Every once in a while you can find yourself outside, looking in at work. You’re working on projects, hitting your goals, and getting things done, but you have a nagging suspicion that you’re a little off-track or out of the loop on key projects and tasks. As a result, you find your energy a little down.
That’s not surprising. What you’ve just described are some of the common feelings people have when their work environment isn’t quite as engaging as it could be—including a need for meaningful work, collaboration, connectedness, and feedback. If you’re feeling a little bit out of the loop—or suspect that some of your colleagues or co-workers are, here are three ways to loop yourself back in.
- Revisit your team or departmental goals. What are the top priorities for the team this quarter, this month, and this week? Get a sense of the bigger picture. Where is everyone’s focus?
- Identify your role. Where do you—and your work—fit in? Make sure your tasks and projects are aligned and have a clear line of impact on what is important to your unit. You don’t want to be spending your time on things that are tangential or irrelevant. I know that sounds basic, but it is surprising how many people find that their work has drifted. Bring yourself back in by tightening up your focus.
- Take action today. What is an action step that you can take today to move yourself back in line with your team? Are there roadblocks or obstacles that are keeping you in place? What are they? Do you need additional resources or authority to move forward? Don’t stop there—the magic is in taking an action step that moves the process forward.
A three step process of identifying purpose, defining your role and taking action is a great way to reconnect with your group. There are many benefits that will flow from this process. You’ll find yourself with a sense of purpose, a clearer sense of where you fit in, and a bias for action that will get you moving again.
Get started this week on a fall check-up. It’s a great way to reenergize yourself.
Very helpful tips!
Great tips – In tip two, I often ask people to revisit how they add value to the team vision / goal.
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This is key to me as a leader right now- also there is a need to translate this to my team. Going to be working on that- thanks a lot!
These are valuable tips. Individuals are bound to feel a lack of engagement if they don’t feel connected to co-workers, employers, or employees, don’t receive solid feedback, and rarely collaborate with others. Each of your steps can have an enormous impact on that feeling of disconnect. I also believe that face-to-face meetings and actually talking with co-workers or employees can enhance feelings of engagement. Relying solely on e-mail, texts, etc. further adds to the feeling of not entirely being in the loop. Great post.
People rarely write about the role employees’ play in their own engagement, so I like this very proactive approach. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for the valuable tips.
I recently found this app ( http://www.unstuck.com/ ) that i use myself and recommend to my team quite often. It’s a great help when you are analysing why you feel off-track or stuck.
( and no i am not (commercially) connected to the makers of he app ).