“I have better things in life to focus on instead of blow-drying my hair – three kids, school run, work, daily gym/run madness.
“So feel free to be ‘creative’ as you want, as long as I don’t look like a crazy woman when I let my wet hair dry naturally after a shower.”
Sister-in-law gasped. “But surely you must trust them first…?”
Nope. My hair will grow back after a bad cut so I am happy to shrug it off and try a different hair dresser.
I am not a micro manager. I provide my desired outcomes, and I don’t really care how it’s done as long as it’s done, and done well.
This is also how I operate at work. My team knows this – I give them a lot leeway, but my standards are quite high.
Generally, new team members will only mess up a couple of times before they understand how things work.
I start by trusting them to know what they are doing, and that I will not be providing micro-minutae directions. They are adults, and I will treat them as such.
It also means that it comes with responsibility, accountability, and a conscientiousness for producing high quality work. I expect nothing less.
You’re a Technical Architect, and you’ve just run a workshop. You’ve planned the inputs, the agenda, and you’re managing the discussion and directing the conversation.
I’ll be sitting in and observing, only stepping in when needed.
And I’ll be reviewing your document for clarity and quality. Not so much spelling/grammar* but for superiority of thought and analysis, and incisiveness of recommendations.
I care about how you’ve managed the interactions, and the output you have produced.
How you get them done is your remit.
How we present our findings and our work, is important, and therefore – I make sure I pay attention.
I am much more relaxed around the younger graduates, who need a bit more direction and more time to mature into their self confidence and become resourceful with their problem solving techniques.
Sometimes, I end up with a crazy haircut (those who have known me for years can attest to that!) but finding a hairdresser who produces exactly what I am looking for, is worth her weight in gold.
And I’ve found that to be true for finding amazing people to work with.