I’ve seldom seen leaders properly take time off. I don’t mean the inability (or resistance) to take a vacation, but the way of going about it. The benefits of a leader effectively handling time away are considerable:
- Their team feels confident
- Their team performs at a high level
- The leader can unplug and refresh
There are negative impacts to not dealing with this carefully. I knew a manager who would disappear without warning for days. No one knew for sure if he was on a business trip, working remotely or on vacation. Random and infrequent emails from him only added to the confusion. Uncertainty reigned in the office and stress levels rose. Sadly, it culminated in an undercurrent of resentment.
There’s a better way.
Before Your Time Away
Proper treatment of a break in work starts long before the actual event. Your aim is to put your team in a position for success. When you do this correctly, you will have a confident team ready to perform.
1. Let Your Team Know
Most people plan for time away from work. Your team deserves time to prepare for your absence. Notification is also a sign of respect. Your team will appreciate it.
How much in advance? As a rough guideline, consider three times the amount of planned absence. Going away for a week? Make them aware three weeks before. The initial notice is a heads-up; you need not have a complete contingency plan in place.
As your plans firm up, it’s crucial you specify the days and times (if any) you will be reachable, and how to best do so (email, text, etc.). Do not leave your team in the dark. When your team has this information, they understand when to act on your behalf or when they can solicit your input.
When you are clear about times of availability, you do not have to check email or have correspondence outside reachable times. Randomly checking and responding to emails pollutes your vacation. It thwarts your refreshment, and it only confuses your team, making them unsure if/when they can expect a reply.
2. Equip Them and Invite Questions
Be clear about the ongoing obligations you expect the team to handle while you are away. Give them any background or related materials. Provide them time to ruminate and come back to you with questions. Invite and expect them. Remember, you want them to be successful.
Similarly, inform them of what they can put off until you return. These include items you prefer to handle, but also items that aren’t a priority to put on their already-full plates.
3. Express Confidence in Them
With the team informed and equipped, be intentional about expressing your faith in them. Confidence they will handle everything they can and assurance that anything that goes awry can be dealt with on return. This confidence is not because you demand perfection, but ask for best effort.
After Your Return
How you handle your return is as important as the preparation for the time away. Treat this time with extra sensitivity.
1. Communicate and Express Appreciation
Your team deserves notice as soon as you come back. Even if you plan to spend 1–2 days catching up on email and unavailable to meet. Let Make them aware you are back and your plan. It’s a respect thing. As soon as you can re-engage with your team, do so.
Your first order of business is to express how much you appreciate their coverage. Assume they gave their strongest effort and thank them. You can deal with disappointments later.
2. Celebrate the Wins
Investigate and discover the positive events that transpired while you were elsewhere. Explore them with your team – let them have the joy of sharing. Not only will this encourage your team, but it also lets you be part of the story. Celebrate with them.
3. Ask to Help
You may find that not everything is complete. Other times, something unexpected will have come up and didn’t go well. Instead of criticizing – which will only encourage the team to cover things up – ask where the team needs your help. This is important if you’ve been away on vacation while the team has been under pressure in the office.
“How can I help?” is your best-friend-phrase at the moment.
You Got This!
If you haven’t followed these steps in the past, ask yourself why. Is it because of a lack of trust between you and the team? Trust begins with a single step. Look at your calendar and find your next expected time away. Gather your team and let them know. The rest will come easier than you imagined.
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