Where Do You Draw the Line?

What are your boundaries? Have you ever taken the time to define them? And if so, does your team know what they are?

If you’re thinking, “I don’t need boundaries,” well maybe you don’t, but your team does! While the term “boundaries” might sound constraining, boundaries at work and in leadership actually give us more freedom! They give teammates the freedom to make decisions, and they give leaders the freedom to focus on the big picture, knowing that their teammates are trusted and empowered to handle things appropriately that fall within their realm of expertise. As that trust grows, so do your teammates’ boundaries. Boundaries are especially essential for new teams with new leaders who don’t know where the lines are drawn. (more…)

Just about everyone has an inner circle. Hopefully your circle is made up of people with whom you are safe discussing topics and getting feedback. The people in your inner circle should bring value to you by both building you up and challenging you. (more…)

As I noted in 5 Actions for Leading a Virtual Team, the Impacting Leaders team is comprised of mostly virtual employees. I asked my team to think about the actions they deem to be essential to success as a member of a virtual team. Here’s what they had to share:
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Last week my youngest had her wisdom teeth out, so I re-arranged my schedule and worked from home for a few days while she recouped. Though I was grateful to have the flexibility to keep working while still being able to look after my daughter, by the end of Day 2, I was starting to feel a bit stir crazy, confined within the walls of my office and away from the chaos, meetings, and daily face-to-face interactions with teammates and clients that I find fulfilling and energizing.

When I shared this with two of my virtual teammates, they laughed! They had just been discussing how much they enjoyed working in boundaries of their quiet home offices with few interruptions to their production. I quickly realized that what some of us view as boundaries, others of us view as confinement! (more…)