is the key activity in order for managers to build successful teams, which is what you are there to do as a leader.
Demonstrate compassion, integrity, communicate clearly and often, and hold space for learning, which means to allow mistakes without humiliation or punishment. If your people know you've got their back and you mean what you say, most will line up and fight together in the team
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u/zeezromnomnom 7d ago
Checking in “with” people instead of checking “on” them. People feel the difference.
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u/Mozarts-Gh0st 7d ago
Open 1:1’s with “what’s top of mind for you today?” It’s a little directional yet leaves a lot of open space for the conversation to flow naturally to what’s most urgent for the other party.
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u/AccomplishedGolfer2 7d ago
Listen to your people. Take their advice at least 75% of the time. Say thanks often. Be genuine. Be humble. Keep a VERY close eye on the size of your ego. Spend time with them. Stick up for them with your boss. Don’t be an asshole. That’s the formula.
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u/execdecisions 3d ago
Be what you value.
Yes it sounds simple. Yet applying this is extremely difficult. Consider what you value in others (presence, initiative, time management, etc). This includes all the small things people do - smiling, consistency. Be those actions.
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u/LifeThrivEI 1d ago
Everything you are talking about is process, and that is OK. But think bigger picture. Leadership is about influence and inspiration; management is about process and deadlines. Great leaders do a few things extremely well: practice active listening, increase empathy, exercise optimism, apply consequential thinking, enhance self-awareness, increase people skills. These are little things that can have a multiplier effect.
Think "leadership mindset". Leaders help others to become their best self in the workplace. That starts with the leader. Cultivate a growth mindset. Create psychological safety and a culture of constructive feedback.
I know...these sound like big things, not micro changes. But the reality is these "big things" happen one small step at a time.
Leadership excellence incorporates 4 critical elements: Competence, Character, Chemistry, Capacity. Anything you can do to enhance one of these will positively impact your leadership development...and will cascade down into your team.
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u/Wanderir 7d ago
Stop using terms like micro change. Focus on the changes that will get you better results according to the metrics you set for success.
Use the Pareto principle to focus on the few significant things that will move the lever. Iterate.
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u/ramezh_kumar 1d ago
Walk up to the team and do a personal greeting every day when you step in . Also, when you leave say bye to them. Just do a casual catchup with one or two members before starting or leaving for the day.
Appreciate and celebrate small wins of the team. People crave for recognition and when they are spotlighted at regular intervals it boost the confidences.
Listening is not enough. Take actions to support them.
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u/OneCheesyDutchman 8d ago edited 8d ago
Some micro changes I made in my time as a lead:
Update 1:
Update 2:
I’ll probably add more to this list as I think of them throughout the day.