Write this down,

“The quality of a relationship is the extent to which it meets the needs of each of the parties.”

This is true in our business and our personal life. I challenge you to spend some one-on-one time with each of your direct reports. Your role as a leader is to ensure that their needs are met. Whether the needs are the resources to get the job done, or their personal needs for development and advancement, it is your responsibility to make that happen. If their needs are not being met, then it is your fault that they are handicapped in their job. It is not a question if whether you think their needs are being met. It is whether they think their needs are being met.

In your personal relationships, spend a bit of time with your friends and family members. Do they feel as though their needs are being met? Whether you are family, life-long friends or a budding relationship, if the needs of the other party are not being met, the relationship may be suffering in silence.

Remember:

 “The quality of a relationship is the extent to which it meets the needs of each of the parties.”

Go observe, ask questions and spend time with the people who are relying on YOU to have their needs fully met.