Every region has its stereotypes, but here in Iowa, we lean into the Midwest image: polite, pragmatic, team-oriented (think barn raising), and stubborn as dirt, all qualities that can serve you well as a manager.

1. The Midwest “Yeah No”: This is an all-purpose phrase that means “Yes, I hear you, but no I don’t agree.” It acknowledges what the speaker was saying, which can be critical when dealing with employees. Inevitably, employees won’t necessarily agree with some management decisions, and letting them know they have been heard, even if you don’t share the same viewpoint, is a critical communication step. Different perspectives can mean ongoing disagreement where we poll in Iowa as polite.  It’s not productive to leave issues open to constant debate. This can be a difficult task for managers when employees refuse to move on and repeating “I appreciate your perspective, but we aren’t revisiting that,” can get trying, but yeah no.
2. “No…Yeah”: Essentially means, “I hadn’t thought about the issue that way, but I see your point.”  It is important to assess ideas and perspectives as they are raised to see if you should incorporate something new into your thought process. No…yeah is the core of inclusion – ideas that perhaps you hadn’t fully considered can improve the baseline or the project.
3. Practical: What works and what doesn’t, and how do we get from point A to point B in the most efficient way possible? It doesn’t always have a bow on it but we get there. A practical approach can help you identify common goals, improve process improvement, and lead to better problem resolution.
4. Polite: Offer and expect professionalism while modeling the behavior you expect to see from your team. With the NLRB focusing on handbooks and Section 7 issues, making sure you are clear and consistent in your expectations and that these expectations are job-related is critical. Creating consistent expectations for professionalism matters.
5. Stubborn: Employers sometimes complain that employees “just keep talking” quoting things they read or saw on the Internet, or even AI, to the point where the employer no longer knows the answer. With consistent legal changes this can be tough – but your best advice on the law isn’t usually something you see on social media. If an employee is convinced they are correct, contact legal counsel and check. It might be yeah no.