What to do after a bad performance review | 3 tricks that will change the way you work

What to do after a bad performance review | 3 tricks that will change the way you work | Career lessons from Emma Grede

What we can learn about leadership from The Celebrity Traitors

The Celebrity Traitors has got us talking about many things recently: Alan Carr's giggle, Celia Imrie's flatulence and Claudia's excellent tartan trousers, but daft observations aside, it's also been an excellent case study in group dynamics and a credible simulation of what happens in an office when you fling 19 adults into a room as 'peers' and ask them to organise themselves.

We've discussed herd mentality a lot here, but what's been more apparent this season is the need for leadership. Whether it's discussions on 'lead traitors' and who could be their underlings, the 'Big Dog theory', deference at the round table, and what we must assume is worry of repercussions outside of the show when voting Jonathan out (why else would it take so long?), this series has been a textbook demonstration of what we subconsciously look for in our leaders – maturity, extroversion, perceived status outside of the role and, dare I say it, gender.

One of the many questions I've been noodling over while watching this series is how do you counter those biases and push yourself forward when you don't fulfil that criteria? And what does leadership look like beyond hierarchical status or years in the job? The answer for me lies in Joe Marler.

Whilst Cat Burns and Nick Mohammed undoubtedly play the role of influencers (every workplace has them), they're still not calling the shots. But Joe's role has changed as the series has progressed. In an early episode, while rightly guessing Jonathan as a traitor, Marler bemoaned, "Why is nobody listening to me?" Why indeed? His rationale was right, his approach began respectfully, and he worked hard to gain the trust of his fellow faithfuls. As a professional rugby player, he knew more than any of the others about collaboration, teamwork work and performance mindset, so why did it take him until last week to emerge as the leader of the pack?

The answer, I think, lies not just in clarity of vision but in the ability to communicate it. Only when Marler started to expose the emotion that drove him, and began clearly communicating what needed to happen – aligned voting, a clear strategy – and demonstrating that he was listening by using the information his colleagues were sharing, did he start to take on the role of leader. (Uniquely, he is still the only player to invite the opinions of others at the round table.) Evidence, if it were ever needed, that if you have a desire to be the manager of your team, or even your company, keeping quiet is not an option.

It remains to be seen what will happen in the final, the ultimate leadership negotiation, but when we look back at this series it's Joe Marler who we'll remember as the Big Dog, the person who – against the odds of age and financial and social status – showed us that if you work hard enough, and communicate clearly enough, it's possible to take on the leadership and ultimately steal the show.

Becoming a friend's manager at work can be tricky – here's how to navigate the dynamic

Ask: 'What do you think?'

Digital editor Ellen Scott shares insightful hacks to make work that little bit easier.

As you progress in your career, people ask you more and more questions. 'How do you do this annoyingly complex thing?' 'Why is this the way it is?' 'What should we do?' The more senior you are, the more it feels like you're expected to have all the answers.

Sometimes, you do indeed need to answer questions… that's why they pay you the moderately sized bucks. But there are some times when the best thing to do is to answer a question with a question. Specifically, this one: 'What do you think?' When you're asked what decision should be made, what ideas are worth pursuing or how something should be done, it's a powerful move to give other people the chance to feed into the answer.

This doesn't mean giving away all your power or constantly sense-checking your views. You may well ask the question, take in the person's answer and decide against what they've said. But it's well worth giving people on your team – especially those you don't often hear from – the opportunity to share thoughts you might not have considered.

Give it a go. The next time you're asked a question, before rushing into your answer, pause and ask the person asking what they think. They'll appreciate being asked, and you might get some valuable input.