A DAO in the Life February 2021
Stretch and Lift
Michelle Bixler, Strasburg Director of Community Development
At times, the two pages or so that outline the essential functions, knowledge, skills and abilities of my position (and probably yours too) could be better summarized by the one line at the end: other related duties as assigned. Even though these are the exact duties that keep us at the office late, I am here to defend one specific “other duty” and advocate for intentionally taking on, but more importantly, assigning at least one stretch assignment per year.
If you are unfamiliar with the meaning of a stretch assignment, it’s exactly what it sounds like: an assignment or project that is outside of one’s skillset or knowledge base requiring them to stretch themselves. It involves the person getting a little uncomfortable while they engage in something unfamiliar to them, but ultimately, the new becomes old and they have acquired education through experience.
While I have jumped at opportunities to take on stretch assignments for myself, over the last year or so I have learned a couple of things about empowering direct reports to take on stretch assignments too.
Custom tailored. I try to filter the projects I pitch. Some people in our workgroup are confident and jump at any opportunity to achieve, whether they’re ready or not. And some people are shy and really need to be pushed a bit. Their interests are also quite different. I try to ensure that the opportunities available to them really pique their interest, so that they are motivated to stretch in the first place. This requires listening to what motivates them, observing what they are drawn to, and then anticipating what might be the next step for them. One tool that has been particularly helpful with this is the “stay interview.”
Start small. Part of achieving that mix of opportunities may require starting with a “softball.” While it may not seem like a stretch assignment because it is using skills that the person already has, what is stretching is their ability to tolerate risk. If the past year has taught us anything, it is that we must be prepared to pivot when duty calls and that can be really difficult for some folks. But there are things that we can do to help ease the anxiety of change and the right stretch project is a great place to start.
Or don’t. One of the more difficult lessons that I had to learn when I moved into the public sector was when to reel it in. One of my key tenets is to “let your light shine” so I’m not talking about putting someone in their place or humbling them. But for those people who are willing to jump on a limb without abandon, I think it’s important to give them the opportunity to “fail” in a safe place, to experience inconsequential fallout that’s not going to damage their confidence or trust in you, but instead give them opportunities for self-reflection. That might look like: presenting to a supportive community group, managing an interdepartmental project with participants who embody a healthy organizational culture, or heading up a program where they have technical expertise but may need practice with the soft skills.
Ask for help. This little tidbit is so effective it almost feels dishonest, but it is completely authentic. We all have too much on our plates and not enough time to get it done. So just ask for help! People love to help and, in this case, they will be getting a benefit out of it too. Their participation in stretch assignments that lighten your load furthers their necessity, expands their skills and frees you up to do more for the organization as well. Win-win-win.
As supervisors, we are not just responsible for assigning tasks and enforcing accountability, but just as important, lifting people up. A recent article in Forbes noted that “71% of senior leaders said stretch assignments had the biggest impact on unleashing their potential... ahead of action learning, mentoring, relationships, 360° assessments, exposure to more senior leaders and formal classroom training.” That leads me to believe that setting up opportunities for our colleagues to stretch themselves may be a terrific way for us to support them in their workforce journey.