Company Blog

Getting to Know You

by Adam Zack — November 3, 2021

A reciprocal relationship is satisfying and rewarding for everyone involved.

It’s a very ancient saying,
But a true and honest thought
That if you become a teacher
By your pupils you’ll be taught

As a teacher I’ve been learning
You’ll forgive me if I boast
And I’ve now become an expert
On the subject I like most

Getting to know you

Getting to know you
Getting to know all about you
Getting to like you
Getting to hope you like me

– Rogers & Hammerstein from the movie The King and I. Sung by Julie Andrews

I don’t think enough can be said about the most successful and effective leaders ability to know their workers. Asking and listening about what is going on in the lives of the people you are surrounded by is the key to a reciprocal relationship. And a reciprocal relationship is satisfying and rewarding for everyone involved. When you, as a leader know details – and I don’t mean prying, sordid details – about the lives of your team they work harder for you and feel how much you care about them. Asking how their kids soccer team is doing, how their day off was, and how their spouse is doing all show a level of caring that means more than just the wage you pay them and commenting on work performance. My wife and I know this couple that we occasionally get together with. The visits have become less and less frequent because all this couple can ever do is talk about themselves and their kids. They never ask about our kids or what we have been doing. It’s all about them. We even turned it into a joke: “How many times do you think they’re going to ask about our kids?”, while simultaneously holding up a hand with no fingers raised and laughing. It’s not reciprocal, and for any relationship to thrive and be satisfying, whether it be business or personal, you have to care about the other person and they have to care about you.