Make time to help others
Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests but about the interests of others as well. - Philippians 2:4
I was supposed to be on parental leave last week but my baby decided to postpone his due date. 😂 (Fingers crossed that he comes this week)
As a result, I had unexpected free time at work, as I had blocked off my calendar in anticipation of my leave.
This newfound free time taught me an important lesson - you need time to be able to help others.
It seems like common sense, but as someone who tries to be as productive as possible, it took untill last week for this lesson to really hit home for me. 🤦♂️
Before last week, I would have my calendar blocked with priorities that I want to accomplish.
What my schedule looks like on a typical week. Pretty blocked out with little gaps in between meetings.
A more relaxed schedule made me more patient and I was able to help more people in my team. Without a jam-packed schedule, I had more time to work through problems with my team, as I didn’t feel the time pressure of having to hop off to another call.
I had room to breathe and that calmness translated to the way that I was able to help my team.
I am guilty of often wanting to solve a problem in the most efficient way possible. However, that will often unintentionally make the other party feel bad for “taking up my time”.
The problem is not the lack of will to help but rather the lack of time
I think this is an especially important lesson for managers who are also makers.
A manager-maker role is someone who is responsible for managing people while also getting a set of tasks done.
You usually find this role common when your company is big enough to have employees to manage but not big enough to justify a full-time manager.
I am still figuring out how to build more free time into my schedule as I know my nature is to pack my schedule to make every moment “count”. I frequently have to remind myself that as a manager, my job is also to make sure that my team has the support from me to make them successful.
The reality is I have to make time to help and that time has to come from somewhere.
To want to help is half of the equation. The other half is to make time to help.
To want to help is half of the equation
The other half is to make time to help
Some ideas that I have so far to make sure I make time:
Build buffer times into my schedule
Actually have time built into my schedule that doesn’t involve any specific tasks. If there is no help needed, then I can slot my tasks into that slot.
Build deliberate “Check in on team” / “Check Email” time into my schedule
Dedicate time for the purpose of proactively checking on my team instead of only responding to them when they reach out.
If you are a manager-maker, how have you balanced the execution of tasks and managing your team? I’d love to hear from you in the comments if you have any suggestions!
I hope this short post was helpful!
Talk soon next week! 👋