Want To Really Know How Your People Are Doing? Try This 1 Question

Today, I’m going to show you how to use 1 question to help you gauge how your team members are doing when you meet with them for 1-1s. I’ll also show how to use the responses to help support them more effectively.

By understanding how team members are doing and how you can help, you have a better chance of conveying how much you care and consequently helping them realize their best version at work.

Some operating leaders may struggle with asking this one question because asking it requires a level of vulnerability we don’t always show. We also struggle because the answer to the question is a potential reflection of our leadership.

The One Question is: “Where are you on a scale of Struggling, Surviving, or Thriving today?” Let’s dive in

I saw the power of this question in 2022.

I was reading Paul Dunlop’s post on LinkedIn. In it, he showed a visual management representation of the question for daily huddles. It made me think.

I wondered how my team members would respond to it.

Before seeing this image, I’d usually ask “How are you doing?” to gauge how my team members were doing. I’d get a reflex response and then we’d move on to other topics.

So Safe…and Boring.

Here’s what I now strive to do more now in 1-1 conversations with team members

1. Ask the one question at the beginning of my 1-1 conversations

   • Where are you on a scale of struggling, surviving, or thriving?

2. If the answer is anything other than “Thriviving”

   • What would it look like to be thriving?

   • What do you need from me to get to thriving”?

3. If the answer is “Thriving:”

   • I’ll ask “What do we need to do to keep it that way?”

Here’s what I have learned from adopting this approach

1. The question gives the team member an opportunity to pause and reflect before responding

2. The gap to reach “thriving” comes down to up to 5 actions(s) I may have to do for the teammate.

   • Reprioritizing a task for them

   • Removing an obstacle for them

   • Being a sounding board for them

   • Co-develop a solution with them

   • Create a space for “perfect” not to be the enemy of the good

3. The gap to reach “thriving” comes down to 3 things for the team member.

   • Getting help if they really need it from me.

   • Taking ownership of the gap if there’s nothing they need from me

   • An understanding that I’m invested in their success by my demonstrated willingness to discuss it explicitly.

Try the one question and let me know how the conversation goes!

Thanks for reading. Have a great week!

Whenever you're ready, there are 2 ways I can help:

1. Access Weekly Actionable Tips by joining my Saturday reflections.

   • I reflect on my journey managing and leading operational teams and share lessons I’ve learned along the way in a 2-3 minute post every weekend

2. Unlock quick tips by following me on LinkedIn.

   • I share 5-6 short posts tied to each of my actionable tips every weekend.