Leadership hacks: How to better ‘show’ your staff what you want from them

We’ve all heard the phrase ‘show, don’t tell’, but in leadership, is ‘telling’ such a bad thing?

According to Leadership Hacks: Clever Shortcuts to Boost Your Impact and Results author Scott Stein, it isn’t at all. Instead, ‘showing’, ‘telling’, and ‘asking’, are all methods of communication that leaders need to master.

This extract covers the ‘show’ mode, including examples of the most appropriate instances to use this method in.

Leadership Hacks by Scott Stein. Source: supplied

Showing is the ideal way of communicating an instruction when you understand what needs to be done, but you want to communicate this visually to increase the other person’s understanding, rather than just telling them what to do. This can be a more gentle approach than telling someone what to do because you’re seen as trying to teach them or working beside them and not just barking an  order.

I once attended a board meeting where a CEO and one of his senior managers were having a heated discussion about a business matter. They both had strong but differing views and were verbally pleading their case in front of the other senior managers. To end the cycle, the CEO decided to pull rank and said something about having the final decision because the authority rested with him. Rather than just agreeing, his senior manager grabbed a whiteboard marker and took a few minutes to draw what he had tried to express verbally. Very quickly, everyone (including the CEO) understood the message he was trying to communicate. As soon as they saw it, it made sense. In addition, they quickly verbalised their own viewpoints, which were added to the diagram, allowing them to feel as if they were contributing. This shifted the entire energy of the meeting from one of debate and a dictatorial stand-off to one where everyone was quickly aligned because they could ‘see’ the message.

Showing is not just limited to communicating in person. One of the advantages of video conferencing and virtual whiteboards is that you can easily capture your ideas and show others who may be working remotely.

Here are a few shortcuts to help improve your approach to delivering messages using the Show mode.

Five hacks for effective showing

1. Visually map the step

   When you want to show someone the steps or actions that can be taken, fast-track their understanding by visually mapping them down on a piece of paper, whiteboard or tablet. This will make it easier for them to see what to do and the action sequence you recommend.

2. Map with colour and texture

   To enhance your visual mapping of a concept or message, emphasise particular points by using different-coloured ink or text so others can visually identify things that are similar or different. 

3. Create a model or diagram

   A model is a visual representation of your key message and usually includes shapes such as squares, circles and triangles. The model can be labelled so others can follow the key points. Common models include pyramids, overlapping circles or two-box by two-box quadrants.

4. Demonstrate what you mean

   Depending on the message and the situation, sometimes it’s better to physically show people what you want them to do. Performing the task while they watch makes it easier for them to replicate it. An added benefit of rolling up your sleeves and demonstrating what to do is that it shows you’re able to complete the task yourself and you don’t mind doing it.

5. Observe someone else

   Getting a third party to show how a specific task is done is a common method used in the workplace. Alternatively, you can access thousands of videos on the internet (or internal server).

‘Showing’ and the VAK learning style

When communicating using the Show mode, you enable people to engage their sight and hearing to obtain a bigger picture of the point you’re trying to get across. Research shows that people have different learning and thinking strategies. Walter Barbe, Raymond Swassing and Michael Milone challenged traditional learning methods in their book Teaching through Modality Strengths: Concepts and practices. This is considered the precursor to what’s now commonly referred to as the VAK (Visual, Auditory, Kinaesthetic) method of learning or understanding:

• ‘Visual’ involves the use of pictures, shapes, diagrams, images and colours;
• ‘Auditory’ uses listening, tone and rhythm; and
• ‘Kinaesthetic’ uses body movement, tactile or touching experiences, and gestures.

While blending all three styles is the best way to increase understanding and comprehension, it’s believed that the largest percentage of the population has a bias towards learning and understanding visually. This is one of the reasons why using a Show approach can help increase the message you’re trying to get across.

When should you show?

The Show mode helps to improve communication through visual means and can occur remotely or in person. There are a number of instances when you should use the Show mode:

• When you’re teaching someone something new, showing them or drawing the steps helps them learn the process more easily;
• When you demonstrate how to do something, it’s easier for people to understand it than only being told; and
• When you’re explaining something that’s difficult to understand or complex in nature, a visual explanation can help get the message across.

This is an edited extract from Leadership Hacks: Clever Shortcuts to Boost Your Impact and Results by Scott Stein, available now on Booktopia.