14 | New to Leading a Team at Work? Here are 3 Best Practices.
"This wasn't how I thought it was going to go."
The score was 11-0 and the game was finished. I was defeated, emotionally and physically. I wasn't simply defeated once; this was the third straight loss of the day.
This game of pickleball was no fun for me.
My expectations were high, and I was excited to learn a new sport that everyone else seemed to enjoy and excel in. However, the story was not going the way I thought. I wanted to hold my own and win, but I couldn't even get one point on the scoreboard. As I made my way to the parking lot after
"Will I ever be good at this?"
That is the line many people say when encountering their first leadership experiences, including myself. When you are new to anything, the reality is you will not be good at it to start. Leadership involves having followers. Followers are people, and people can be hard to lead, especially when are you new to leadership.
In this article, I want to speak to those of you who may be leading a team at work for the first time. Maybe you are feeling imposter syndrome and asking the same question, "will I ever be good at this?" People have believed in you, but it's difficult for you to know what to prioritize and where to start on your new journey.
Others of you may have been leading for a few years, yet you may have been assigned a new leadership role with some new team members, and you want to ensure you can lead them effectively.
Wherever you may be at, I hope this is helpful and provides some practical steps as you launch into leadership!
Get to Know Your People Without Asking Them
Maybe you've entered your new role as a leader. I want to share the first question you can ask each of your team members in your first 1:1 conversation with each of them.
"Who are three people in this workplace who have worked with you the most?"
By asking this question, you are able to unlock the full perspective of who you will be leading. Many leaders lack in self-awareness, meaning it is important for you to interview their peers what they think about them. You will hear great advice from them, how they work, what are their character patterns, etc.
From there, you can be prepared with the context to ask the best questions of your team members, so they are heard, cared for, and challenged.
Coach, not Criticize
Coaching people involves two components: challenge and support. This is why taking the time to get to know your people is so important. Some people are wired to respond to challenge better. Others are wired to respond to support. Either way, it is on you to discover how your people are wired and communicate to them accordingly.
I love that Jesus coached his "team" like this is the Scriptures through the Great Commission. You can see he coaches his team by providing challenge and support through this instruction.
Challenge (the call to fulfill an expectation): "Go... and make disciples of all nations."
Support (how can I help you): "I will be with you always until the end of the age."
Challenge pushes people up and out. Support pulls people in. It is so critical for you, the leader, to know when and where to pull those two levers.
Find Mentors
You cannot grow people unless you are growing yourself. That's a simple principle.
Here's what I've learned. People want to mentor young leaders; however young leaders do a horrible job of approaching mentors. For young leaders, we cannot approach someone with a selfish mentality instead of a learning mentality.
Here's some tips of how you can find a mentor and what you can do once you find them.