Daily Moments that Make You a Better Teammate: How my Dog Helped me Become a Better Manager

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It was an unexpected career boost when my daily routine changed because of Arnold, a ball of fur shaped like a very, very, very long dog. 

Initially, this article was only part of my monthly newsletter. Still, the strategies I apply can help you improve your team collaboration and overall teamwork, and even create stronger bonds between team members.

To manage others, learn to manage yourself first

The word “Manager” is usually directly understood as a job title. But before you become a manager for your team, you are the manager of your time, your decisions, planning, reaction to events, or a manager of a household. And most of the time, you probably suck at it (or at some of it.)

I am very good at planning and executing tasks, and I am proud of the skill I have polished through years of experience and multiple ups and downs. I stick to a precise schedule every day, following the same time frames and time fragments, dedicating each fragment to my daily priorities. I wake up at 6:01 am every morning, eager to follow my routine. But then, life happens, and it often strikes an arrow through the heart of my planning, making me lose my temper for half a second while reordering the schedule.

Key takeaway:

It’s important to be agile in each area of your life. Plan well, but be ready to creatively shift priorities when a force interfere with them. Avoid losing time in being stuck.

Like every other activity, Arnold’s presence and impact on my life were as planned as possible. But how do you plan a baby dog being frustrated with a brand-new noise, or anxious about not understanding the world around, while you have a backlog full of work tasks? Or trying to steal your attention for cuddles?

That’s where the second crucial approach comes in.

Don’t just watch and listen, learn to see and understand

Our relationship with the environment around us is based on continuous information feedback and a series of inputs. We also tend to judge them very poorly. Our perception often stops at the first glance, instead of searching for the root cause.

“Corgis bark all the time, so prepare to have a lot of noise all day long,” said almost everyone (and most of the articles on the web.)

Well, good for the corgis, but I work from home, and noise is the last thing I need when I am intensely focused on a task. So this behavior was also planned and anticipated. The moment it appeared, we were prepared to act:

• What provoked this behavior?

• What’s Arnold’s emotional state - is he scared, or seeking attention?

• He is never guilty about his reactions, so always approach with care and understanding.

For only a few days, investing some training time and tasty treats, Arnold learned that barking at home was something extremely boring and kind of useless. He would never bark at home; if he does, it’s for a serious reason. He felt understood, and he was happy to turn into a calm, happy dog, feeling safe and sound at home.

These moments helped me massively in my time as team lead of three incredible people. Like every remote job, we often had miscommunication issues or wrong expectations. The lessons I learned with Arnold helped me not just watch and listen, but understand what is happening beneath the surface of communication and teamwork.

Communication’s size never fits all 

I can talk about this forever. The saying states “communication is a two-way street”, but I think communication is a multi-way street with so many ways that you have no clue where one starts and the other ends.

What is obvious for one is invisible for the other, and guess what, that’s how it should be—different points of view, opinions, and characters who possess different virtues. Uniting them in one working communication approach is not an easy job.

Arnold has his ways of communicating his needs, potential issues, or current state. It took me time and patience to learn his language, but now I can understand when he needs something, if he has a tick or something stuck in his fur or paws, if he is sleepy, anxious, or just too tired. Learning the common communication pathways ensured a great bond and relationship between us.

How did I apply this to my team?

I made peace with the fact that people think and communicate differently, and what may seem clear to me may need more information or additional clarification for the other person. So I took it slower, invested time to learn the specifics of communication for every team member, and ensured the information is presented in a simple, detailed, and transparent format. 

It may seem very obvious, but a sincere, caring “How are you feeling today, because something seems a bit off with you” type of question goes a long way.

(And yes, it’s different from the “How are you?” line you receive in Slack before a long work request)

[Ron Preston]

'Avoid losing time in being stuck...'

Simple to focus on.

Enjoyed the article.

[John Funk]

Yes, but does the grumpy cat approve???