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In the realm of leadership, the traditional approach often revolves around identifying and correcting mistakes. However, a transformative management style goes beyond mere fault-finding - it involves actively seeking and acknowledging the positive contributions of your team.
Today, let's explore the philosophy of "catching them doing the right thing" and how it can redefine leadership dynamics.
Rather than adopting an oversight mentality that scrutinizes for errors, consider shifting your focus to actively seeking moments of excellence.
It is far too easy to assume that the default status should be that everyone satisfactorily performs their tasks and accepts it as a normal status quo. This may lead you to overlook valuable opportunities to praise good performance thus signaling to the rest of the team what behaviors are valued in your company.
This approach aligns with positive leadership principles, emphasizing the importance of recognizing and celebrating the strengths and accomplishments of your team.
Acknowledging and praising your direct reports for their positive contributions fosters a culture of appreciation. This, in turn, enhances morale, motivation, and overall team satisfaction.
One of your tasks as a manager is to align the team around common values and goals and offering sincere praise is a far more effective tool than criticising behaviour. Especially since you should only offer redirecting feedback in private, but praise is meant to be public.
It's a leadership approach that not only propels individuals, but also fortifies the collective strength of the team.
Cultivating the habit of "catching them doing the right thing" requires mindfulness and proactive engagement. Actively seek opportunities to recognize good work, whether it's a successful project completion, a creative solution, or a collaborative effort that exceeds expectations.
Even small successes deserve acknowledgment, a brief mention of "good work on delivering this specific task" in a team meeting can have a profound effect on both the individual and the team.
Effective leadership involves a delicate balance between praise and redirects. While constructive feedback is essential for growth, positive reinforcement serves as a powerful motivator.
Changing behavior is a difficult task and people will often respond better to praise than criticism.
Example: If John has trouble delivering his tasks on time you should address this in your 1:1 meetings. Offering sincere and adequate praise in a team meeting when he does deliver promptly will help him find more motivation. The same message is also received when you publically acknowledge Jane for delivering on time in a team meeting where John is present.
Be very careful here to be unbiased and offer your praise with an adequate tone. There is no need to praise John as stronger than Jane just because John usually misses deadlines while Jane usually delivers on time. Be balanced and orient your praises and acknowledgments according to seniority level rather than track record.
Treat the act of catching people doing the right thing as a skill that needs honing. Regularly assess your interactions and evaluate how often you provide praise and redirects.
This self-awareness allows you to fine-tune your approach, ensuring that positive acknowledgment becomes an integral part of your leadership style.
Are you taking someone's good performance for granted and forgetting to give enough praise? Are you monitoring your feedback interactions and regularly reviewing them?
Encourage a culture of recognition within your team. Highlight instances of commendable work during team meetings, and celebrate achievements collectively. This not only reinforces positive behavior but also inspires others to strive for excellence.
Always make sure you understand who worked on a project before offering praise, do not offer recognition to the project lead alone, if others significantly contributed as well.
While redirects are essential for growth, positive reinforcement catalyzes sustained performance improvement. Individuals who feel appreciated are more likely to proactively contribute to the team's success.
Regularly take time in your schedule to review what your team has worked on and what they delivered. Can you catch someone doing the right thing? Should you have no answer to that question, you are not looking hard enough. Even the most dysfunctional teams will often do the right thing, even if they do it unintentionally. Catch them in the act!
