“When one has the feeling of dislike for evil, when one feels tranquil, one finds pleasure in listening to good teachings; when one has these feelings and appreciates them, one is free of fear.”
— Buddha
Leadership by Walking Around—LBWA. Funny thing. LBWA is probably the most effective leadership tool on the planet, and yet, it is the least practiced.
The helpful stuff I have found out just from simply and religiously doing daily walks around the office or building and stopping by to talk to each and every single employee! I always try to acknowledge someone for an important event. CLUE: If someone has a flower arrangement on her desk, it just might be a special occasion! Ask an employee about a picture on his desk or on her screensaver.
If you know someone who has achieved a big target, congratulate him on it. Ask him how he did it? Who on the team helped? What roadblocks or issues did he encounter? How could things be done better? What things around the business “piss him off?”
Walking around provides a massive opportunity to catch team members doing things right! Another lost leadership trait—actually looking to learn from the frontline and recognize its members for a great customer service act, a time saving process, or a perfect execution on a task. Good leaders know the advantage of this simple tool. Managers, on the other hand, rarely walk around, and when they do, they are fixated upon “catching” people screwing up.
It’s hard to believe, but I see so many leaders, managers actually, full of their own self-importance, walking by employees every day, and not even saying, “Good morning.” I had a peer once in Europe who would go visit one of our satellite offices and wait in his car until the manager he intended to visit came out to the car. They would have their meeting in the car and then he would leave. What a wasted opportunity for richness!
I blow away my team of leaders who report to me all the time by asking them about issues on the frontline they don’t even know about themselves.
I hear from leaders all the time that, “I have 150 people in my business, and it is impossible to speak with all of them!” More crap! I have had 1,500 employees before, but I knew something about each and every one of them. I worked with a CEO once who had 25,000 employees, and it amazed me that he seemed to know the names of each and every one of them. He specialized in coming into the office on Christmas morning and handing out presents to team members who had mission critical jobs and needed to be there 24/7.
All it takes is an understanding that each and every team member has a brain, which when engaged, can come up with ingenious solutions to problems that big consulting firms charge thousands of dollars a day to unravel.
Next, it takes discipline—both from a planning perspective and from an execution aspect. Once you start doing it every day, it becomes part of your daily habit—like brushing your teeth. Make it your afternoon stretch or the first thing you do each morning. Stop, acknowledge, ask how the person is doing, and simply listen. Don’t tell. Just listen. Ask another question and listen. Wish the person a fantastic day and move on. Capture the good stuff on suggestions and opportunities, and make sure you investigate and report on your findings and decisions.
This simple act will bring dividends back in terms of employee engagement that all the HR programs on the planet cannot match. It will bring you real solutions. It will make your employees see you as approachable and make them know that you care. Soon, employees will be coming to your door to ask how you are and whether there is anything you need (Not that that is why you do LBWA).
Go for a walk around your business today. Then write down five things you learned about your employees you didn’t know before that can help your business to grow:
1. ___________________________________________________
2. ___________________________________________________
3. ___________________________________________________
4. ___________________________________________________
5. ___________________________________________________