Connectedness for Leaders- How to bridge the social distancing gap

This is another article in the ‘Mastering leadership through collaboration’ series, in which Emma Versluis (BPIO/Quality CNC) and Tracy Churchill (NUM) team up with a series of inspirational leaders to learn from and share our combined ideas and strategies. Today, we work with Emily Blanch- Head of Community at XY Adviser- a progressive company who support and promote professionalism and collaboration within the financial planning industry. At first this collaboration might not seem to make sense but bear with us: 2 nurse leaders + 1 financial advisor = fantastic cross sector collaboration! Emily is well known for her creative (https://www.videoask.com/fogkjo1w0?preview ) yet personal approach (https://www.videoask.com/f8dqcprp3?preview ) to her work which has impacted positively on so many.

Tracy- I recently saw an impactful video by Arafmi that discussed how social distancing does not necessarily equal social disconnection. In these unprecedented times we are all learning news ways of working, and new ways of collaborating within teams. I was lucky to meet Emily before commencing my latest role and used her strategies to virtually engage with my team and my leadership prior to coming on board. I must admit that this year I have felt more disconnected from my colleagues than ever before. Even being at work we have been unable to see each other’s faces for the majority of our shifts, with masks being used for precautions (which is of course the safe and necessary thing to do).

I have tried to stay connected to my team in these socially distancing times is by bringing my humanity to our workplace. In our workroom we have two noticeboards. Both used to have a jumble of personal and professional posters and communications there. We are now trialling separated these boards into WORK and LIFE as a visual reminder that we are more than just our professional selves and bringing your whole self to work is vital to authenticity, connection and engagement. The work board now has professional, union and ward notices on it. On the LIFE board, we have invited people to put up photos and labels of things they love- their families, their pets or their favourite activities. One of our team is putting together a ‘yoga pose of the week’ to go on that board (she is also a yoga instructor). Seeing these photos reminded me of what our faces look like (without the masks) and also allows us to know a bit more about each other’s lives. These photos have prompted hilarious discussions around what celebrities our pets look like. It may sound silly, but silliness can promote connection. Laughter is a social gel that helps bind us to each other. And having colleagues that we know as people helps us all to have a better time at work. As leaders, it is our responsibility to bring this to our workplaces.

Emma- This year for me has been a challenge to navigate disconnection. As a vulnerable employee I have spent much of 2020 working from home and while I am absolutely privileged to have the opportunity to still contribute to workplace outcomes and to keep progressing our work, it has had its own challenges. One of the things which I have found sustaining is the relationship equity I had built within my team before lockdown occurred. Having a small team of trusted colleagues meant that I was able to openly and honestly discuss the challenges of being socially distanced without fear.

Relationship equity is vital in managing relationships and engaging others with your vision. It can also sustain you within your team in unprecedented times of a pandemic. One of the more light-hearted ways our team communicated whilst working from home was to use GIFs to express how we were feeling or what was challenging for us. Not only did this keep most days light (even when we were feeling frustrated) it actually added to the relationship equity pot instead of debiting from it. I like to think that all things considered I left my team with stronger relationships than before the pandemic. This GIF was one of our all-time favourites.

Emily - When the world hit the pause button on social connection this year, the concept of using video as a means to connect and communicate with your team or you audience was no longer a nice to have – it was a necessity.

As someone who manages an online social network and community of a few thousand and who works remotely, physical distance and social isolation is mostly unavoidable. Truth be told though, I rarely feel alone or disconnected from my team or the people who make up the XY Adviser Community. Video has (by choice) been such an engrained component in the experiences I deliver, almost every week I receive comments from people who say they feel like they know me and feel really comfortable interacting with me even though we’ve never met in real-life. This is the power of video. 

There are so many opportunities and ways to use video in the way we communicate. Why not replace a wordy email with a short impromptu video to a team member or record an instructional ‘how-to’ video series with your face on the screen instead of creating a PDF manual (highly recommend Bonjoro or Loom for this).

A great example of how I use video to ‘surprise and delight’ people while building strong professional relationships is in the personalised ‘Welcome to XY+’ videos I send to advisers who join our paid membership. Instead of explaining what I say in these videos – let me show you. I’ll wait while you check it out…. https://www.videoask.com/fn0sz8wxn?preview

Notice how I encouraged people to send me a reply by video, audio or a text? Sending these personalised videos instead of a standard (and often automated) welcome email has been a game changer. I receive video replies from advisers I’ve never connected with before. They fill me in on how their business is going and the areas of advice they’d like to improve. Most importantly, they tell me how surprised they were to receive my video, and how much they enjoyed it.

Video is a powerful means of communication, and it’s the ‘in-the-moment’ personalised videos you record and send to an individual person which go a long way in building trust and strengthening relationships. So, the next time you pick up your phone to send a text message or an email to a team member – why not send them a quick video?! No matter how silly you might feel, I can tell you it will be worth it. Plus, you might just make their day.

Strategies for leaders to stay connected:

·      Find ways to help your team connect with each other. At the start of a meeting, get everyone to write something down that no one in the room knows about them. Have fun pulling them out and trying to guess who wrote it (you will learn a lot!).

·      Don’t be afraid to use technology. Loom, Bonjoro and Marco Polo are free (with paid features) and easy to use tools that can give members of your team face time when it is convenient for them. Plus, you can re-record if you don’t like your first take.

·      Phone call other members of your team to check in if you haven’t seen them for a while. This will help them feel valued and keep your connections strong even when you don’t regularly get to see each other.

·      Actively listen and look for ways to ‘surprise and delight’ your team. Did someone in your team mention in a conversation they are looking for new books to read? Put a list together of five you think they would love and send them the list with links to each book blurb with a “I remember you said you were looking for new books to read, so I thought you might like to check out some of these”.

Feeling disconnected during these unprecedented times is normal, but it doesn’t have to be. You can choose to change your approach, adapt your strategy and get out of your comfort zone to make yourself and your team a new, better and more connected normal.

We hope you have enjoyed this article and we would love to hear about the strategies you have put into place with your team to create your new ways of connecting.