By: Dr. Chris Hobbs

It is a blessing to have a lot of friends in leadership positions. Many of those friends, lead in the context of schools and churches and it is a blessing to talk to them, text them, visit them, listen to them on podcasts, and follow them on social media. In some ways, I feel like I am in a perpetual state of ‘iron sharpens iron’ because of the quality of these people. Recently, I was listening to Derek Simpson, campus pastor of Family Church in South Florida, on the Church for the Rest of Us podcast. During the podcast conversation Derek said, ‘it is unlikely that where you are working is the last place that you will ever work, but while you are there you should treat your colleagues like it is.’ What a great thought!

Combine Derek Simpson’s thought with the current reality of the great resignation and the great relocation, and you have a lot of people in every industry living in a conflicted reality – trying to treat a new place and new people like home. Twelve months ago I was living in that reality and I felt upside down. I felt like a stranger in a foreign land and yet I knew that the faster I made that place feel like home and those people feel like family the sooner I could have a positive impact. There is no way to rush that process though. Trust, familiarity, and relationships are correlated to quantity of time, and the clock had barely begun to tick for me.

So how do you speed that process up? Well, here are three ways to make that process go faster…just kidding.

You can’t speed the process up. Sorry.

There are just some things that can’t be microwaved, and making a place feel like home and people feel like family is one of those things.

But…

I do have a framework that can keep you focused and patient while you are going through the process of learning every detail over again about your new job (how do I sign in again?) and developing relationships with your new colleagues (what’s your name again?). This framework has now provided me focus, comfort, and patience in two very large professional transitions in the past 7 years.

CASA: How to make your new place of work feel like your home.

CONNECT with people. The familiar statement, ‘people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care’ is often quoted and for good reason; it is true. Before you can make changes to your role that impact people on a professional level, you must impact people on a personal level. Creating a connection with people should be a prioritized goal for a professional in any industry that is at a new place. Having lunch with a colleague, gifting a biography of someone’s favorite historical character on the basis of water cooler conversation, or knowing birthdays of co-workers are ways to create connection. The interactions that take place during, and after intentional efforts to connect are high in value. Being able to complement a colleague on how they handled a tough call, or share a laugh with a manager about the embarrassing coffee spill creates connection. The totality of these individual connections demonstrates to the colleagues that you want to be part of the community not impress the community. It is also important to remember that if you have authority in your position, it is not as important as influence. Influence is enhanced through connection. Authority takes care of itself after the influence of connection happens. Connect with people to make your new place of work feel like casa.

ASK people questions. What questions? ALL the questions. Robert Greenleaf, the educational leader that pioneered research on servant-leadership, once stated that, ‘wisdom comes from listening’. Legendary talk show host, Larry King, once said, ‘if I am to learn I am to listen’. Chances are you are bringing past success with you to your new place of work. And you will inevitably feel the urge to convince people you are good are what you are doing. Fight that urge. Your past success has little value to the people in your new work home. A sure way to open people up to your ideas or leadership style is to ask them questions. Specifically, the question, ‘what do you think?’ is powerful. Not only does it allow you to gather authentic insight from colleagues (because they will tell you what they think if you ask them so brace yourself), but it has a residual effect of nurturing connection with people (see the aforementioned section on connecting with people). Demonstrate an inquisitive nature by searching for information about the department, organization, and community. Long time employees and those that have been promoted from within the organization are particularly rich resources for information when they are asked sincere information-seeking questions. If appropriate, the person that previously held your position can also be an great resource. Knowledge in many ways is power. The constant collection of all of this information and opinion adds to your knowledge base which then empowers you to operate for the benefit of the organization because you have discovered what is important to them by asking them. Ask people questions to make your new place of work feel like casa.

SERVE people. This point is important for you regardless of your position, but it has a unique potency if you are in a leadership position. Cheryl Bachelder, CEO of Popeye’s Chicken stated in her book ‘Dare to Serve’ that people who are well-served are more likely to give their best to an organization. A leader should always be on the lookout for little ways that take a few moments to demonstrate an attitude of servant-leadership. Assisting someone in cleaning up from a presentation, helping an office member set up for a birthday party, or bending your knee to clean up a spilled trash can are examples of little tasks with big impact. Savvy leaders do these things frequently because they place a high value on demonstrating practical support for their people. Being a new leader in a new organization can be overwhelming, but don’t glaze over these simple yet profound acts of service. Prioritize serving people as a leader and it is likely you will have plenty of assistance with your transition to your new place. Serve people consistently to make your new place of work feel like casa.

AIM for professional growth – Transitioning into a new job at a new place can be so overwhelming that for a time you forget the big picture of your own professional growth. Don’t. The greatest investment you can make is in yourself and this is especially important when taking a new position. The surest way to add value to your new organization is to enhance one’s own effectiveness and that does not happen on accident. I would strongly recommend that you create and stick to systematic goals of professional development. The first time I made a transition using the CASA framework, I set a goal to obtain a 5-month certification and submit three articles for publishing during the first year. The second time, I read more than 40 books in the first year, many of which were specifically chosen relative to my new role. You cannot grow your influence if you are not growing yourself. Intentional professional growth also stirs up reflection on what you are experiencing and that helps to foster balanced perspective during the disruptive season of life you will find yourself in. Professional development should not be set aside during this time of transition. The pursuit of a new degree, obtaining certifications, and attendance to conventions are examples of things that should be prioritized even in the first year at a new job. Professional development demonstrates ‘big picture’ thinking on your part that can have a positive impact on your new place of work.

As you begin your new role remember it is probably not the last place you will work. But there is a lot of wisdom in acting like it is. So go on and use the casa framework to make that casa your casa! *for my non-Spanish speaking friends, ‘casa’ is home in Spanish. You get the play on words, right? *

Keep on keepin’ on, friends!

Bonus content: Here are a couple resources to dive deeper on this topic: ‘The First 90 Days‘ by Michael Watkins, ‘Disrupt Yourself‘ by Whitney Johnson, ‘What Got You Here Won’t Get You There‘ by Marshall Goldsmith.

Dr. Chris Hobbs, a Baylor Center for School Leadership Fellow, is an educational leader with more than two decades of experience at some of the strongest private Christian schools in the country. You can follow him on Twitter for all sorts of inspirational thoughts and good laughs.