Thread by @vishweshji

Most new #Leaders #managers I have met suck at conducting #oneonone the right way
- It’s not their fault I suck too every now and then, so I created some ground rules.
Here is a thread which talks about everything I did wrong about conducting #oneonone meetings.
🧵

1. It’s not your meeting managers - One-on-one meetings are not manager’s meetings, they are direct report’s meetings. Let them talk 90% of the time.

I am very talkative and made this mistake many times in my career of taking over these meetings.

2. Give one-on-one the importance it deserves - Do not schedule it just for the sake of it and find reasons to postpone/cancel. Make sure your reports also understand the value of this meeting.

3. Set agenda in advance - Make sure you set points to discuss in advance and collaborate with a direct report, rather than run-time questions. More time you give your report to set agenda more specific and targeted points get discussed in the meeting, which results in high ROI.

4. Don’t keep canceling, postponing the meeting - If you delay, postpone or cancel meetings again and again… people will lose motivation and the zeal for a discussion and eventually bringing low productivity. They may just shut down, stop opening up/speaking up.

5. Record/Document action plan - If you do not record, end meeting with an action plan for both parties, you will end up discussing the same thing again and again without reaching a conclusion. Always end with action items and time box them.

6. It’s not a Status Meeting - I often confused one-on-one meetings as status meetings and start discussing issues, progress, etc. One-on-one is *NOT* a status meeting!
This will not help you build a good relationship.

7. Switch off the phone and focus - We easily get distracted by notifications or something happening when in front of your laptop. Make sure you give 100% attention during a one-on-one meeting. If you can and are comfortable making eye contact- do it, it helps build trust.

8. Follow up and follow up again - Biggest mistake I did was never following up on the action plan we agreed upon in one-on-one. A simple follow-up can go a long way in building trust and prove that you are invested in the growth.

9. Rushing through the meeting - Make sure you have at least 15-30 mins extension possible to the meeting, don’t rush through meetings, don’t keep them incomplete.
This is difficult but again shows great care.

10. Gossiping and Discussing other people’s stuff - This is a big red flag, don’t even do this casually. It’s easy for a conversation about team dynamics to go in an unwanted direction.
Avoid this intentionally!

To help others conduct better one-on-one meegings:

1. Retweet the first tweet below.

2. Share your thoughts!

https://twitter.com/vishweshji/status/1438896635531051012?s=21