#3 Digest!

In today’s world we are all busy – emails to check, meetings to attend, documents to write, and direction to give. So, when we actually sit and have a conversation, I sometimes feel like I have to be prepared for anything, resolve any questions and walk away feeling like we fully accomplished the objectives and/or had quality time with your colleague. Additionally, we have different styles. Some people are ok to think or brainstorm out loud, others want time to think before responding. Both should be OK, but the former seems to be favored in today’s business culture. In fact, I always prided myself on being able to think on my feet. Below is an experience that caught me quite off guard:

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For a period of time, I reported to our C-Suite leader. Needless to say, I was very intimidated by this when I started the role…but grew to appreciate the access and experience of having a direct connection to a really smart & nurturing leader. I obviously tried to use his time wisely, only reaching out when I truly needed help. As I got to know him better, I realized he never rushed me or seemed irritated, in fact, he was always engaged and present. I walked away learning something from every conversation.

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But early in the role, I remember having a face-to-face meeting with him to provide updates and status on some projects. He was always good at asking questions, building upon the ideas but also giving me space to work and do what I thought was best. Our meetings were typically an hour and were jam packed with content and conversation. One day, after meeting with him, I realized that I wanted to revisit a topic because we had only brainstormed strategy levers, and I wanted to make sure we were on the same page before defining the actions to be done. I thought this was important, but also felt like I shouldn’t call him and take up more time the following day. I was worried that a leader of his caliber would think less of me because I couldn’t think well on my feet during our conversation. But I had to bite the bullet, so I texted him the next day, and he called immediately. I said, sorry to bother you again but I was just digesting our conversation from yesterday and….?

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He immediately replied and said, “It’s good to digest, it means you are thinking.”? I had to pause because I thought that was a profound statement. With that one statement, my boss made me feel the exact opposite of what I was concerned about. He made me feel valued and intelligent, and he was, again, engaged in the work I was doing.

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I will never forget that experience and now share that sentiment with others I have worked with. I think it is important to have the confidence to revisit a conversation – or tell someone that you need time to think it over and will get back to them the next day. It is also important that we give that grace to others we work with, and make sure your team knows you are OK with introversion and offline thinking. Embracing these diverse styles will help build a BETTER result and will allow everyone to feel EMPOWERED. I hope that this simple and short story makes you pause and think about incorporating DIGESTION into your work style.

Next month’s topic: #4 80-for-20