How to have productive 1-on-1s with your manager
You’re about to go in for your 1-on-1 meeting with your manager, and you feel stressed. I need to make a good impression, you think. I want to prove that I’m worthy of this job and I’m doing well.
Does this situation sound familiar? I used to feel this way before my 1-on-1s. I would dread the meetings all day. Luckily, I have found ways to reduce my stress before these meetings, show my competence, and keep the meetings on track.
Read on for tips about keeping your meetings with your manager productive and as stress-free as possible.
1. Prepare!
When I started as a data analyst, my 1-on-1s with my manager were all over the place. I’d sometimes go into the meeting with a few items to discuss, but somehow we went down rabbit hole after rabbit hole, and I had trouble keeping us focused.
The best way to keep my meetings on track with my manager, I’ve found, is to do the following:
- Keep a running list of questions for your manager in an easily accessible place. Every time you think of another item to discuss with your boss, add it to the list.
- Before the meeting, condense the list of questions. Add any additional context if needed — for example, if a question refers to an earlier email, provide the text of the email.
- Email your manager the agenda before the meeting. Ask your manager if they have a preferred day they would like to receive the agenda.
- Pull up the agenda on your screen during the meeting and read through it line-by-line. If the conversation veers off track, remind them that you want to get through the list.
2. Have a purposeful meeting agenda.
Agenda items should include:
- Successes: What have you accomplished for the manager or team that week? How will it make their life easier? This is an opportunity for you to brag and prove your impact!
- Questions: What lingering questions do you have?
- Thinking ahead: What projects are on the horizon for the next week or month? What important dates are coming up? This could include software updates, SSO updates, a change to the Power BI model, etc.
- Current tasks & prioritization: What tasks are on your plate? How should you prioritize them?
- Any other categories that may be important to you and your manager!
3. Normalize talking about your bandwidth.
It’s tempting to say “yes” to every task that’s asked of you. We all want to please our bosses and coworkers. No one wants to be seen as “lazy” or “disappointing.” However, a good boss would rather have you be healthy, happy, and productive, as opposed to burnt out and overwhelmed.
Your 1-on-1s are a good opportunity to touch base with your boss. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, say so. If you’re unclear about top priorities, say so.
These are my favorite ways to discuss my bandwidth:
- “I’m feeling overwhelmed by the tasks on my plate. This is my current backlog.” (Show them your list of tasks.) “Can we review this list and put the items in order of priority?”
- “If I only had time to complete a few tasks this week, what would you like me to focus on?”
- “I know we initially discussed my working on XYZ task. However, I’ve been prioritizing ABC first. Is there a way we can delegate XYZ task to someone else on the team?”
Managers often have no idea how much work is on your plate. It’s your job to tell them and to stay on top of your stress levels.
4. (Optional): Mark important dates on your manager’s calendar.
This one depends on your organization’s culture and your manager’s preferences. However, I find it helpful to mark important dates on my manager’s calendar to make sure we are on the same page. This helps us stay on track during our meetings.
Think about what they need to know for you to work together most efficiently.
Important dates may include:
- Website updates.
- Deadlines for crucial data analyses.
- Meetings with website vendors.
- Updates to user interface.
- When YOU will need information from THEM to complete a project.
5. Ask your manager about their preferred method of communication. (And share your own!)
There are so many ways to communicate with coworkers, including Microsoft Teams, texts, phone calls, emails, Slack, and more. I’m embarrassed to admit that I only asked my manager about his preferred method of communication several months into my job. I wish I had asked earlier!
Some of my coworkers prefer Microsoft Teams messaging, but my boss prefers phone calls or text messages. If I email him, he likes me to include a subject line with either “FYI — no action needed” or “Response needed.” This helps him prioritize his responses. I loved having this feedback from him. Now, I can better respect his time and I receive faster responses from him.
Here are a few ways to ask about communication preferences:
- “I want to make sure we’re communicating in a way that works best for both of us. Do you have a preference between communicating by email, text, phone call, or Slack?”
- “If an urgent issue comes up, how would you like me to get in touch? Is Teams message preferable, or would you prefer a text or phone call?”
- “Are there certain days or times that are better for phone calls, or should be avoided?”
- “Do you want to be copied on emails to vendors about XYZ changes, or would you rather have me provide you with a weekly update?”
Last tip: Go into the meeting with a positive mindset!
Your boss is a regular person, just like you. It’s intimidating to talk to someone above you in the org chart, and you should treat them with respect. But ultimately, they want you to be happy and successful, too, because that makes the organization prosper.
When I’m feeling overwhelmed before a meeting with my manager, I practice deep belly breaths, go on a quick walk outside, or do a short meditation. This helps me focus and go in with a positive attitude. If you start the meeting with a positive mindset, people pick up on it and respond in kind.
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