By Karen Hughes, CLC CEO/Partner
Do you see the monkey in the bottom left-hand corner of this photo?
This picture was taken on the English seashore. I was there visiting family when a photographer, with his pet monkey, approached my mother and aunt and asked if they would like to have our photo taken. My mom and aunt said that they would be delighted and so of course the photographer immediately turned to us and asked who would like to hold the monkey. I happily assumed my cousin would take the creature, but she emphatically said no. You can tell that my sister, who is holding the leash very gingerly, was also definitely not going to take the monkey. As the third in line, I was left uncomfortable with the monkey in hand. I found it to be quite amusing when I came across this photo very soon after I led a “no monkeys” training in a recent leadership retreat.
Business Analogy - You may be familiar with this classic business analogy. This great word picture illustrates the difference between delegation versus taking back projects. When you have people in your organization coming to you with problems, do not let them bring the monkey (the problem) in and leave it on your desk! Instead help them find a solution or let them present their own solution. When they leave your office, the monkey is theirs for them to take care of themselves. This helps build self confidence, solve future problems more efficiently and enables everyone to use their skills at the top of their license.
Being Intentional - I find myself very intentional about not letting monkeys accumulate in my office. It is very natural in the role of a supervisor or leader to want to support your employees. Many times, it may feel easier to just take care of an issue yourself rather than taking the time to train your team member to do it themselves.
Efficiency and Growth - Keeping monkeys is not only making your use of time less efficient, it is also missing an opportunity to allow your employee to grow. Instead of taking those monkeys, invest that time in them and allow them to be problem solvers. After we had the monkey training in our office it has been something that we laugh about frequently. It allows everyone to identify when we are doing it in a way that is non-threatening but also makes it noticeably clear that everybody needs to take care of their own tasks and duties. If you would like help presenting this training please contact Karen Hughes at karenh@communitylinkconsulting.com