Attention

“Give whatever you are doing and whoever you are with the gift of your attention.”
~ Jim Rohn

Multitasking feels efficient. In some cases it IS efficient.

But if you are doing something else when someone is talking to you, like reading those emails during the Teams call, you don’t know what you might miss. You may look scattered and unfocused. You might miss something vital and make the wrong decision, which could make you look stupid. And the person talking may feel a lack of respect and appreciation, which will erode your leadership influence with them and can hurt morale.

Turn off your notifications or close your laptop when someone comes into your office to talk to you. Put your phone face-down. Give the person your full attention and make the conscious choice to listen.

You can also give your people information on how you prefer to be communicated with. “Please start with the bottom-line” or “Give me the Big Picture first, so I know how everything fits together” or “put ‘Action Needed’ in the subject line of the email if I need to do something.” It’s also okay to put a note on your door that says, “On deadline—please do not disturb unless it is an emergency” to prevent interruptions, but only occasionally and when you actually ARE up against a deadline.

(image source: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/jim_rohn_120983?img=2&src=t_leadership)