Communication is a vital part of any team, and it is essential to collaboration. It is also part of a leaders role to communicate effectively to ensure a sense of direction.

One of the primary things leaders do is communicate demands to their team. A lot of the time, these demands come from customers and strategy. And it is the communication of these demands that bring about the supply required.

Everything in the market works on supply and demand, and these two forces are the things leaders need to manage. They are responsible for finding demands and also ensuring resources to bring about the supply.

However, leaders can easily overload their teams with too many demands. The market is a very turbulent place, and leaders often have to adjust fast to the changing environments. In doing so, leaders can pile activities up whilst lacking in effectively communicating them.

Leaders have a hard time because they have to do two things well. The first is to communicate demands to their team effectively. The second is to balance their demands with the demands of the team.

As leaders, our demands can often seem small to us. We feel that we have already done much of the work and are just asking for the deliverables. However, that is often far from the case. And when we act with this mindset, we overload our team.

So, in this article, I will highlight two things. The first are the signs you should look for to see if you are overloading your team. The second is to give some advice on how you can ensure better execution.

The Signs of an Overloaded Team

There are some signs I believe leaders often miss when trying to guide a team. So, here are a few of the big ones that you should look out for.

A Lack of Ideas

When we are overloaded with tasks, we tend to have less time to think of new solutions. We often put our heads down and try to get all the tasks done.

A lack of ideas often comes from an inability to think outside the box. And when our teams have a lot of demands, no one has time to do this. Therefore, a team with a lack of ideas may be struggling with too many demands.

A Lack of Personal Growth

When people do not have time to develop themselves, they are often in a period of high demand. I have found team members who reduce their development time are often under a lot of pressure.

The first thing teams and leaders sacrifice is their personal growth to gain more time. We often do this in our own lives too. We may skip going to the gym or our reading time to get some more work done.

A Lack of Communication

In times of high demand, team members are often very responsive to the leader but not to one another. They are too caught up in their own demands to synchronise and collaborate with others in their team. It is here that you find people shut off from the rest of the team.

You may find people dropping out of team meetings or not making it to lunch. People become very introverted and do not talk as much as they usually would.

These are the big three I have seen when team members have too many demands. A lot of the time, leaders do like this type of environment for a little while. Everyone seems to be getting on with their work and not raising any concerns. But this is the wrong mindset to have.

As soon as your team stop talking to one another, failure or breakdown is bound to happen. Just as teams need the leader, leaders also need the team. And it is essential to get the right balance on the demands you give to ensure these three things do not occur.

All have negative repercussions and can eventually lead to burnout, lack of ambition or even hate for their job. So, how can leaders ensure a good balance?

Ensuring a Good Balance

Before communicating any demands, it is essential to check in with your team first. Your team do not just want direction from you, they also need support. And one of the ways good leaders do this is by constantly reviewing demands before communicating anymore.

You will find, especially in big organisations, the chain of command can be broken. When there are so many demands, no one knows who is in charge and who is doing what. People end up lost and can even duplicate work that is being done due to lack of communication.

You never want to find yourself in this position, and neither does your team. So, when new demands come on the scene, the first thing that has to be done is a review with your team. And here is what to cover:

Current on-going activities

These are the demands that your team already have. You can evaluate this by getting everyone to stick on a whiteboard the current activities they have. Then, you can link all of these activities up to the strategies you have outlined.

Personal development from the last review

A good way to check in that everyone is finding time for personal development is to ask them how they are growing. Are there any skills they are trying to learn to help their future career? Have they been carrying out training in a particular area?

By having an open conversation, you do two things. The first is to remind people of the importance of personal growth, and the second is to show your team that you care.

Communicate their plan for their activities

We all like speaking about ourselves, and a way to see if someone has a lot to do is to see if they have a lot to say. Some people are less vocal about their workload than others. However, asking them for a plan of their future activities allows them to voice how many demands they feel they are responsible for.

It is here you need to ensure you listen so you can pick out points of concern.

In all of this, remember that your team want to hear from you too. So, take part in the questions and also highlight the new demands that you are wrestling with.

Finally, once everyone has had the chance to communicate, ask this pivotal question:

“Do you believe an addition to your work may lead to a reduction in the quality of your personal development and demands?”

Ensure they are open and answer the question truthfully. I often assure this by asking again after a review is complete in a one-to-one. Once completed, you can then discuss further demands with those who believe they are in a position to take them.

Closing Thought

The process of checking in on your team and reviewing demands is vital. It creates an open environment for your team to be honest about their demands and their personal growth.

It can be hard when ad hoc requests and demands shoot up out of nowhere. However, instead of being fast to delegate things to your team, consider their current demands first. Put their needs before your own, and show them you do this by checking in.

By doing this, you allow your team to perform their current task effectively. And this allows for better execution of current and future demands.