Cowboys and cowgirls of the American West have an expression we can all learn from: Taste your words before you spit them out. Learning to edit or filter your thoughts is not easy for strong leaders. They often underestimate how others will run with the words they use and find themselves defensive or insulted while they remain oblivious to this impact.
I agree with this in the context of an "All-hands" meeting or something similar. But what about 1:1s, Team, or Project Meetings. Sometimes, I want a leader to take off their leader hat and put on their 'problem solver' hat. Throw out ideas, talk out loud, it helps me better understand their thinking process. I do this with my team. I will explicitly state, "We're talking out loud here, exploring ideas/ways to attack the problem." "Let's not get too hung up on any one idea until the end of the discussion and agree on next steps?" I've always thought this was helping my team, maybe it's not. Thoughts?
When you take the time to set your moment the way you describe above, David, you've already conditioned your team for candor.
The message above is directed at the kind of leader who thinks that kindness and candor are polar opposites - which they are not. The message above is also about reactive speech more than it is about intentional speech.
The exercise you've described -- one that sets the tone for people to submit half-baked ideas without feeling like they'll carry the same judgement as them being brought up in a more formal occasion -- seems like a really great routine.
It also is right in line with a previous Field Notes or tow we published here. This one comes to mind in particular https://admiredleadership.substack.com/p/admire-the-problem. Sounds like this is the core idea around what you've already regularly put into practice.
I agree with this in the context of an "All-hands" meeting or something similar. But what about 1:1s, Team, or Project Meetings. Sometimes, I want a leader to take off their leader hat and put on their 'problem solver' hat. Throw out ideas, talk out loud, it helps me better understand their thinking process. I do this with my team. I will explicitly state, "We're talking out loud here, exploring ideas/ways to attack the problem." "Let's not get too hung up on any one idea until the end of the discussion and agree on next steps?" I've always thought this was helping my team, maybe it's not. Thoughts?
When you take the time to set your moment the way you describe above, David, you've already conditioned your team for candor.
The message above is directed at the kind of leader who thinks that kindness and candor are polar opposites - which they are not. The message above is also about reactive speech more than it is about intentional speech.
The exercise you've described -- one that sets the tone for people to submit half-baked ideas without feeling like they'll carry the same judgement as them being brought up in a more formal occasion -- seems like a really great routine.
It also is right in line with a previous Field Notes or tow we published here. This one comes to mind in particular https://admiredleadership.substack.com/p/admire-the-problem. Sounds like this is the core idea around what you've already regularly put into practice.