Managers pride themselves on "doing things for their people." What the seasoned manager learns over time is that anything she does for her people, she directly or indirectly does for herself. Nothing selfish about this. In fact, it's a great leader who recognizes that the distinction between her and her people is quite permeable. In other words, they are one. Whatever a manager puts in place to support, sustain, motivate and inspire her people, on some level it must provide the same for her.

Let's say, for example, a manager has been on the receiving end of an open-door policy with a previous boss. He realizes he liked it because it allowed him to get immediate answers to his questions so he could stay optimally productive. He wants to put this policy in place, thinking it will serve his people to have access to him so they too can stay productive. At first, the manager explains the policy by telling his people his door will most often be open, and when it is, they can feel free to come to him with their questions, comments or good ideas. Predictably, his people respond very favorably to the news, and feel they are lucky to have such a magnanimous boss who makes himself so available.

As time goes on, the people of the department are joyfully utilizing their boss's open door policy, calling upon his expertise, getting a "go ahead" on complex projects, and having an opportunity to sometimes share a story. Everybody's happy! Or are they? The boss has found a colleague with whom he regularly grouses about the "flippin' open door policy" that generates 15-20 interruptions a day and slows him down in completing projects he is responsible for. He's forgotten to look at the fact that the policy—as it currently operates—is not supporting his needs. What we know to be true is if a policy is not supporting the leader, in some ways it isn't supporting the team either.

Let's examine how these managers can rectify the situation and create more success in the future. Any policy needs to be succinct enough to be clear and repeatable, but broad enough to be shaped over time to the changing needs of the group. In our example of the open-door policy, the manager needed to identify how this policy would serve him. In so doing, he would have realized that it would best serve him with parameters to guide people on when and how to use it—and one or two specifics on when not to use it. Once explained, it works best to follow up periodically with guidance and acknowledgement as people utilize the policy. This will reinforce their understanding as well as serve to maintain alignment with the needs of the team. On a scheduled basis, it helps for the manager to review how the policy still serves him. He might identify that it keeps him in the loop on projects as they progress, or that it is a 'quick tag' that allows him to steer people back on track who've strayed slightly. It would also alert him to his mistaken view that his people were an "interruption." An open-door policy instructs people to come in and talk to the boss. Therefore, their doing so is not an interruption. Simply re-framing their presence as requiring his attention will help shift the mental and emotional energy expended every time someone shows up at his office. From the policies and procedures we define to the philosophy and culture we shape, we are forever teaching our people—and ultimately ourselves—the nuances of working in ways that support and serve us all.