"My meetings feel boring. Leaders come in, give me polished versions of the business, and canโt wait to get out of my office. We both dread them. How can I freshen up my one-on-one meetings?"
May 18, 2023It’s funny what you become known for around the office.
Dave Ramsey often included real life examples in his leadership books. In 22 years of working with him, I only made a book as an example once.
It was to describe my likelihood of having my one-on-one meetings with people in my 4x4 truck driving down some country road to get out from under those fluorescent office lights.
Part of it was that it was just fun to hit some backroad or some mud. But most of it was that it let people relax and let their guard down with me and get real.
Some of the most sensitive conversations about work have happened in my barn while we were looking at my John Deere tractor. It just let people breathe a little and not worry about being overheard. It said that they were a big deal to me and that it was okay to spend a little extra time with them.
It became a regular thing.
Some people joked about it. Most of them wished their leaders did it.
For you, it may be a drive to grab coffee somewhere or a drive to see a house they are considering buying. It’s worth mentioning that I only did the one-on-one country road drives with guys. With ladies, I just invited some other trusted person to go with us out of respect for them and their spouse.
Try it.