Don’t Be OVERLY Available For Your Team!

Are You Overly Available?

Leaders often say that they want to “always be available” for their team, though that approach comes with some significant costs, some that are easily seen and some that aren’t. Are you overly available to your team?

The first problem is for the leader themselves. If you allow (or worse, encourage), team members to pop into your office or virtual workspace anytime they want, you are inviting a steady stream of distractions for yourself. 

Focused Energy

What about the important work you have? What about the deadlines that you are working toward? Without limits on your availability, you will be the one who creates the time crunch that will lead to late nights, working on weekends, and missed family events. You’ve set in motion the hurried game of “whack-a-mole” that makes deep & focused thought so difficult.

The other person who loses here is your team member. If they become conditioned to come to you at the first sign of trouble, they aren’t growing their creativity or problem solving, or increasing their ability to find resources.

They aren’t learning how to fish for themselves, merely to come to you for more fish.