One Meaningful Conversation a Week

The Habit That Changes Everything!

“When managers have one meaningful conversation per week with each team member, everything gets better.” – Gallup, Culture Shock

Of all the leadership insights in Gallup’s latest research, this one stopped me in my tracks.

Why?
Because it’s deceptively simple… and incredibly powerful.

In Culture Shock, Gallup identifies what separates average Managers from great ones. The difference isn’t charisma or technical brilliance. It’s not being a visionary. It’s not even about skills and experience.

It’s about the consistent habit of having one meaningful conversation with every team member, every week.

And here’s what they found:

• Teams with managers who do this have higher engagement, lower burnout, and stronger psychological safety.
• Employees are 3x more likely to be engaged, and 4x more likely to feel someone cares about their development.
• It boosts trust, performance, and retention - without needing more meetings, more tools, or more complexity.

This isn’t a soft skill. It’s a core leadership competency!

Let’s be clear: this doesn’t mean a weekly performance review or a stand-up with a checklist. It’s a real, human conversation.

Often it only needs 3-5 minutes. But it’s personal, purposeful, and it signals something loud and clear:

“You matter. I see you. I’m in this with you.”

What’s astonishing when I talk to our clients about Gallup’s findings, is how rare that feels in many busy workplaces.

But here’s the opportunity: if you lead people, you can start this today. You don’t need permission. You don’t need a new strategy. You just need to carve out a few minutes, show up with intention, and build the habit.

Start with one person. One conversation. This week!

Be focused, curious and present.

If you’re leading other leaders - build this as an expectation. Then support them to slow down and connect. It may just be the most powerful thing that they do.

Because in the end, culture isn’t built in strategy documents or annual performance reviews. Culture is what you do. It’s your behaviours! It lives in the conversations that we choose to have - or not to have - every single day.

As the Gallup authors say in Culture Shock:

“The best managers are coaches, not bosses. They talk to their people - a lot - and with purpose.”

And one conversation a week? It might just change everything.

Wishing you a wonderful week of great conversations.

Richard Dore
Co-CEO - Director of Partnerships
Proteus Leadership