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If I'm leading something high stake, I need to get people talking honestly to me and each other - and quickly.

Here's a technique I use when:

- I'm new to a role, team or project

- Time is short and the ask is big

- The team is large, views are diverse and trust is uneven

- Things are not straightforward in any other way!

Yes, I absolutely speak to people 1:1 as well.

But I also want hear things people are not quite ready to say out loud to me ... and I want to send a giant signal to everyone all at the same time that:

1. All voices are valued 

2. There is nothing that is unsayable, if it's in service of our shared goal

3. Concerns are important signals that will help us address things - we need them raised

4. We have agency as a team - we can use/do/change things

The idea is, we can't address what hasn't been raised as an issue.

I need to understand what could sink us in 3 months time - now, not in 11 weeks time.

And there will always be things that can't be 'fixed' - if so, I want to understand and acknowledge these elephants in the room, if they matter to people.

My technique is also a way to figure out how people are feeling when I'm low on data. Are they more or less engaged than I am guessing? It's a way to bust any assumptions I have in either direction.

Once a low-trust vibe is established, it's hard to pull back with a larger group and there might simply not be time.

Here's the technique: "Your honest thoughts on..." survey

 
Yep, it's an anonymous survey, great minds think alike, Lu Castello! 

This is my chance to ask four key questions which cover:

1. Vibe check

2. Hopes

3. Fears

4. Sound check

I can use all these to get the tone and the starting point right. I'll also use them as an entry point to build our team contract - an explicit and usually informal agreement about what we expect of each other and how we're going to work together.

Here's the template I use, including my intro, the exact questions and my sign off.

You can see there is real humanity in my language. You might want to change it for your language and tone.

Don't overuse it...

This is a technique that is easy to mis-use or overuse. 

- If you feel you need to use it repeatedly with the same audience, something isn't right - you need to do something different. It's really a start / tone setter. I only use it again if something new has entered the mix.

- Don't share quotes from the responses, even though you don't know who said them. Consider it more confidential than a 1:1. Just pull generalised threads: "I'm conscious that some people are concerned about a resourcing shortage on the distribution side"

- Your intention in sending it must be honest. You want people to speak truthfully. You trust what they are experiencing. You want to address things. You're not judging. You respect their voice.

I'll leave you with the template. Would love to hear how you use it. Drop me a reply if you are thinking of using it or have a question about how it might work in your specific situation.

With my best wishes as always 👋

Dr Carrie Goucher 
FewerFasterBolder

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