1 on 1s are the single most important tool managers have to be great leaders. You can use these meetings to help you bring out the best in your team, fix problems, get buy in, and so much more.

That’s why, as we wrap up Season 1, we’re bringing you all the best advice on 1 on 1s from our many amazing guests.  Listen in to learn what the most important things are for you to remember for your 1 on 1s, and get a preview of some episodes you may want to go back and listen to.

Lessons and links from today’s episode:

A big THANK YOU to our many amazing guests. In today’s episode we heard from:

• Mark C Crowley, from Episode 2,“Why You Should Lead from the Heart(and how to start)”
• Wes Kao, from Episode 4,“Managing Up: Advice for Mangers & ICs to master their most important relationship at work”
• Mike Pretlove, from Episode 7,“Building an Unconventional Career as a Leader”
• Fabian Carmago, from Episode 8,“8 Essential Things You Must Consider When Becoming a Manager”
• Jeremy Brown, from Episode 15,“How to Rapidly Grow from Team Lead to Executive.”
• Krzysztof Rakowski, from Episode 16,“How to Become a Better Manager in Just 15 Minutes a Week”
• Valentina Thörner, from Episode 17,“The Harsh Truths of Leading Remotely(and what to do about it)” 

Click the titles of any of the episodes to listen into them and see the show notes for that episode.

Show Notes

And a few links for you to learn more based on their advice:

• Mark C Crowley’s book “Lead from the Heart” can be found here as well as his interview on our blog here.
  • Learn why open door policies fail here.
  • Talking about the personal life of your team can be scary. It’s beneficial, but you’re not their therapist. Learn how to handle when the meetings get too personal here. 
• Wes Kao has a fantastic tweetstorm on managing up you can check out here. 
  • Learn more about managing up well here, and ask these questions of your boss to master managing up.
  • Getting buy in is important to as Wes discusses, which you can learn how to get buy in here.
• Mike Pretlove reminds us that building rapport and empathy for your team is hugely important. Learn over 80 ways you can connect with anyone. 
  • Giving feedback is great to do in your 1 on 1s. Learn a battle tested, proven way to give feedback to your team members and the podcast episode on it here.
  • You can also read about how Mike had the lowest turnover and highest engagement in his company by using Lighthouse software.
• Fabian Carmago mentions our post on the evolution of your 1 on 1s over time, which you can read here.
  • Being a good coach is a key part of being a great manager.
• Krzysztof Rakowski told us about how managers must always be learning and growing. A growth mindset is key for every manager. 
• Valentina Thörner told us 1 on 1s are a, “one hill I will die on” because they’re so important in remote environments.
  • Ask these questions to help support your remote team members.
  • Here’s Dr. Katerina Bohle Carbonell’s talk on analyzing communication patterns here.
• Jeremy Brown reminded us about the importance of using your 1 on 1s to coach and praise your team.
  • Praise your team regularly. Learn 21 ways to bring more praise and positivity to your team here. 

A giant THANK YOU to Jeremy, Valentina, Mark, Fabian, Wes, Mike, Krzysztof and our many other guests for sharing their advice, insights, and hard earned perspectives.

As you can see, even though we covered dozens of different topics in this first season, 1 on 1s keep coming up. They really are the centerpiece of great management.

Which is also why we built Lighthouse to help you make these meetings awesome. From helpful prep and structure to suggested questions for dozens of different topics, we help you be a better leader and expand the value of your 1 on 1s every day.

Sign up for a free trial here. 

And thank you for listening to this season! We’ve appreciated every bit of feedback and praise we’ve heard from you all on the season.

As a closing ask, two things of you:

1. If there’s a burning management problem you have that you hope we’ll do a future episode on how to handle, please email us at blog@getlighthouse.com or reply to one of our podcast emails to let us know.
2. Please share the podcast with a fellow manager you think would benefit. The more people we help, the more we’re encouraged to continue the show for many future seasons.