"Why “my door is always open” doesn’t work"

We’ve all heard it from managers: “If you need anything from me, just let me know.”​
Maybe you’ve even said it yourself at the end of a 1:1, I know I have.
It’s a well-meaning phrase. But how often does it really work?

Over the last couple of emails, I’ve shared Stacey’s view that leadership happens not through grand designs or polished announcements, but in the ongoing conversations we choose to participate in.

I used to believe that being approachable was enough. If I kept things light, smiled often, and stayed available, people would tell me what I needed to know.

But they didn’t. Or not until it was too late. Then I remembered Camille Fournier’s opinion in The Manager’s Path:

People won’t walk through it because the stakes feel high. Will they be seen as difficult? Will it actually make a difference? Most of the time, it’s safer to say nothing.

We can’t just wait and hope people will come to us.
We have to be active participants in the conversation.

Stacey’s view makes relying on the open-door feel like wishful thinking at best, and risky at worst. You don’t wait for them to come to you. The stakes are too high.

Being approachable is a good start. But it’s not enough. If you want to know what’s really going on, you have to notice what isn’t being said, make it safe to bring things up, and join the conversation before it becomes a crisis.

Where might you show up before the issue walks through the door?

Until next time,
Dermot
​The Messy Middle

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