Conversations that matter, with Jonathan Raymond.
At Steer, we are happy to announce a new section in our blog. This is an intimate space where leaders and experts share their tips, experiences and their own vision on how to be a great leader. To inspire you, to guide you and, above all, to help you have conversations that matter.
I’ve had the pleasure to talk to Jonathan Raymond. Enjoy!
Jonathan, tell us a bit about yourself and how you got started.
I’m a lawyer by trade. I started back in the 90’s in New York, working for a big law firm. Early enough I realized that life wasn’t meant for me. I felt miserable. In the early 2000s, I quit my job and moved to San Francisco to work for a small tech company, and build my own company after that. They were extremely interesting times. Besides my career, I was also working on achieving my personal goals related to yoga and meditation.
In 2011 I became the CEO of E-Myth, one of the first companies to coach small and medium businesses. We were building a global network of coaches, and I learned a lot about this fascinating industry. I realized that the most compelling part of this industry was its culture, its people and, in particular, how meaningful conversations were at the basis of its success.
This learning process drove me to leave E-Myth and start Refound. It was 2015, the same year I also wrote and published my first book: Good authority.
From your vast experience, which are the key skills that managers should have or learn in order to be great leaders?
As managers we are driven and focused to move things forward, but most of the times we miss the key conversations in our organizations. Leading is more than managing and moving stuff forward. Leading is about capturing the small subtle details by paying attention to what the people is not saying. This is not easy but once you learn how to do it, you are able to find frustrations and dissatisfactions, and this is critical to avoid having unhappy and disengaged people in your organization.
I would also recommend to put yourself in your employees’ shoes. This is crucial to understand your role as a manager, to find the middle ground between being seen as a distant authority or being treated as a best friend and, above all, to become a meaningful leader for your employees.
At Refound, you have a strong focus on helping organizations run purposeful One-on-One meetings. Why do you think they’re so important?
One-on-One meetings are essential to an organisation’s wellbeing because they are the weekly reason to slow down and have meaningful conversations. It’s extremely hard to slow down these days, and it’s even harder to find a dedicated space to talk about what’s going on with your employees.
In real One-on-One meetings, work is not the only issue on the table. Personal conversations link to professional development. You share views on how to deal with accountability, how to track time, how to improve the way we all work and live. One-on-One meetings are like a little dojo or a practice ground to be a better yourself.
These meetings have a lot of impact in the culture of the company. The way you work and operate on a daily basis defines your culture. If you don’t have time for a dedicated conversation with your direct staff, what does that say about the culture of the company?
As a manager, how should I start having One-on-One meetings within my organization?
The first step is check out our One on One planner guide! It’s a really fun tool we’ve developed. By answering to simple questions, you will have a custom One-on-One meeting plan for you to get started.
Follow Jonathan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonathanraymond
Know more about his latest project, Refound: https://refound.com
Good Authority, his brand new book: https://www.amazon.com/Good-Authority-Become-Leader-Waiting/dp/1940858194
Follow Steer on Twitter: https://twitter.com/new_steer
