Whether you are Chief Executive, a functional manager or someone who leads informally on project and product teams, start your week right and put these suggestions to work.

1.  Say “Hello.”

If you work in a physical office, start your day by walking around and saying hello and asking about the weekend.  Smile, make good eye contact and show that you are interested.

There are a lot of stupid reasons why we stay away from people’s personal lives.  Get over it.   I’m not suggesting you probe, pry or do anything that makes anyone the least bit uncomfortable.  Instead, pay attention to what people volunteer to you and follow up. If you know that someone has a sick child, a major event or is involved in something important in the community, ask a question about it.  And quit steering the conversation back to something about you.

2.  Audit your schedule and revise it to include some or more people-time.

Look at your week’s schedule.  If you are a leader responsible for others, you should have a healthy chunk of your time invested in meetings that provide an opportunity for you to coach, gauge progress, provide feedback and provide encouragement.  If most of your time is consumed with status meetings, you need to make a conscious effort to reorient your schedule.  Set up following weeks with a better balance of people time and coaching meetings.

3.  Recognize the Opportunities for Drive-By Coaching in Your Day.

Hallway conversations, quick phone calls or even e-mails can and should incorporate elements of coaching.  They are not substitutes for quality time, but tools to use as everyone plows through their work.  A quick phone call to follow-up on an issue is a great opportunity to offer encouragement, ask a few questions and set up a formal meeting.

4.  Resolve this week to help solve problems and knock down barriers at every opportunity.

It’s amazing how enjoyable work is when your driving motivation is to help. Instead of planning to read the riot act or take some names at the project from hell status meeting, focus on helping the group identify and frame problems and begin developing solutions.  Resist the urge to provide answers or you will miss the teaching opportunity.

5.  Calibrate on Your Manager’s Goals

Regardless of whether your manager practices any of this good leadership stuff, strive to coach in reverse.  Recognize that the boss has a whole host of problems and pressures, many of which she does not share with you.  Ask questions and volunteer your help.  You’ll both be glad that you did.

—

A week is a horrible thing to waste.  Put one or more of these tips into play.  Rinse and repeat in the future.  Again you’ll be glad that you did.