The Art of Suggesting
"Suggestion box closed. We know all the answers." Office Humor
"I suggest we do..." This is easy to say in a sentence, but it comes with baggage. Suggestions are an essential part of a growing and improving an organization. Leaders and teams need them, but they are useful only if they come from a good place and are delivered properly - there's a right and a wrong way.
Suggestions can be purely egotistical. A person might say, "I suggest...," with little thought beyond making themselves look smart or to dissent without good reason (a suggestion or a complaint?). One may also suggest something with no intent of offering assistance, in other words, "I suggest X but I would like someone else to do the heavy lifting." That is the suggestion box technique: write down the suggestion, drop it in the box and get on with your life. Furthermore, simply suggesting without any forethought and a commitment to assist with what is being suggested is a hollow and pedestrian way of contributing to something.
A different approach is to offer an idea with a caveat, as I often do, "I'm thinking out loud here." While this marginalizes the phrase a bit, it takes the pressure off anyone in the room to think that I'm coming in hard with a suggestion to take a certain course of action. I'm contributing and generating ideas but I have not done due diligence so I'm not suggesting yet.
Suggesting done right sounds something like this. "I want to make a suggestion. I've given this some thought (enter your brief analysis and supporting data) and I suggest we (include yourself) do X. I offer my services here if you (the leader) or the team agree." This suggestion was delivered with analysis and forethought. It is presented in a helpful way, with personal commitment. I'm not just passing the buck, I'm offering to be part of the solution.
As a leader you want to form and foster an environment of open thinking, of professional dissent where ideas flow and people challenge each other. It is your duty therefore to train your people on how to best deliver suggestions. I suggest you do this and I'm willing to help you!
Make is Personal!
Rob
Rob Campbell