It was Tuesday morning during a weekly meeting with one of my employees. They shared a current challenge they were facing. They spent 10 minutes explaining the situation, ensuring I had all the context to understand the challenge.

It wasn’t a huge challenge. But it would impact our team’s ability to meet our quarterly goals. I knew the challenge had to be corrected or else it would be my failure to meet the assigned quarterly goals. I also knew they could solve the challenge without my help.

Still, I listened to them as they explained the situation. I asked a couple of follow-up questions to help them elaborate on the data they had gathered. Then, I asked one final question:

What would you do?

They were waiting for this. They provided a thorough 5-minute overview of the steps they would take to correct the problem.

So I said, Yes, let’s do it.

I waited for our next touch base and asked how it was going. Everything was back on track. They executed the plan, with a few tweaks along the way, and we achieved our team goal.

Sometimes your employees just need a little encouragement. A little bit of faith that you believe in their plan. They don’t need you to solve their problems; they need to know you believe they can solve them. So, before you offer advice, simply ask:

What would you do?

Until next time,

Rick