Creating High Performing Teams Jason Evanish, Get Lighthouse Team

1 on 1s are the single most important tool managers have to be great leaders. You can use these meetings to help you bring out the best in your team, fix problems, get buy in, and so much more.
That’s why, as we wrap up Season 1, we’re bringing you all the best advice on 1 on 1s from our many amazing guests.  Listen in to learn what the most important things are for you to remember for your 1 on 1s, and get a preview of some episodes you may want to go back and listen to.
Lessons and links from today’s episode:
A big THANK YOU to our many amazing guests. In today’s episode we heard from:
Mark C Crowley, from Episode 2,“Why You Should Lead from the Heart(and how to start)”
Wes Kao, from Episode 4,“Managing Up: Advice for Mangers & ICs to master their most important relationship at work”
Mike Pretlove, from Episode 7,“Building an Unconventional Career as a Leader”
Fabian Carmago, from Episode 8,“8 Essential Things You Must Consider When Becoming a Manager”
Jeremy Brown, from Episode 15,“How to Rapidly Grow from Team Lead to Executive.”
Krzysztof Rakowski, from Episode 16,“How to Become a Better Manager in Just 15 Minutes a Week”
Valentina Thörner, from Episode 17,“The Harsh Truths of Leading Remotely(and what to do about it)” 


Click the titles of any of the episodes to listen into them and see the show notes for that episode.
Show Notes
And a few links for you to learn more based on their advice:
Mark C Crowley’s book “Lead from the Heart” can be found here as well as his interview on our blog here.Learn why open door policies fail here.
Talking about the personal life of your team can be scary. It’s beneficial, but you’re not their therapist. Learn how to handle when the meetings get too personal here. 

Wes Kao has a fantastic tweetstorm on managing up you can check out here. Learn more about managing up well here, and ask these questions of your boss to master managing up.
Getting buy in is important to as Wes discusses, which you can learn how to get buy in here.

Mike Pretlove reminds us that building rapport and empathy for your team is hugely important. Learn over 80 ways you can connect with anyone. Giving feedback is great to do in your 1 on 1s. Learn a battle tested, proven way to give feedback to your team members and the podcast episode on it here.
You can also read about how Mike had the lowest turnover and highest engagement in his company by using Lighthouse software.

Fabian Carmago mentions our post on the evolution of your 1 on 1s over time, which you can read here.Being a good coach is a key part of being a great manager.

Krzysztof Rakowski told us about how managers must always be learning and growing. A growth mindset is key for every manager. 
Valentina Thörner told us 1 on 1s are a, “one hill I will die on” because they’re so important in remote environments.Ask these questions to help support your remote team members.
Here’s Dr. Katerina Bohle Carbonell’s talk on analyzing communication patterns here.

Jeremy Brown reminded us about the importance of using your 1 on 1s to coach and praise your team.Praise your team regularly. Learn 21 ways to bring more praise and positivity to your team here. 



A giant THANK YOU to Jeremy, Valentina, Mark, Fabian, Wes, Mike, Krzysztof and our many other guests for sharing their advice, insights, and hard earned perspectives.
As you can see, even though we covered dozens of different topics in this first season, 1 on 1s keep coming up. They really are the centerpiece of great management.
Which is also why we built Lighthouse to help you make these meetings awesome. From helpful prep and structure to suggested questions for dozens of different topics, we help you be a better leader and expand the value of your 1 on 1s every day.
Sign up for a free trial here. 
And thank you for listening to this season! We’ve appreciated every bit of feedback and praise we’ve heard from you all on the season.
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When is the problem not really THE problem? What do you do when your star player on your team underperforms or disappoints you?
The easy answer would be to pounce and criticize. To focus on immediately correcting the issue. Yet, if you do that, you’ll be making a big mistake. Instead, learn from a key lesson I stumbled on early in my career and dig a bit deeper.
In this week’s episode, I share a personal story about how I learned much more than I originally planned when I had to give some tough feedback and coaching to a star employee. You’ll learn what the problem was, what I planned to do, where the conversation went instead, and why that made all the difference in the world. It helped me see how leaders can play the long game to win big with their people.
Lessons and links from today’s episode:
The hiring method I like to use(give them an assignment)
Prepare for any 1 on 1 meeting to give feedback by following the Prepare Listen Act model:Learn the step by step process in our blog post here.
And listen to Episode 2 for a hands on discussion about it.

When you have an issue with your team, make sure you check in how their world is going. You may find super important context out. Reserve judgment until you hear the full picture.
If you make it safe to talk about issues, you may be surprised how candid, apologetic and open your team may be with you. This is priceless.(Learn about creating psychological safety here)
Always look for the root problem. Don’t simply treat symptoms. 


Ask why something disappointing may have happened and give them the benefit of the doubt. 


If your best people tell you they’re overwhelmed. Believe them. It’s hard to find replacement stars, so you’re much better off taking care of them. 


