Indicate To Innovate Together
Despite the criticalness of indicating what is expected, it is often overlooked. If you skip the indicating of your intentions, it can disrupt what you are trying to do. Along those same lines, if you set the wrong expectations, you can cause results that derail your objectives and set the team up to not succeed.
The old adage of “be careful what you ask for because you just might get it,” is part of indicating. If you ask someone, in an email, for example, "What do you think about this PowerPoint I need to present to upper management?" What are they going to tell you? Chances are they will judge whatever it is you sent them and tell you how they would do it. Perhaps that is what you wanted, but most often, what we wanted was someone to help us make it better.
A better way to indicate what you were looking for would be to actually say, "Please read this over. I need to convince upper management we need to do this. Can you help me make this better?" This indicates a few things; your final objective, that you are asking for help, and you value their opinion.
The prior example may feel simple, and it is. However, it is powerful too. When we take just a few minutes to think about what types of signals we are putting out there for others, we gain a new perspective. That new perspective comes from their point of view, not ours. When you put others first, they will want to work with you to solve a problem because you have demonstrated you value them. You are actively being present with them, for them. They will naturally want to do the same for you.
Here is another idea that may sound a little radical. Stop inviting people to presentations. Start asking them to see where you are on the journey to the solution you are trying to reach. Avoid PowerPoint as much as you can, especially with decision makers, such as upper management or even customers. Post things around the room as you go and walk as much as possible. Make it a physical journey they see you taking, and they are being brought along. You will still have to do the PowerPoint presentation for later reference, but it becomes a supplement to what you are trying to achieve.
You may feel overly uncomfortable the first time you do it, but you certainly will have the room's attention. This is your opportunity to bring real engagement to the team because now you are having a conversation.
Given the number of meetings that take place online now, this is a big challenge to pull off. A little imagination can go a long way here. If a slide has nothing but words, there is no need to show it. Show yourself on the screen talking with them. If there are numbers, only show the most important ones and use size forty-eight font. If you have pictures or videos, absolutely show those.
When you can do live meetings, make every attempt to avoid having a physical barrier between you and the person you need to approve or sign up for what you’re trying to achieve. The barrier, like a table, indicates that you are separate when you need to be next to them building together. When you are next to them it subtly suggests that you are on the same side.
A final consideration is to be aware of who you are inviting to meetings. Limiting the number of individuals in a meeting allows for more voices to be heard that are impactful. This delivers more value for everyone. Also, think about the personality types of those you invite. When people walk into a room and see others that they know, they can get an indication of what is happening that day. For example, if you are past the stage of expanding ideas and need to focus on reducing an idea to a target market, do not invite a bunch of big idea people. They will disengage or, worse, side-track the entire meeting.
We used meetings, and setting up meetings, as a way to demonstrate how to indicate. Indicating is beyond meetings. It is the consideration that you are putting forward to help others get from where they are, to where you are. By putting in that consideration, what you are doing is meeting them where they are, so that the group can take the voyage together.