Leader Top-of-Mind Updates

Before you create your first top-of-mind update, take a moment to reflect on a few questions:

• Who is a leader you admire for their communication? What makes their approach effective?

• How do you prefer for leaders to communicate with you?

• How might you adapt your style to your team’s wants and needs?

Use these prompts to shape your update. Keep it concise. Less is more!

What are we focused on?

List up to three priorities for the month. Add one or two sentences with details about each priority.

Why does it matter?

Connect the dots. Share your thoughts on why your team should care about those priorities and how each one connects to broader goals.

What now?

Tell the team explicitly what actions they should take next. If nothing changes, say so. If priorities have shifted, tell them why, and highlight trade-offs and/or dependencies.

What’s the headline?

Summarize your update in a punchy sentence or two. (Even though you’re drafting this now, it should appear at the top of your update.)

Using a video communication tool, like Loom, to record a short video (5 mins. or less) adds clarity and a personal touch since your team can see and hear you walk through the update. This is especially helpful when sharing big changes, serious news, and important announcements.

Once you record your video, add the link or embed the whole video at the top of your document.

Post the update in your team communication tool, such as a Slack or Teams channel. Try sharing updates around the same time each month (beginning or end, for example), in the same channel, and with the same amplification plan (asking direct reports to share with their teams, if applicable). This will help you make it a habit and set expectations with your team about when they can expect to hear from you.

When you share your update, start a feedback loop to keep teams engaged and in sync:

• Ask for comments and questions, and make it clear where or how people can respond.

• Spell out if you want people to take any action after reading or watching your update, like commenting on the page, replying to the message, sharing the update with others, etc.

• During your one-on-one meetings with direct reports, ask if they have any questions or feedback about your top-of-mind update, and how their teams are applying the information you shared (e.g., adjusting roadmaps, shifting focus, staying the course, or engaging key cross-functional partners).

• Re-engage by following up. You could add information to the shared document and/or post a message to the Slack or Teams thread with additional details, clarifications, feedback you’ve heard from direct reports, etc. Showing you’re listening is a small act that makes a big difference.

After you’ve shared your update, discussed it with your team, and heard their feedback, assess what worked and what could be improved.

• What feedback did you get?

• What worked well?

• Did anything surprise you?

• What would you adjust next month? (messaging, delivery, both)

• How can you enlist your direct reports to reinforce and amplify your update?

Then, iterate next time to continue improving communication and connection with your team. You’ve got this!

Read up

Check out these books to level up your communication skills:

• Leadership Is Language: The Hidden Power of What You Say – and What You Don't by L. David Marquet

• Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek

• Smart Brevity: The Power of Saying More with Less by Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen, and Roy Schwartz

• Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking when Stakes are High by Kerry Patterson, Stephen R. Covey, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, Al Switzler