Lighten the load
Make priorities clearer
Give them a break if needed
All of these beat having to hire a replacement. 


Yet, always maintain your standards. We still did ultimately talk about the recruiting issue, because it was a problem. But first we fixed the root issue. 


Next time you have a team member that surprises you by coming in below your expectations with them, remember the lessons I learned here and dig deeper before correcting the surface level issues.
And if you need help organizing your thoughts to prepare to give feedback, and make the most of when your team opens up about challenges like this, then sign up for a free trial of Lighthouse.
Trusted by hundreds of managers every day, we help give them the right questions to ask for any situation, always be prepared, and improve the quality of all of their 1 on 1s and their leadership overall. Start your 21-day trial risk free here.

How do you become great at recruiting? What are common mistakes managers make in this process, and how can you avoid them? Today, we’re excited to have long time friend and Lighthouse customer Erin Wilson on the show to talk about his experience as one of the best recruiters in Silicon Valley.
In this episode we cover what you can do whether you’re on your own recruiting or have a world class team in your HR department to help you. We also share helpful, actionable tactics so you can immediately improve.
Show Notes:
Bringing data into your recruiting process. Ask questions like:How long does it take you to go from first round interview to offer?
What is your offer acceptance rate?
How many hours are you spending per hire? The average is 300-400 hours, but can be 30-40 if done well.
What is your churn rate in your pipeline (people accept other jobs - or choose to not continue)?

Start small!Start with a user story, not a full job description.
An example user story starts with just a few questions:
User story: 4-6 questions to make you think a little bit.What’s the business need behind this hire?
On a scale 1-10, how hands on is this position?
How big is the existing team?
What is the current composition of the team (Skills, seniority)?
In the first 6 months will the person will produce in the role? (Outputs not tasks)
What base skills are necessary for this role?
What compensation do you have budgeted for this role?
Have you hired for this role before?


The best companies in the world hire 1 person for every 7 they see. You do not need to interview 30 people to “get a feel for things.”
“Execution still beats gimmicks every day.”  


Key actions for you to take today from the interview:
Where can managers get started to learn more:Look at Twitter and Reddit for great content advice
Examples of who to follow:Arlan is building a startup in the inclusion space
Joel Lalgee is a fun and informative recruiter to follow
Great data and insights from Aline Lerner
Jennifer Kim is an experienced recruiter and was an early employee at Lever

Try getting feedback externallyAsk 3-5 people per day for a week on the edge or outside of your network for feedback on your job descriptionAsk them:What do you think of this role?
What questions do you have?
Anything concern you?
You’re the archetype of what I’d be looking for, would you?  






Where to find and follow Erin:
You can follow Erin and connect with him on Linkedin here.
http://Team.ai is talent delivery in demand. For more info visit https://team.ai/talent-delivery-services, and mention the podcast, for a free hire when you sign with Team AI.  


Trusted by hundreds of managers every day, we help give them the right questions to ask for any situation, always be prepared, and improve the quality of all of their 1 on 1s and their leadership overall. Start your 21-day trial risk free here.

We look at recent hot topics in the world of leadership, management, and pop culture in this week’s episode. We take a look at burnout in a post-COVID world, what leaders can learn from the Buffer State of Remote Report, and some key lessons about HR managers can learn from the show Super Pumped about Uber’s CEO Travis Kalanick’s rise and fall.
We give you all the context you need to follow along, and share the key insights and actions you should take based on each of these topics.
Avoiding burnout of your team in a post-covid worldSee the Business Insider tweet thread here.
Learn about Learned Helplessness and how it applies at work here.
If you or a team member is feeling burnt out already, this post can help you with recovery.
And some COVID / remote specific advice on avoiding burnout can be read about here.

Reactions to the Buffer State of Remote 2022 Report  


Remote work tends to hurt your career prospects -> a plurality of 45% felt that was the case.   


See the full report here.
Key stats mentioned:HUGE jump in companies going fully remote (increase from 46-72%). Looks like this is here to stay.Loneliness and inability to unplug remain the top challenges of remote work.52% feel less connected to their coworkers since going remote54% do not support pay being tied to your location  


With remote being here to stay, be sure to check out these key resources to help you master being a remote leader:Learn advice from veteran leader Valentina Thörner on Ep. 17 of our podcast here.Learn the 13 things you may not have planned for when hiring remotelyAnd read our classic 11 essential tips for successful remote management here.  


Leadership Lessons from Showtime’s show, Super PumpedContext: This is a show about the rise and fall of Travis Kalanick, founder and CEO of Uber. A number of major HR violations happened during this time, and it’s worth reflecting on as a manager what it means if you encounter these.
Remember the #1 goal of HR is to follow the law and make sure the company does not get sued.Need to let an employee go? Have clear documentation of both their issues, and your attempts and communication to fix it.
Have an HR incident? Document it, research the laws in your state and country, then come to HR with the report and discuss execution plus any questions you have.
Know your principles. Sometimes, like in Super Pumped, HR may sweep something under the rug or do nothing. You need to decide what's worth go along with (many at Uber are very rich now), and what you're exposed by if you are complicit.  Also think about your own values and if you want to stay at a company that conflicts with your values. You have to live with that decision, and your team will remember.

