If leading through a pandemic taught me anything, it is the importance of staying connected, knowing where (and with whom) to connect and the need t0 own the narrative. When you do not fill in the blanks, other people fill them in for you. When you do not express your ideas, others will write your plan. It’s up to you to connect the dots for all involved.
I will use one of my favorite words, intentional. Owning your narrative is really about being intentional with what you share and with whom. It doesn’t mean being dishonest or leaving out critical details, actually the opposite, if done well it leads to greater transparency and better understanding.
Definition
Still a little unsure of what that means? It is owning your communication of what is occurring within your sphere of responsibility along with your interpretations and recommendations. Think about it in terms of politicians (any party) and how they share information. It is generally concise and within a set agenda. They will share what has occurred, the interpretation of the event along with a recommendation. That is often repeated multiple times. Numerous studies have proven that we (adults) have to hear information multiple times in order for it to resonate with us.
Audience
The audience may be your boss, your boss’s boss, your team or your community. Sharing important pieces of information related to strategy, results and environment, concisely and to the right audience, is critical for your team’s success. Any time you have an audience – with your one-up, your executive leader, peers, your team, etc, you should think about what you need shared as well as your desired outcome.
The What
What do you share? You might think so much is happening, how do I decide what needs shared? This is not a diary of events so be careful not to sway to quantity versus quality. The what and the cadence really depends on the audience and what you need as an outcome. When you are in front of your boss or executive leaders, think in terms of resource needs, eliminating barriers or acclimating them to something that is occurring. When you are in front of your team, think about socializing them to strategy and connecting the why to current work. The what should be relevant to current events and future needs.
Crafting Your Message
What do you want people to know and what do you need to be successful? Perhaps you have a new headwind that could negatively impact your market or there is a new service, but you need capital in order to deploy it timely. Begin socializing your message in a manner that educates, informs and provides your recommendation/thoughts for moving forward. The term, “elevator speech” comes to mind.
In health care we often use the acronym SBAR (situation, background, analysis and recommendation). It was originally used clinically as a guide for nurses to communicate critical information about a patient to a physician. Today we use it in all areas as an outline. It can be 3-4 sentences. The shorter, the better.
Example
I love examples and templates. My brain works better when I can see how an idea is deployed. Let’s walk through one. In this situation I am attending a meeting with several executives and want to use the opportunity to start socializing market expansion. During lunch I am sitting by Jill, a vice-president who sits on the senior executive team. She asks about my division and I use this as an opportunity to share what I have prepared.
S – With the population growth I believe we have an opportunity to expand in the western part of the state.
B- I did some preliminary research and found that area is greatly underserved.
A-The early projections show a strong IRR.
R-I am planning to refine the business case over the new two weeks and submit it for consideration as a 2023 project. I know you have looked at that area as well, I would love to hear your thoughts.
Summary
Be thoughtful and intentional in what you share and use your time and contacts wisely. It is important to bring your audience into what you are doing and ask for input. The best leaders incorporate this process into how they do their work and how they are able to move their work forward.