You can hand out physical cards to your team and tell them “Hey, if you don’t feel like I was listening in that last encounter, push out the yellow card, just like in a soccer game”. (Football for our international friends).
You may find that they are reluctant to use the yellow card. They may feel like they are calling you out or that it’s embarrassing. Tell them, “Look, you are helping me. I want to get better, and when you yellow card me, it helps me identify when I’m interacting poorly.”
Now here’s the thing: You’ll likely get yellowcarded when you’re under stress. You may be under pressure, didn’t sleep well, or eat well. Stress can push you down into your “reactive mode”. That’s when you may have poor interactions and your team will yellowcard you. This is where you will find it hard. You’re already stressed and you may be tempted to respond poorly to seeing the yellowcard.
Here’s what you do: Train yourself! When you see the yellowcard, take a breath and thank your team member. “Hey, thanks for yellowcarding me and giving me that feedback.”
Let us know how it goes!
Enroll for the Leadership Nudge™ – www.davidmarquet.com
Click here to read my Forbes article on mentoring programs and why you don’t want to have one.
