Line management antipatterns
Avoid falling into these easy traps
I recently discussed the different roles fulfilled by a good line manager. Today I’d like to follow that up with the actions of a poor line manager. The following are a list of pitfalls that are easy to fall into as a line manager and so try to be mindful of steering away from these behaviours:
Not properly listening – It is important that you give your managee your full attention during your allocated time together. Not doing so will make them feel undervalued and hesitant to fully open themselves up to sharing and taking feedback from you. It can also make it easy to miss important points or visual clues.
Instead of replying to that important Teams message which came up, turn off notifications and don’t look at any other windows during your conversation.
Being unprepared – Fitting line management in amongst all your other responsibilities can make it tempting to just turn up and dive straight into the conversation. Taking some time in advance though to refresh your understanding of where your managee is, and working out what you’d like to cover with them, will make it a far more valuable conversation for you both.
Instead of just turning up for your one-to-one and winging it, take 10 minutes before the conversation to read over your previous notes and consider anything in particular that you need to communicate to your managee or ensure you get out of the conversation.
Forgetting to commit to actions – Whilst giving your managee a place to speak, and giving them general guidance is valuable, without committing to taking actions, you will find yourself discussing the same things every month without making any progress.
Instead of “Try to think about that next time” say “For next time I’d like you to have a rough plan of how you’re going to avoid that happening again.”
Not driving accountability – Actions are worthless if they don’t actually happen. As well as setting actions you need to follow up with your managee and ensure they complete them. You need to make sure to complete your own actions too to set the correct tone.
Instead of “I get it, you’ve been busy” say “Okay you’ve delayed this action for three months now, so either we need to find a way of prioritising it or to agree that it’s not actually that important for you just now.”
Asking closed questions – A closed question can only be answered from a small subset of responses, usually yes or no. These naturally limit where the conversation can go next and so prevents getting into more valuable thinking and discussion.
Instead of “Do you think that was the best thing to have done?” ask “Looking back, how else might you have approached that situation?”
Ruinous empathy – You will naturally want to protect your managee from hearing hard things, and also yourself from having to tell them it, but doing so can rob them of valuable opportunities to grow and improve. Giving someone critical feedback sooner is always kinder than allowing the situation to fester and hoping it solves itself.
Instead of “Yeah everything is fine” say “Okay I’ve noticed some behaviour on your part which I think is holding you back, so I’d like to share my viewpoint on this with you.”
Joining in wallowing – When your managee is stuck in a negative viewpoint, it can be tempting to join in with them, particularly if you’re similarly frustrated by a situation. Doing so however can lead to a negative spiral of reinforcement for both you and them, leading away from problem-solving and constructive thinking.
Instead of “Yeah, I don’t know why they’ve made this decision - crazy isn’t it?” say “I agree, the situation isn’t ideal but I’m sure it’s been made for the best intentions so let’s work out how we can move forward it.”
Jumping to assumptions – As you listen to your managee list all their problems, it may be tempting to start deciding on what you think is the cause of all their issues. You may well be right, but by settling on assumptions you open yourself up to missing valuable opportunities or perhaps even writing your managee off.
Instead of thinking “They’re just lazy” think “They seem to keep putting this type of task off, I wonder what is driving that and how I can help them with it?”
Skipping one-to-ones – If you or your managee can’t make your arranged one-to-one for any reason - holidays, illness, meeting clash then you need to rearrange for as soon after as possible. Even if you don’t think there is much that needs covered, it is vital that we keep these spots. Missing them causes the risk of missing information conversations and can interpreted by your managee that you don’t value them.
Instead of thinking “Sorry, I’m crazy busy, we’ll just skip this fortnight’s meeting” say “Apologies, I’ve got a lot of clashing priorities and want to ensure our time together has the focus it deserves. I’m going to reschedule for later in the week, but do let me know if there’s anything in particular you’d like to discuss sooner.”
Not taking and writing up notes – This may feel like an unnecessary bit of bureaucracy but taking the time to write up what was discussed with your managee, even if never shared with anyone else, will be hugely valuable as it forces you to distil and understand what was discussed, perhaps noticing patterns or unusual behaviour that missed at the time. It will also prove invaluable if you need to remind yourself of something previous discussed.
And that’s my list! There’s almost certainly more, so I’d love to hear other people’s!
Bonus bits
🤔 This is interesting
👨🎤 I love a good cover
Should I Stay or Should I Go? - Originally by The Clash - Covered by Powerman 5000
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