“Wow…you come prepared!”
“Yes…yes, I do,” as I hand my list of daily vitamins and supplements to the nurse.
Q1 of each year includes a lot of health to-do’s; my annual mammogram, lab work, regular teeth cleaning…
Because my health insurance changed last year and the provider I’ve been seeing for 30+ years isn’t in the network, I’m seeing a new one.
I’m not happy about it, but it’s out of my control, so I’ll make the best of it.
Many of you in the US know the drill; you’re a new patient so you start by filling out a litany of online questionnaires about your health history; when was you last tetanus shot? What is your family’s health history?
You do the best you can with the knowledge you have.
Ah…knowledge. You know, the ‘expert’ who shows up in your Facebook Reel feed with a coffee replacement that will reduce your stress. Watch the video long enough and the rest of your feed will bombard you with similar content.
Then there’s the Google search you do when you want to learn more about that one number in your labs that a bit higher than it should be.
So, when my appointment date arrived, I was prepared.
“I’ve been doing some research, and I want to request these additional labs.”
After some discussion, she agreed, and after drawing what looked like ALL of the blood from my body, I went home to wait for the results.
Three days later, I got the call. “Your labs are PERFECT!”
After sharing some of the details, she then lowered the boom.
“It’s a good thing you asked for that additional test. The number is significantly higher than it should be, so I want to refer you to a specialist.”
I wasn’t expecting this…my labs usually came back ‘perfect,’ so this was surprising.
After I hung up from that call, surprise turned to anger.
What if I didn’t ask for that test? My guess is I likely would have moved forward with life not being the wiser. I was fuming.
I believe knowledge is power. Power to make choices and decisions for myself, because I know this isn’t just about me.
So, what does this have to do with leadership?
As leaders, we and our team members need certain knowledge and information to make effective choices and decisions. Often, you, the leader, have access to that information, or at least the people who can share it with you.
Maybe there’s a significant change coming that impacts the way you and your team deliver a product or service to your customers.
Or the company is considering (another) reorg that will impact team reporting relationships.
Regardless of the information, I believe we have a responsibility as leaders to keep our finger on the pulse of what’s happening and to deliver the right message to our teams about the impact.
Here are a few tips to help keep your team in the know.
Get it. You’re in a leadership meeting and someone shares some high-level intel about a new system the company is looking to implement.
Your ears perk up, and you lean in to ask a question to learn more, but they aren’t ready to share details. You know that a change like this will significantly impact how your team operates.
During your next 1:1 with your boss, you raise the issue; what can they tell you about it? Again, you hear that details are forthcoming, but you’re right, this will impact your team significantly. Your boss shares more about that impact.
The key here is to proactively stay in the loop; to ask questions, to understand impacts, to advocate for you and your team by gathering the information you need to manage the change as it comes.
Decode it. What IS the impact on your team? Continuing with this scenario, you don’t have much information to go on, AND it’s your job as a leader to drill it down to brass tacks; what does your team need to know? What CAN you share?
Equally important to the details is the ‘why’ for the change. Managing the change means helping you and others navigate it, particularly any perceptions of risk or loss that team members may have.
Share it…as often as needed. Tell the team what you can, specifically the impact on them, AND tell them you’ll keep them posted on any new information that impacts them.
It’s also important to share what you DON’T know. Significant change will raise questions, so be honest about what you know and don’t know, and commit to regular communication to help them navigate their concerns.
The better you can manage highly impactful information, the more trust you’ll build. And trust is the foundation of the overall ‘health’ of your team.