Hi Reader,
Tomorrow is Election Day here in the US, and Thanksgiving is coming up in just a few weeks. A great move you can make today as a manager is to send a note to your team that you want to make sure they have time to vote tomorrow and to let you know if they need your support to ensure that time exists.
Let’s get to your Monthly Management Memo - as always, with something bold, something new, something borrowed, and something to pursue.
🔥 Something Bold - Rest Takes Practice
As a group, those of us doing work we care about, in leadership roles, are pretty bad at rest. If I could change the rules and those of us doing important work could need less rest, I might do that. But I don't make the rules, and the reality is that the folks doing really high-quality work are doing it because they prioritize their rest. I think we need to drop the stories that we’re just not the kind of people who can rest, or that our work is so important we can never put it down. Rest takes practice. It’s uncomfortable at first, and it gets easier. If you’ve never practiced, pick one evening this week and leave the laptop closed. It might feel really hard. But the more you practice, the better you'll get at it.
🆕 Something New - Ask for a Number, Not a Yes or No
I asked a group of company leaders a question in the chat: how do decisions get made on your team? A: we’re clear, we know how this works. B: sometimes confusing. C: pretty often messy at my company. Eighteen people answered. Only two picked A.
I don’t read that as eighteen difficult teams. I think most of it comes down to nobody saying out loud how a decision will get made, so everybody guesses, and the guesses don’t match.
Here’s the tool I gave them, and the one I reach for most. It’s adapted from Sam Kaner’s gradients of agreement (you may know a cousin of it as Fist to Five). Put the proposal on the table in one sentence, then ask everyone for a number:
- I love it, I’m all in
- I can live with it, but I’d change something to make it even better.
- I don’t really care, I’m fine either way
- I have a real problem with this
- Absolutely not. If you do this, I’ll be so mad that I'd come in on the weekend and undo it (you can leave off the last part if your team wouldn't find it funny like I do)
Say the proposal is “let’s paint the office walls blue.” About half the time you get ones and twos all the way around - folks agree more than you think. Ask the twos: “Tell me more about your two.” And they say, well, what kind of blue? Ocean blue, I love. Sky blue, I hate.
A five is useful too. Now you know where the real disagreement is and who’s holding it, instead of hearing about it secondhand three days later.
Try it on something that’s been going around your team for weeks. Put the proposal in one sentence, ask for numbers, then ask folks who aren't a one to say more.
🤝🏼 Something Borrowed - A Sample Note for Election Week
The Management Center shares an email a nonprofit executive director sent her staff the week before the 2020 election, and it’s a good model if you’re not sure what to say to your team. She offers time to vote, flexible leave, an optional team check-in the day after, and asks everyone to be thoughtful about scheduling meetings the following week. Adapt it for your team. Those offers hold up no matter how everyone is feeling. Read the sample note here.
🏃🏾♀️ Something to Pursue - Send This Time-Off Note to Your Team
Chances are someone on your team is sitting on unused time off. A short note from you is an easy way to say you want them to use it. Feel free to copy and paste any of my language and change it for your team. If you can find a little bit more time to make these individual emails, add in a note about their actual personal PTO balance - for those who have a small balance because they're using it well, tell them how much you appreciate them modeling that for the team. For those with a lot accrued who haven't been taking it, let them know you'd love to chat about how to help them plan to use it (they might not have even thought about it, or maybe they're deliberately saving it up for something coming up, but either way, you want them to know that the benefit is there for them to use and you want them to use it!). I had a mantra that I never wanted anyone on my team to hit a vacation accrual cap if I could help it.
Dear Team,
Your paid time off is a benefit meant to be used. Taking breaks is part of how we do good work together.
I suggest you do the following this week as we look ahead to 2027:
- Check your PTO balance
- Plan at least one meaningful break next year
- Fully disconnect when you’re away
Taking care of yourself helps you do your best work. Don’t let unused vacation days go to waste.
Let’s make sure everyone gets some rest.
Hit reply and tell me how it goes.
Jess
Last Month's Most-Clicked Management Memo Link: My workshops page - it's been fun to chat with some of you about workshops for your team to get 2027 off to an excellent start! Keep the inquiries coming. I love working with you.
Bring your team; I’ll bring my A-game. I love helping teams with workshops on productivity, team culture, and effectiveness at work. Find out more and book a free chat to see if I can be helpful to your organization.