Great leaders don’t just manage the work. They take the time to understand the people doing the work.
Let me ask you something.
When you’re working with an employee, what’s usually the first thing on your mind?
Is it the project they’re working on? The deadline that’s approaching? The results you need them to achieve?
Or is it the person standing in front of you?
Now, before anyone gets the wrong idea, I’m not suggesting that leaders shouldn’t be concerned about getting things done.
Of course we should.
Businesses have goals to achieve, customers to serve, and responsibilities that can’t simply be ignored.
But over my 40-plus years in leadership and development, I’ve come to appreciate that there’s a difference between managing the work and leading the people doing the work.
And sometimes, without really meaning to, we can become so focused on the first that we neglect the second.
Some of Us Are Just Wired Differently
One of the things I’ve learned from working with managers and teaching leadership development is that people approach their responsibilities differently.
Some leaders are naturally task-focused.
They like having clear goals, defined responsibilities, measurable results, and deadlines.
Give them a project, and they immediately begin thinking about what needs to happen, who’s responsible, and when everything needs to be completed.
Other leaders tend to be more people-focused.
They’re naturally interested in relationships, collaboration, communication, and understanding how people feel about what’s happening around them.
Neither approach is automatically better than the other.
And most of us demonstrate some combination of both, depending on the situation.
The challenge comes when we rely so heavily on our natural tendencies that we overlook something important.
For a task-focused leader, that might mean becoming so concerned about completing the project that they forget to check in with the people working on it.
For a people-focused leader, it might mean spending so much time maintaining relationships that they hesitate to address performance concerns or enforce deadlines.
Good leadership requires balance.
But for this lesson, I want to spend a little time talking about the first challenge.
Because I believe it’s one that many managers can relate to.
Sometimes we become so focused on getting the job done that we forget to consider what the people doing the job may be experiencing.
The Work Isn’t Going Anywhere
Think about a typical day for a manager.
There’s a list of things that need to be accomplished.
A project is behind schedule. A customer needs an answer. Someone is waiting for approval. And you’ve got a meeting in 20 minutes that you haven’t prepared for.
Sound familiar?
In the middle of all that, an employee approaches you with a question.
Your first thought might be, “What do you need?”
Not because you’re unfriendly.
Not because you don’t care.
But because your mind is already focused on the next task.
And that can become a habit.
We start approaching nearly every employee interaction as another item on our to-do list.
“Did you finish the report?”
“Where are we on that project?”
“Can you take care of this today?”
Those are perfectly reasonable questions.
But if that’s all we ever ask, we’re missing an opportunity to build a relationship.
I’ve always believed that employees want to know their work is important.
But they also want to know that they’re important.
There’s a big difference.
There’s a Whole Person Behind That Job Title
Here’s something I think leaders need to remind themselves of occasionally.
Our employees don’t stop having personal lives when they walk through the door at work.
They have families.
They have children, parents, spouses, and other people who depend on them.
Some are caring for aging parents. Others are raising young children, going to school, dealing with health concerns, or working through personal challenges.
They also have interests and activities they enjoy.
Perhaps someone coaches their child’s baseball team. Someone else is taking evening classes. Another employee may be planning a family event they’ve been looking forward to for months.
Those things matter to them.
And occasionally, those outside responsibilities or activities are going to compete with the demands of work.
That’s life.
Now, I’m not suggesting that every personal situation means we can simply set aside business expectations.
There are times when the work has to get done, deadlines have to be met, and employees need to fulfill their responsibilities.
But good leaders recognize that there may be more happening in someone’s life than what we see during the workday.
Consider an employee who’s normally dependable but has recently seemed distracted.
A task-focused manager might immediately begin questioning the employee’s performance.
“Why is your work falling behind?“
“What’s going on with these deadlines?”
Those questions may be appropriate eventually.
But perhaps a better place to start would be:
“Hey, I’ve noticed you don’t seem quite yourself lately. Is everything okay?”
Maybe the employee is struggling with a personal situation.
Maybe there’s something happening at work that the manager doesn’t know about.
Or maybe there’s no significant problem at all.
We won’t know unless we take a moment to ask.
And even then, we need to respect that employees may not want to share personal details.
The point isn’t to get involved in everyone’s private life.
It’s to remember that we’re working with people, not just job descriptions.
Being Task-Focused Isn’t an Excuse
Here’s where I think self-awareness becomes especially important.
If you’re naturally task-focused, that’s not a bad thing.
In fact, it’s probably one of the qualities that has helped you become successful.
Organizations need leaders who can establish priorities, make decisions, manage resources, and deliver results.
But we also need to recognize that our greatest strengths can sometimes create blind spots.
A leader who is excellent at driving results may unintentionally become impatient when someone needs extra time or support.
Someone who values efficiency may become frustrated when an employee wants to talk about something that doesn’t seem directly related to work.
And a manager who prides themselves on accomplishing goals may occasionally overlook the personal demands being placed on the team.
I’ve worked with enough different personalities over the years to know that we can’t expect everyone to approach work exactly the way we do.
