MANAGING PEOPLE & TEAMS
How To Run Greater 1-on-1 Meetings
3 Things to Do Before Running a 1-on-1 Meeting
“How it’s going?”
Asking vague questions gets you vague answers, even though it may seem natural and casual. As you interact with more people in the office, you encounter people of varying personality types — sometimes, the response to the vague questions is simply “fine”.
The main purpose of a 1-on-1 meeting is more on discovery and coaching: you will find things that you do not know about the employee’s work, and you have the opportunity to deep dive into some of those problems and work on them. It is the best way to create a personal connection.
Yet, managers often mess up 1-on-1 meetings.
When you ask a vague question, you set the tone of the meeting. The employee feels disconnected immediately. Your 1-on-1 meeting is treated as a waste of time, further reinforcing the impression in their heads.
Managers often shy away from these meetings because most are unaware of how to structure them — coupled with the fact that as humans, we tend to avoid difficult conversations. According to one study, 7 out of 10 employees actively avoid such conversations.
