Meeting Topic
Introduction
Are you a monkey magnet? The article below, contributed by Glenda Lewis, explores what the heck monkeys are in business and how YOU can tame them. She provides specific examples of things you may be saying that could be making life harder for you as well as strategies to change your communication to help you get rid of the monkeys once and for all.
Do You Feel Like a Zookeeper … Constantly Managing Monkeys? By Glenda Lewis
The article title sounds like a fun hook, but it is something that happens more frequently than you realise. The idea of “Monkey Management” has been around since 1974.
So, what is Monkey Management, you ask? Put simply ‘Monkeys’ are additional tasks that jump onto your back, that you feel like you must deal with, but are not really part of your job. ‘Monkey Management’ is the process of managing these creatures.
Something that often comes up with my clients in management, is their sense of feeling overwhelmed and overworked. When I scratch the surface on this – I find that during a typical work week these managers often take on other people’s ‘monkeys’ and before they know it, they are carrying around lots of these pesky creatures on their back.
Are You A Monkey Magnet?
Being aware of how these monkeys arrive is the first step. Here are some examples of typical monkey magnet scenarios – things that are very easy to say, and which seem kind and helpful in the moment but in fact are adding to your overall work stress and workload.
- “Leave it with me for a bit…”
- “Let me think about this and I’ll get back to you…”
- “It will be quicker for me to action this…”
Try these Monkey Management Techniques:
Instead of saying “Leave it with me…”
Try saying “Let me show you how I find/research/complete xxxx, and then you can follow my process, and just bring me the finished product.”
Instead of saying “Let me think about this and I’ll get back to you…”
Try asking a series of critical questions back to the person:
- “What do you think is the best thing to do?”
- “How would this show what is possible?”
- “Knowing quality is important for us, and price is important to them, what do you think is the next best step to take?”
Instead of saying “It will be quicker for me to action this…”
Try saying “I’m happy to wait a bit longer for you to do a bit more research and learn exactly how this should be put together.”
The key here is being consciously prepared to respond to these questions as they arise. It will feel awkward at first, but it does get easier with time!
My Top Three Monkey Management Tips
- Successful delegation never involves taking a task/monkey back. If you have delegated the task right it stays with that person – you can help, guide, and check in with the person but you should never take the task back.
- Be prepared and have careful conversation tactics ready to send monkeys back home. Giving these responses initially will feel awkward but you need to stand firm, otherwise you will let the monkeys jump back onto your back.
- Clear role definition substantially reduces monkeys. If you are clear from the outset who is doing what, their authority level and boundary conditions, this will hugely reduce monkeys.
I promise that by incorporating these tips into your leadership style you will alleviate having to put on your Zookeeper hat on each morning!
To find out more about how Glenda helps her clients, book a discovery call: https://calendly.com/glendalewis/30min or visit https://www.theleadershipacademy-glendalewis.com/
Next Meeting Topic
Introduction
I asked our fearless CEO, Carolyn Banks, to write a quick article about HER take on the word ‘leadership’ for this week’s meeting topic. What follows are her thoughts – and there are quite a few little gems in there. Give this a read and come to your meeting prepared to discuss WHO has impacted YOU in the past – what leader do YOU look up to and why?
Its early January and I’m writing this while bobbing on a boat off Waiheke Island! In boating terms it’s simple: the leader is the captain, working out where you’re going, charting a course, making sure those on your crew understand where you are going and why, how, and more importantly getting them there safely and ensuring they enjoy the journey. A very famous quote by Simon Sinek says Leadership is not about being in charge, leadership is about taking care of those in our charge – and I totally agree!
Leadership means setting an example, establishing standards, being empathetic and loyal to those in your charge. It’s about having their backs and understanding they’ll make mistakes, while understanding your role is to help them with the learning – after all you can’t be successful without making mistakes or failing from time to time. It’s about helping people grow and develop, supporting them to realise their full potential, helping them discover qualities and strengths in themselves they weren’t aware of, and helping them get out of their own way by providing support and encouragement.
Leadership means making a commitment, taking responsibility, communicating effectively and having a positive attitude. It’s about hope and direction, it means leading the team and working with people in their areas of brilliance. It’s all about working out how to achieve, while also on the flip side being prepared to take the fall and re-motivate should it all turn to ‘you know what’! It’s about looking at any problem from all angles and coming up with a solution that will work for everyone.
Leadership isn’t about the leader, it’s about those they lead. As the Venus CEO, leadership is about me using my experience – both business and personal. It’s about recognising my flaws and faults and calling others in to work alongside me in their areas of brilliance. It’s about being the one who takes the responsibility to move the business / community forward for the good of all and taking the hits when people disagree, when things go wrong and keeping going cause you have the big picture in mind. It’s about stepping up and looking after things, leaving whatever you’re doing better than when you found it. After all what’s life about if not making a positive difference in your part of the world?
As women we lead quite naturally in our families. ‘Mum’ is usually the centre of the universe for the family, yet we don’t see it as leadership. In a business sense we tend to shy away from it, perhaps because we’ll be accused of being bossy? I say – own your awesome, speak up, go forth and lead in your part of the world – we’ll all be better for you doing that!
If you haven’t booked in a Power RAVE with Carolyn yet – don’t waste another minute! Get in touch with Bronwyn (Bronwyn.gregory@venusbusinesswomen.co.nz) to schedule a time in Caroloyn’s diary.
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