Description: How do you transition from being a leader in an office to successfully leading remotely? What do you do when only part of your team returns to the office? Many of us have had a crash course in exactly those situations, which is why we brought Valentina onto the show to talk with us.
Valentina is an expert in remote communication and leadership, as she both trains companies with these challenges, and has been a remote leader for many years. Our focus today is on how you can to use asynchronous communication at the right times, bring out the best of both worlds when you’re in a hybrid team situation, and how to avoid the pitfalls of one-size-fits-all leadership when it comes to communication in person and remotely.
Learn about how Amazon and others have improved their meetings here.
Learn more about the basics of asynchronous communication here.
Psychological Safety is an important concept to embrace regardless of where your team members are located. Learn about the fundamentals of it here.
You can check out Dr. Katerina Bohle Carbonell’s talk on analyzing communication patterns here.
When you’re managing remote employees, 1 on 1s are very important. Learn how to have great 1 on 1s here, and specific questions to ask remote team members here.
Books that Valentina recommends:The Culture Map by Erin Meyer and Valentina wrote and made a presentation about one of her favorite concepts from the book here.
On Writing Well by William Zinsser
Everybody Writes by Ann Handley  



Key actions for you to take today from the interview:
Make sure you have 1 on 1s, and always prepare an agenda: Don’t skip them for any reason except sickness or vacation. They’re a key place to maintain the relationship and give + receive feedback.
Do a meeting audit: Which meetings can be shortened, shouldn’t be there, or can be replaced with a document/written discussion? It’s not all, or nothing; you can have a shorter meeting because it’s better prepared with an agenda, just as much as canceling it altogether.
Start declining meetings, and say why: This makes it safe for your team members to do the same. Your example then matters as you should show that even when you don’t attend you may ask for an update after, or the topic and give brief input asynchronously.  


Where to find and follow Valentina:
You can learn more about Valentina’s work at ValentinaThoerner.com and she has an in depth, cohort based course on remote leadership here.

Many companies promote the most talented person on a team to manager, but that doesn’t always work outIt can be hard for that person to let go of their individual work, which shortchanges things for their team. There’s also just too much to do. It doesn’t scale.Taking care of your team means a lot, especially if you’re fighting on their behalf against others not looking out for them.

Krzysztof brought food and drink for their team and advocated for overtime when they had to work over a weekend in the summer. It helped with morale and retention on his team.A Growth Mindset helps as a leader: Don’t see people doing well as a threat, but instead someone you can learn from.

Learn more about Growth Mindsets from the creator, Carol Dweck, in this video.It didn’t work to ask his team “what would you like to learn?” so it was important for Krzysztof to find good ideas (like when he tried Lighthouse Lessons)
Task Relevant Maturity is one of Krzysztof’s favorite concepts to understand what skills your people need to work on. Learn about it here. 
Before they found Lighthouse Lessons they were semi-regularly meeting to talk as a team. With Lighthouse Lessons, they created a stronger, more consistent habit and a unifying subject to discuss as a group.

Meeting as a group with your fellow managers builds bonds and deeper learning you cannot get any other way, because you’re at the same company with the same culture.
You can also learn how Jornaya similarly used the Group Edition to build community among their managers.Give your team more independence by embracing the Water Line Principle:  







Krzysztof believes in the value of habits, which he recognizes that our program getting people to schedule the habit really helps. He also loves the book Atomic Habits on the subject (which is what he shows in the video version of the interview).  


What are the most important elements of Lighthouse Lessons that keeps bringing him and his team back?
The price for value is a really good in his view
They don’t have a lot of time, so the bite-size lessons each week is ideal
Some people on the team enjoyed the group discussions so much, they called in on their vacation  


Who makes the best fit for the program?
Someone who can commit to a weekly set of lessons. You only learn what you take the time to read and act.
A leader willing to encourage their team to meet. This is where the magic happens, but it may take a couple weeks for everyone to be as excited about the Group Lesson meetings as Krzysztof’s team is now.  


Ready to start leveling up your skills as a manager? Interested in a group of managers at your company?
For individuals, we do open cohorts of various courses throughout the year.Join an active program or sign up to be notified about the next program here: Lessons.getlighthouse.com

If you want to grow a group of managers like Krzysztof, you can buy our programs a la carte and start at the time you choose.Sign up to get more information and discuss what program is the perfect fit for your team at: grouplessons.getlighthouse.com   



Where to find and follow Krzysztof:
You can find him on Linkedin at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/krzrak/ and if you speak Polish, he has a podcast on leadership and management at https://nerd.management