How do you run effective 1:1s?

Question

Accepted Answer

A 1:1 is **the report's meeting, not yours** — it is dedicated time for their growth, concerns, and context, not a status update. Status can happen elsewhere; trust is built here.

## A reusable agenda

```text
1:1 AGENDA (30 min, weekly or biweekly)
1. How are you? (genuinely — energy, workload, life if they share)
2. Their topics first (they drive the agenda)
3. Blockers / where can I help?
4. Feedback (both directions)
5. Growth / career (lightly each time, deeply monthly)
```

## Make it work

- **Keep them.** Cancelling repeatedly tells people they do not matter.
- **Listen more than you talk.** Aim for 70% them.
- **Take notes and follow through** on what you promised; nothing erodes trust faster than forgotten commitments.

## Pitfalls

- Turning it into a **status meeting** ("what did you ship?").
- Doing **all the talking**.
- Only meeting **when something is wrong**, which makes the meeting feel threatening.

## Why it matters

1:1s are the single highest-leverage habit of a manager.

They surface small problems before they become resignations and build the trust you will need during hard conversations.

A manager who runs consistent, report-driven 1:1s usually has a team that feels heard — and people rarely leave managers who make them feel heard.