As a leader, odds are you keep a lot of running lists. Without them, a lot of us wouldn’t be able to prioritize tasks, remember who is working on which projects, or whether we need to pick up milk before dinner. For those of us who are chronically absent-minded, they can be life savers. But there are times, especially when working with remote employees, when checklists can … [Read more...]
Need Help Pondering the New Year?
You’re probably getting a lot of advice about how this time of year is good for taking stock of you and your team, where you are now and where you want to be. People who do this mean well, but just saying, “Give some thought to where you want to go,” is not all that helpful. At best you will focus on some things that matter, at worst you become a blubbering pile of insecurities … [Read more...]
5 Ways to Ruin a Virtual One-On-One
As leaders, we know that one-on-one communication with our team is critical. When we can’t just look out and survey the cubicle-farm to see how people are doing, the little time we get to spend with each employee becomes more precious. That’s why conducting these meetings is perhaps the most important skill a long-distance leader can have. In many ways they are just like … [Read more...]
Leaders: Remember You Have Superpowers
As leaders of a remote team, it is easier to get down on ourselves. We aren’t getting the participation from our team we’d like. People aren’t honest with us about how their work is going, and we think everything is fine only to have fires pop up in the least likely places. We feel powerless. It seems funny then that others think of you as a superhero (or villain, depending on … [Read more...]
Fighting Isolation and Loneliness on Your Remote Team
For many people, working from home during COVID has been a big success. At least it’s worked better than many people anticipated. But the longer it goes on and the more uncertainty there is about what the return to the office will look like, or even if it will occur, the more we have to deal with a hidden and very destructive force—isolation and loneliness. As the leader, you … [Read more...]