Tips on Managing Priorities 

                            Tips on Managing Priorities 
                                  with Your Team Members 
                                               Post #5:

**#1 - Clearly State Your Goals!
>>> Make sure that team member fully understands your goals.
  (a) Explain why the goal you've chosen is the first priority, as well
       as the reasons for the way you've prioritized your tasks.
  (b) Ask questions of your team members for feedback. They may
        have valid suggestions on how to do things differently.

**#2 - Help Team Members Manage Individual Priorities
  (a) Meet with your team members one-on-one and help them
       manage their own individual priorities. They may have trouble
       doing this and may need your guidance as a mentor.
  (b) If a team member is having problems, they may not feel
        comfortable approaching you about it. But if you have regular
        coaching sessions, you can make sure they're on track.

**#3 - Transparency and Visibility
  (a) Make everything completely visible to everyone. In addition to
        clearly stating goals and priorities at the outset, you should also have
        reference materials for team members to refer to.
  (b) Goals, priorities, and progress should be posted in high visibility
        areas. Create a environment based around this shared information.

**#4 - Open Communication
  (a) Make every effort to create a feeling of open communication
       where everyone feels comfortable expressing their opinions and
       asking questions.
  (b) Create this environment virtually through online communication
        tools, in meetings, and in sessions with individual team members. 

**#5- Offer Continual Training and Coaching
  (a) If a team member feels that a task is not suitable has problems,
        it may just be a matter of training.
  (b) Through regular check-ins with your team members, try to find
        these weak areas and offer whatever training they might need.

**#6 - Keep Priorities Flexible
>>> Although you need a definitive plan with priorities in place,
        don't be afraid to make changes if necessary. The conditions
         surrounding your
         progress may make this necessary.
>>> For example, you may find a deficit in certain resources which
         makes a particular task difficult to complete at present. You can
         then bring another task up in your list of priorities and save this
         for later for when it's more feasible.

  **#7 -  Keep Long-Term Goals in Mind
Along with the one goal you're working towards now, keep your
long-term goals on the horizon as well. Clearly state to the other
members of your organization your five or ten-year plan as well
as the goal at hand.