Leaf Branch Root, it’s a method to coach, empower, and learn to trust your team. Lately, in my coaching, I encounter the micromanager who say they don’t want to micromanage, and inevitably this is a trust issue. It’s part hero issue, I must save the day… no one can do this better than me.
When I hear this, I pull out a tried and true system, the Leaf Branch Root system, I learned during my coaching training and documented in Susan Scott’s book, Fierce Conversations.
Here’s how it works:07
A leader looks at the members of their team and categorizes the activities they are involved in or likely to be confronted by, in three different buckets… Leaf Branch Root.
- Leaf Issues – affect the organization like losing leaf affects a tree. These team member takes care of leaf issues and move on.
- Branch Issues – losing a branch to a tree is not catastrophic but it hurts. Leaders empower their team to make decisions on Branch Issues and then discuss them with their manager. The manager gives feedback on how they would have handled that issue and why. Eventually gaining confidence in some of those Branch Issues and moving them to Leaf Issues.
- Root Issues – are the serious issues that can kill a tree. For your team, when they are working on a root issue, you want them to bring them to you before they take action. You want them to recommend what action they would take. Ask them why. Understand their thinking. Discuss it and if you don’t agree, tell them why and what to do.
The object of Leaf Branch Root is to set up a system where your team learns from you while enabling you to gain confidence in and trust their judgment. The theory of Leaf Branch Root is to continually push issues until all issues your team has are leaf issues and you can spend more time golfing!
Leaf Branch Root… try it.
I’m Glen Hellman and I’m a business coach. I help people figure out what to do and get them to do it. Even if what they need to figure out is the Leaf Branch Root, Tree thing. Would you like to know what it feels like to work with someone who will help you figure out what to do? Try a complimentary, no-obligation, online coaching session. Schedule your session right now by pressing that little green button down there.
