Welcome back to the At Work Tune Up, yourinsider’s playbook with practical, quick, tips on how to keep things happy and healthy at work.
We spend a lot of time at work. We should love what we do.
Let's get started.
This week's tip for your toolbox:
No need to own every follow-up yourself.
Create opportunities for teammates to check in with each other on commitments.
Many leaders believe accountability lives at the top. If something slips, the manager steps in. The reminder gets sent. The follow-up happens.
Healthy teams work a little differently.
Teams thrive when accountability is not only vertical, from manager to employee, but peer-to-peer. When colleagues feel comfortable checking in with each other, work moves faster and leaders don’t have to carry the whole weight of follow-up.
How to get started? Keep reading ⬇️
This week's tune-up:
Look for moments to spark peer accountability.
Here are a few places to start:
After assigning a task. When work is launched, invite two colleagues to connect directly. Can the two of you check in midweek and see how things are progressing?
In everyday workflow. If someone mentions progress or a challenge, encourage them to involve the colleague most connected to the work. Have you checked in with Jamie about that?
Inside a team meeting. Instead of round-the-horn reporting, break the team into pairs or small groups for five minutes. Ask them to check in on their action items together, then report back on what is moving forward.
At project checkpoints. When work reaches a milestone, invite teammates to compare notes before bringing updates to the full team.
On many teams, the people with the Working Genius of Tenacity naturally help work get finished. Give them permission to nudge the team when commitments start to drift.
The more you can reinforce the behavior of peer-to-peer check in and accountability, the more quickly that behavior will become a habit, and that habit will become your team culture.
Try it. Let me know how it goes.
HOW THE EXPERTS SEE IT:
Check out this podcast with guest former college basketball coach, Roy Williams, on what habits he built to take nine teams to the Final Four and win three national college basketball championships.
Spoiler: Don't get off the court until you've done one thing to get better.
If this newsletter resonates with you, here are three more ways I can help:
Follow me on LinkedInor Instagramfor bite-sized tips throughout the week (free).
Work with me for 1:1 executive coaching or strategy consulting. Hit reply and I’ll send you a few questions to see if we’re a fit.
Book me as a retreat facilitator or speaker. I've never met a team that regretted investing in time away from the office to reset. I'd love to work with you. Please reply to this email or email me directly.
I’m a teacher at heart, and love helping people get better at what they do.
