The Leader Lab. Tania Luna

not suggesting that you travel so far back in time that you transform into Socrates. Remember how that turned out for him? The great managers we studied had plenty to say and said it often. The distinct BU that made them different is that they Q-stepped before telling, even if that meant asking just one question.

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In summary: Notice when you have the urge to go into Telling Mode and switch into Questions Mode by Q-stepping (asking at least one question). Why? Questions help you diagnose the underlying problem, develop people's skills, and catalyze commitment. Now it's time to fill in your Lab Report so you can develop your Q-step habit faster. What do you think about that? (See what we did there?)

MY LAB REPORT	Today's Date:
My takeaways:
I regularly Q-step before telling:	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 (strongly disagree)(strongly agree)
Experiment idea bank:	If someone asks me a question, then I'll Q-step by asking, “What are your thoughts?”If I want to give advice, then I'll Q-step first.If someone makes a suggestion I disagree with, then I'll Q-step.
One small experiment I'll try to increase my score by 1 point:
Post-experiment Learning Extractions:

      Bonus: Want to take your manager skills to the next level? Check out the bonus Inclusion Stations at leaderlab.lifelabslearning.com.

      My Learning Tracker

      1 out of 7 Core BUs collected. 0 of 8 Core Skills collected.

Q-step

2 Playback

The next BU we stumbled upon in our research on what makes great managers different is a behavior that is so subtle we nearly missed it. We even doubted its significance until we realized it had also been identified as one of the most important BUs for a wide range of professionals, including physicians, psychologists, salespeople, consultants, lawyers, pilots, and hostage negotiators. This powerhouse BU goes by many names. At LifeLabs Learning, we call it the “Playback.”

      A Playback is a paraphrase of what you heard someone say. Why does it help you become a great manager faster? Take a look at the following conversation. We're now a few weeks into Mia's role as a manager, and Olivia is starting to open up about her challenges at work. Notice where Playbacks could have made it a better conversation:

      Version 1

Olivia:	Ugh. I'm avoiding my to-do list, and I'm not looking forward to our team project.
Mia:	What do you think is going on?
Olivia:	I don't know. I'm just kind of exhausted by everything lately.
Mia:	Is it that you don't take breaks?
Olivia:	I do, but I'm still tired.
Mia:	When was the last time you took some time off to recharge?
Olivia:	Well, I could use my vacation days, but then I'll be even more behind.
Mia:	When would be better timing?
Olivia:	I guess I could already set aside time in December when it's slower.

       At first Mia is proud that she got to practice her question skills, but something felt off. She decides to hit her handy Do-Over Button to go back and Playback:

      Version 2: Do-Over

Olivia:	Ugh. I'm avoiding my to-do list, and I'm not looking forward to our team project.
Mia:	Hmm. Sounds like two things are on your mind: your to-do list and the project. Right? Of those two, which is the bigger issue?
Olivia:	That's right …. I guess the project is the bigger problem. It's really weighing on me because everyone is waiting for me to get it started.
Mia:	It's feeling like a lot of responsibility.
Olivia:	Right. I like having responsibility, but I don't want to let the team down.
Mia:	Okay, so it sounds like you want to be more confident about how to start.
Olivia:	Yeah. If the project starts well, the rest will probably