One of the analogies I use when training is that of a sailing boat. Unless you are Jessica Watson and sailing around the world by yourself, you need a crew or team to help you get where you are going.
Recently, I listened to an interview between Real Estate Director, Robert Sheahan and Lee Woodward of Real Estate Academy, where Robert shared his experience of growing a team.
“You have to be organised for them to be able to help you”, he said.
It reminded me of so many instances when I have been challenged to be organised in order for people to help me as well as those of my clients and their teams.
I recalled one such executive assistant who was in tears as she shared about the number of times her boss changed his mind and therefore the goal posts. It undermined her ability to succeed in the role and reduced her self-esteem and confidence.
This isn’t helpful for those who want to support us.
We need to remember that they need time to do their work and that whilst many of us fly by the seat of our pants, our support team need the time and resources to organise themselves to help us.
Recently, I added a virtual team to my organisation to implement campaigns for my customer relationship management (CRM) software program which also doubles as a marketing platform.
I pay a monthly fee and they complete tasks during the month according to my priorities.
They have been extremely efficient with their implementation and sadly I confess it is me who is holding up the projects with simple things like subscribing to plugins, or giving them the information they need to create campaigns.
This week’s topic is a really important topic. How often do we hear others complaining about the lack of support they receive and yet when you drill down on it, it’s not a lack of support, rather a lack of organisation, instruction and clear communication; all in a timely manner.
Here are a couple of tips to help you get organised:
- Have a plan for what you want to have done by when
- Make a list of all the tasks required to be completed by whom
- Allocate ENOUGH time for all parties to complete their tasks
- Schedule regular progress updates either in person, online or using a project management program such as Asana.
- Stick to the plan.
Sticking to the plan is the single most important thing you can do to alleviate stress and anxiety for your team.
You know you can’t do it alone. Please help your team to support you by getting yourself organised or at least, allowing them to organise you.
