How to Run a 1:1 With Your Manager That Actually Gets Things Done

Most people have a weekly or biweekly one-on-one with their manager, and most people wing it. Sophie Hirst, a former Senior Marketing Manager at Google with 13 years at the company, breaks down the exact meeting structure she used with her own manager and expected from her reports. The advice is practical, template-driven, and built around one core idea: protect your meeting time by keeping status updates out of it.

Two Types of 1:1s

Sophie distinguishes between two categories of one-on-ones. Regular 1:1s happen every one or two weeks and focus on the work itself: guidance, getting unstuck, decisions, feedback, prioritization, and expectation setting. Career-focused 1:1s happen a few times a year and go deeper into performance feedback, career roadmapping, personal development, and growth opportunities. She recommends keeping them separate because each benefits from a different headspace. This post covers the regular kind.

What a 1:1 Should and Should Not Be

A comparison chart in the video draws a clear line. A 1:1 should not be a laundry list of everything you are working on, a way for your manager to "check up" on you, or a meeting that gets cancelled regularly. It should be a safe space to talk about progress and problems, a way to empower your manager with the information they need to help you, and ideally a weekly occurrence. Status updates belong in a separate email so that your limited face time goes toward discussion that actually needs two people in the room.

The Meeting Structure

Sophie keeps a shared doc open throughout the week and adds items as they come up. By the time the meeting arrives, the agenda has written itself. The structure has four sections, ordered by importance so that if you run short on time, you can speed through the lower-priority items at the end.

Headlines. The two or three things you most want your manager to remember. Big wins, items at risk, major client updates.

Discuss and Decide. Topics you want to workshop, areas where you need clarity, and decisions that require your manager's input. For anything in this section, send pre-reads ahead of time so your manager can show up with prepared thoughts.

Quick Things and Key Dates. Personal updates, time off, upcoming project milestones.

Action Items. A running list at the top of the doc. Get in the habit of crossing items off each week so nothing falls through the cracks.

The guidance on depth is deliberate: a couple of bullet points per section. Do not overcook it.

Start With Upward Empathy

Sophie's closing point is simple but easy to skip. Open your 1:1 by asking your manager how they are doing. She frames this as more than small talk. Their answer gives you real context about how they will show up in the conversation, whether they are distracted, stressed, or fully present. That context shapes how you deliver your own updates.

Key Takeaways

• Separate regular work-focused 1:1s from career-focused ones so each gets the right headspace.
• Keep a running shared doc throughout the week so the agenda builds itself.
• Structure the meeting in priority order: headlines, discuss and decide, quick things, action items.
• Move status updates to a separate email. Protect meeting time for real discussion.
• Send pre-reads for anything that requires a decision so your manager comes prepared.
• Open by asking how your manager is doing. It is not politeness; it is intelligence gathering.