Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Speaker 1: Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Speaker 1: Today's tip is for when you are asking a staff
Speaker 1: member or a volunteer to do something hard. Let the
Speaker 1: person know why you are asking them, in particular, what
Speaker 1: makes you see them as equipped to do the job well.
Speaker 1: If you can explain that, you are far more likely
Speaker 1: to inspire enthusiasm than despair. So being asked to do
Speaker 1: something hard can be annoying. Who doesn't have a full
Speaker 1: plate already? If you are listening to this podcast, my
Speaker 1: guess is that you go above and beyond at work
Speaker 1: and in your community. You may feel like you already
Speaker 1: do a lot, and you might prefer for someone else
Speaker 1: to take on a demanding new assignment. But what if
Speaker 1: you knew you were being given the challenging task because
Speaker 1: your boss knows you will do it well. Then you
Speaker 1: might feel honored to be asked and void in your
Speaker 1: confidence that you could do the job effectively. That's why
Speaker 1: today's tip is for when you are doing the asking.
Speaker 1: When you are asking someone to take on something hard,
Speaker 1: let them know why they are perfect for the job.
Speaker 1: You don't necessarily need to use the words you're perfect
Speaker 1: for this job. But by letting them know why you
Speaker 1: think they are particularly well positioned for the task, you
Speaker 1: honor them and increase their motivation. I can think of
Speaker 1: all kinds of ways that you might convey this idea,
Speaker 1: such as, Sam would you can say, are coaching the
Speaker 1: softball team this year. You are so good at encouraging
Speaker 1: the kids to work hard, and you know the game
Speaker 1: so well from when you played in high school. I
Speaker 1: know you're really going to help develop their skills. Or Tracy,
Speaker 1: this is a difficult client, and I see you as
Speaker 1: the ideal person for leading the engagement because you're so
Speaker 1: skilled in keeping projects moving along even when the client
Speaker 1: can be a little hard to keep focused. I saw
Speaker 1: you do that on the last project, and I know
Speaker 1: you can on this one too. Or Daniella, I'd love
Speaker 1: for you to mentor this new higher. This is our
Speaker 1: first time bringing someone on board since we went all remote,
Speaker 1: and you have the relationships at this company to help
Speaker 1: make sure he feels at home. When you articulate what
Speaker 1: strengths a person brings to the job, they are more
Speaker 1: likely to take on the work willingly. They will feel
Speaker 1: seen and value and confident about the job they can do. Now.
Speaker 1: Of course, one caveat here is that if you realize
Speaker 1: you are asking someone to take on a difficult task
Speaker 1: because they never say no and that is why you
Speaker 1: think they are perfect for the job, you probably shouldn't
Speaker 1: tell them that, And in fact you should probably consider
Speaker 1: whether there is someone else who is especially well suited
Speaker 1: for doing the job, not just for agreeing to do it.
Speaker 1: But when we thoughtfully match people with responsibilities, people feel good.
Speaker 1: So go ahead and explain why people are perfect for
Speaker 1: the job, the job is more likely to get done.
Speaker 1: In the meantime. This is Laura. Thanks for listening, and
Speaker 1: here's to making the most of our time. M Hey, everybody,
Speaker 1: I'd love to hear from you. You can send me
Speaker 1: your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with
Speaker 1: me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod.
Speaker 1: That's b E the number four then breakfast p o D.
Speaker 1: You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast
Speaker 1: podcast at i heeart media dot com. That Before Breakfast
Speaker 1: is spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much,
Speaker 1: I look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is
Speaker 1: a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from
Speaker 1: my heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, Apple podcasts,
Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.