That’s part of the challenge of leadership.
We have to recognize our natural tendencies and be willing to adjust when the situation calls for something different.
Sometimes the best thing a task-focused leader can do is stop talking about the task for a few minutes.
Put the deadline aside.
And ask how the person is doing.
It may seem like a small thing.
But it can make a meaningful difference.
Relationships Are Built in the Everyday Moments
When we talk about building relationships with employees, I don’t think we need to make it complicated.
We don’t have to become everyone’s best friend.
We don’t have to know every detail about their personal lives.
And we certainly don’t have to spend hours every day having conversations that have nothing to do with work.
But we can take a genuine interest in people.
Maybe you remember that an employee’s child had a big game over the weekend and ask how it went.
Or you know someone has been taking classes and ask how their studies are coming along.
Perhaps an employee mentioned an upcoming family trip, and you take a minute to ask about it when they return.
These aren’t major events.
But they’re opportunities to show people that you remember what’s important to them.
And I believe those little interactions can have a lasting impact.
There’s also something worth remembering here.
People can usually tell when you’re genuinely interested and when you’re simply asking a question because you think you’re supposed to.
If you’re going to ask someone how they’re doing, be willing to listen to the answer.
Otherwise, it’s just another transaction.
Understanding People Makes Us Better Leaders
I believe that when we take the time to understand employees as people, we also become better equipped to lead them.
We begin to recognize their strengths, interests, and motivations.
We learn what matters to them and what they hope to accomplish.
And sometimes we gain a better understanding of why they’re responding to certain situations the way they are.
That doesn’t mean we have to agree with everything or accommodate every request.
But having a better understanding of someone’s circumstances can help us make more thoughtful decisions.
For example, imagine an employee who’s been asked to work late several evenings to complete a project.
The manager knows the deadline is important.
But what if that employee also has responsibilities at home that make those additional hours especially difficult?
Perhaps there’s another way to organize the work.
Maybe responsibilities can be shared across the team.
Or perhaps some flexibility in scheduling would allow the employee to meet both commitments.
Those options may not always be available.
But if the leader never takes the time to understand the employee’s circumstances, they may never even consider them.
Leadership isn’t about choosing between people and results. It’s about understanding how to accomplish results while taking care of people.
And sometimes that requires us to look beyond the immediate task.
Relationships Don’t Replace Accountability
I want to be careful about something here.
Recognizing employees as whole people doesn’t mean we stop holding them accountable.
It doesn’t mean deadlines become optional or performance expectations no longer matter.
Businesses still have to operate.
Customers still have expectations.
And employees still have responsibilities.
But I don’t believe caring about people and holding them accountable are opposing ideas.
In fact, I think good relationships can make accountability more effective.
When employees believe their manager genuinely cares about them, difficult conversations can become more constructive.
They may be more willing to discuss challenges, ask for help, and work toward solutions.
And managers who know their employees may be better equipped to understand what’s contributing to a performance concern.
This connects back to Lesson #22, Difficult Conversations Build Strong Organizations.
Sometimes we still have to have those difficult conversations.
But the relationship we’ve built before that conversation can make a difference in how the message is received.
We can be understanding without making excuses.
We can be supportive without lowering expectations.
And we can show concern for someone while still being clear about what needs to get done.
That’s the balance leaders need to develop.
A Little More People, A Little Less Task
Here’s a challenge I’d offer to leaders who recognize themselves as being naturally task-focused.
For the next week, pay attention to your conversations with employees.
How many begin with a question about work?
How many revolve around deadlines, assignments, or performance?
And how many involve simply checking in with someone?
I’m not suggesting that you stop discussing the work.
That would be pretty difficult to explain to your boss!
But perhaps you could make a conscious effort to spend a little more time getting to know the people you lead.
Ask about something they’re interested in.
Remember something they’ve shared with you.
Notice when someone seems to be having a difficult day.
And when an employee needs to talk, try not to make them feel as though they’re interrupting something more important.
Because the truth is, developing and supporting the people we lead is part of our job, too.
Not something we do only when we have extra time.
One Final Thought
Over my leadership career, I’ve come to appreciate that people bring much more to the workplace than their skills and job responsibilities.
They bring their experiences, personalities, relationships, challenges, and goals.
And all those things contribute to who they are.
As leaders, it’s easy to become consumed with the work that needs to be done.
I’ve certainly seen how the pressures of leadership can pull our attention toward deadlines, results, and solving the next problem.
But I believe we have to remind ourselves that behind every task is a person.
Someone who has a life outside the workplace.
Someone who may be dealing with challenges we know nothing about.
And someone who wants to feel respected and valued for more than the work they produce.
So here’s something worth thinking about.
When your employees think about their relationship with you, do they see someone who’s genuinely interested in them?
Or someone who only seems interested in what they can accomplish?
That’s a question every leader should be willing to ask.
Great leaders don’t just manage the work. They take the time to understand the people doing the work.
Yes, the work matters.
Yes, the deadlines matter.
But the people matter, too.
And great leadership means never losing sight of that.
