Making Adjustments

I began to back out of my parking space at XNA last Friday evening and noticed in my rear-view mirror that I was pretty close to the truck parked behind me.

Odd, I thought, that I wasn’t hearing the familiar beep from my vehicle’s park assist system. I cautiously went a few more inches and then put the car in drive and went forward a bit. Again, no beeps as I got close to the vehicle in front of me. 

“Aha,” I thought, “The park assist warning system is turned off.”

It took a couple more back-and-forths to wiggle my way out of the tight parking spot and get on my way. As soon as it was convenient to do so, I reactivated the park assist system, knowing I benefit from its help. 

This has me thinking about the assistance I grew accustomed to over many years of working in an office building that is not readily available anymore.

I no longer bump into my colleagues in the halls of our office space, since we are a totally virtual team now. Those cheery in-person greetings and heartwarming social moments are harder to come by these days.  

The quick office pop-in conversations that start with, “Hey, you got a few minutes for a question?” now require a reach-out through technology. 

I miss the impromptu moments of, “Hey, Sandy, may I show you this really quick and get your thoughts?” 

Unlike the feature in my car, I can’t just turn those things back on. 

So, what can I do? Here are some of the questions rattling around in my head:  

• • Am I missing opportunities to leverage the strengths of my colleagues? Should I be doing more, “Hey, you got a minute?” reach-outs through Teams, phone, or text?
  • Am I as available as I should be for the receiving end of these kinds of interactions? And, have I made it known that I truly want to be available?
  • What other questions should I be pondering as I strive to have as positive an impact as I can on our Milestone team and our clients? 

These are the kind of questions I can go far too long without asking myself. 

I’m glad my experience of getting out of a parking space nudged me toward a place of contemplation.

If you are in need of a similar nudge, I have a suggestion for you. Come to our next Milestone Leadership Intensive program, taking place February 15-18, 2022. I promise we will get you thinking and asking yourself meaningful questions about adjustments you may want to make. 

Written by: Sandy Tush, Partner – Milestone Leadership