Right now many leaders are feeling frustrated that their team is stretched too thin. Unfortunately, the reality is that the world we’re working in today is moving faster than ever—and the demands on you and your team are likely to continue to grow. In this week’s “Your Best Next Move” video, Bobbie LaPorte shares share some tips and resources you can use to connect team members with their strengths, so you can more effectively use the resources you already have to achieve your goals.
Transcript for Your Best Next Move: “What To Do When Your Team Is Stretched Too Thin”
Hi everyone, Bobbie LaPorte here again with my weekly tip for your Best Next Move – where I help you have more agency in your work, acknowledge your capacity to act, and see what you can do right now.
Ok, I am probably going to hit a nerve with some of you this week’s tip, but I hope you’ll still be open to what I have to say.
What is the refrain I hear most often from my clients? It goes something like this:
I am swamped – I can’t get ahead; my team is stretched too thin; we are so resource-constrained; if I only had more resources, I could….
I am betting you hear this often, too. Maybe you even say it once in a while yourself.
I know for me – I get numbed hearing that because it is so prevalent.
I get that it’s the reality for many of you. But hasn’t it been this way for a while? And do you really think it’s going to be different in the future?
The world we work in is moving more quickly than ever; there are more demands on you and your team than ever before. And as we move into a more “normal” environment post-pandemic, the demands are only going to increase.
I’m not saying that you shouldn’t advocate for your team for more resources to achieve what’s expected of you. Of course, you should. But it’s not going to solve the ongoing challenge of always feeling that you can’t catch your breath, that your team is burning out.
And neither your peers, team, nor boss wants to hear this continuing refrain either. It’s not helpful. It only serves to reinforce the perception that you haven’t got things under control. They want solutions, not complaints.
So, what can you do when your team is stretched too thin?
Here is something to think about.
You’ve heard me talk over and over about leveraging the strengths and assets of your team members. Have you really looked at what skills they could be using that they might not be; how can you help them get out of the routine they might be in to see what else they can do?
How can you help them think about how their strengths can be used in a broader way to expand what they are truly capable of – moving beyond what they’ve done in the past to what they can do – now.
This is what possibility thinking is all about.
You are not going to fix the resource issue, but you can amplify the work – and impact – of your team by deploying what they already have in different ways.
So, here’s my tip:
Consider asking questions like:
- What do we need to achieve our goals?
- What do we already have?
- What are other ways these talents can be used?
With these simple questions, you are not only connecting your team members with their strengths, but you are also helping them see their gifts in a different way, to expand on what they already do well, and become more confident and self-sufficient in the future.
I want 2021 to be a year of momentum for you, one of possibility thinking where you take advantage of the agency we sometimes forget we have.
That’s my tip for this week. I’ll see you next week; take care of yourselves!