Over the last few months, I’ve had some excellent conversations with folks on my team in response to two prompts that I gave them in advance of our 1-1s. I meant to get this post up months ago, but I didn’t get around to it.
The prompts
I ended up giving the following two prompts to everyone at least a few days ahead of a scheduled 1-1:
- What do you think makes an excellent <engineer>?
- How can you improve to become a better <engineer>?
You can replace <engineer> with any role.
How this worked for us
For those who’ve participated in coaching or adjacent trainings, the prompts are very clearly open-ended questions. However, the framing is also really important as a way to drive positive thinking on behalf of the recipient.
What I found with my team, is that the first prompt allowed everyone to think more deeply about what it means to be an excellent or amazing engineer. What are all the pieces that go into making someone amazing? The second prompt then kicks off an important reflection: how do I measure up against that definition? Where am I already strong? What areas can I grow in? What can I do to be excellent, not just good?
I thought every single conversation that started from these prompts was excellent. None of them were the same, but every one was incredibly insightful for me as a lead, and it felt like it helped provide some insights for each person who participated in the exercise.
Please feel free to share similar prompts, or your reactions to the prompts in the comments.
#leadership #growth #1-1s #prompts
Slow Thoughts from Dale du Preez 
Leave a comment