"This isn't how I thought our first 1-to-1 would go"
Sep 21, 2023
"This isn't how I thought our first 1-to-1 would go" said Go Slow to Go Fast™ Subject Matter Enthusiast Iñaki Escudero.
He'd just taken on a Partner role at a design agency, with a team of 35 and a mandate to grow the business.
He was excited about working with his new team and seeing what they could learn from each other. But in one of his first meetings, a team member used the time to complain that he'd been at the company for 7 years but a new hire had just joined and been given a better iPhone than him.
Undeterred, Iñaki said he'd look into it, then asked him what opportunities he saw in the market for their brand and offer. The team member replied that they'd really like to sort out the iPhone issue please, and yes he'll have a think about the question at some point.
Your enthusiasm and drive to make change happen isn't always shared by your teammates, and actually, that's OK.
This is what Iñaki learned: "This taught me to be prepared to see team members as people, not just as functions, or tools. Yes, we hire people to do a job for us, but they are people who have feelings and those feelings affect the way they show up at work.
If you believe, like I have learned to believe, that we are how we feel, then being aware of emotional needs becomes an essential part of your leadership development."
Iñaki managed to get him a new iPhone a few months later and that made his team member feel more valued and built a bit of trust and eventually that team member felt able to get behind what Iñaki was trying to do. And because he has 7 years experience, he was able to bring a lot to the campaigns they were developing, which won more clients for the company.
And all it took was a new iPhone.
He'd just taken on a Partner role at a design agency, with a team of 35 and a mandate to grow the business.
He was excited about working with his new team and seeing what they could learn from each other. But in one of his first meetings, a team member used the time to complain that he'd been at the company for 7 years but a new hire had just joined and been given a better iPhone than him.
Undeterred, Iñaki said he'd look into it, then asked him what opportunities he saw in the market for their brand and offer. The team member replied that they'd really like to sort out the iPhone issue please, and yes he'll have a think about the question at some point.
Your enthusiasm and drive to make change happen isn't always shared by your teammates, and actually, that's OK.
This is what Iñaki learned: "This taught me to be prepared to see team members as people, not just as functions, or tools. Yes, we hire people to do a job for us, but they are people who have feelings and those feelings affect the way they show up at work.
If you believe, like I have learned to believe, that we are how we feel, then being aware of emotional needs becomes an essential part of your leadership development."
Iñaki managed to get him a new iPhone a few months later and that made his team member feel more valued and built a bit of trust and eventually that team member felt able to get behind what Iñaki was trying to do. And because he has 7 years experience, he was able to bring a lot to the campaigns they were developing, which won more clients for the company.
And all it took was a new iPhone.
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