Our local paper discussing racism in public school quoted a source saying: “If students understand that ‘This teacher has my best interests at heart, this teacher believes in me, and gives me the benefit of the doubt, and if I fail, the teacher will bring me up to speed, and if I’m out, the teacher will miss me,’ they will feel challenged.” Makes it sound pretty simple, doesn’t it. Almost as simple as good management. Do you believe in your employees? Do you help your employees succeed? Is your relationship with them a win-win deal? Do you give them the benefit of the doubt? Help them improve? But managers have an advantage over teachers. Managers get to choose their employees. If an employee proves to be unworthy of the trust and support, you can help him find a better fit. In the meantime, help your employees succeed.
There is much talk these days of engaging employees. Businesses hire consultants to increase employee engagement. HR departments develop programs to engage employees. What the heck are they talking about? I say don’t waste your money or your time. Engaging employees for the sake of engaging employees is ridiculous. Like team building, the approach often involves a lot of funky exercises, many of them dreaded by the employees, the vast majority of them resulting, at best, in temporary enthusiasm. And then everyone returns to their desks, to the daily grind, to their old habits, to existing constraints. And absolutely nothing changes. Why do you think you need to increase employee engagement? What problem are you trying to solve? What bar are you trying to raise?
Tim Thomas, the Bruins goalie, has had a stellar start this hockey season. His save percentage and win record are unbelievable but his style is unorthodox at best. Does his style matter? Perhaps your son’s study habits are appalling. He starts his homework so late that you lose sleep worrying. Nonetheless, he gets good grades and the papers you’ve read look pretty darn good. Does his late start matter? Or maybe you have a young employee with a bizarre wardrobe and a messy office who gets more done than others in his position. Does his messiness matter?
The main reason training fails is because it isn’t training that is needed. If you want improvement, it is easy to assume the first thing your employee needs is more training but in most cases, you would be wrong. And when you are wrong, the training you provide will likely be a complete waste. Even when you are right, there are myriad reasons why training has no apparent effect. Training develops skills. While skills are obviously important, skill alone does not allow an employee to succeed. It’s Tough to Succeed if You Don’t Know What You Are Supposed to Do When a client complained that a supervisor was showing no progress in making improvements in her department, I asked the employee to describe her job responsibilities. She produced a well-organized list of tasks needed to keep things moving day to day. There was nothing on her list to indicate that improving the way her department operated was something she needed to think about.
OK, she didn’t exactly roar. However, the quiet helper who always slipped timidly into my house, vacuum cleaner in hand, behind her boss is no longer timid, quiet, or “not quite ready for prime time.” After her boss was sidelined by a serious car accident, “the mouse” walked in with confidence, assured me she would continue to serve me and that the sister in tow had experience, gave me her phone number, actively sought opportunities to go above and beyond, and engaged in relationship-building conversation, though not too much!
When you feel self-confident, big obstacles can seem pretty small, you are persistent, and you believe you will succeed. When you lack self-confidence, even small obstacles can seem enormous, you feel like quitting, and you don’t believe you will succeed. Here are ten steps to build your self-confidence. Don’t draw generalized conclusions about setbacks and mistakes. Recognizing that you made a mistake, were in the wrong job, or didn’t prepare adequately will allow you to learn. Telling yourself that you are stupid will undermine your self-esteem and make learning harder.
After driving Irish roads for three weeks, American roads seem ridiculously wide. Most of our two lane roads would be four lanes in Ireland. On top of that, we have shoulders. Does this make our roads safer? No! It makes our roads BORING!” And the drivers become L-A-Z-Y! No need to look over your shoulder, to come to a full stop, or to use a turning signal. It’ll all work out anyway! Our roads encourage people to find something else to do. Something to occupy their minds, theirs hands, and their mouths. NO WONDER WE NEED SUCH WIDE ROADS!! In Ireland, they have two hands on the wheel and one foot ready to hit the brakes. There is no talking on cell phones. No eating. Even after three weeks and 3000 km on the road I only took quick sips of water if someone could hand me an open … read more →
According to a recent Harris poll, a third of American workers will look for new jobs at the first opportunity. Almost half of those will do so because they have lost trust in their employers. What have your reactions to the recession told your employees about your leadership and character? Do you share the gains and the pains? Do you give credit where credit is due? Do you demonstrate respect and appreciation for all of your employees who are making a positive contribution? Are your employees involved in decisions affecting their work? Do you value their input? Do they respect and trust you? Will they seek new jobs as soon as the economy strengthens leaving you unable to move ahead?
It is all the rage to down play talent, quote Malcolm Gladwell, and talk about 10,000 hours of practice. With this mentality, you would only hire people who have spent at least 10,000 hours doing whatever it is you need them to do. There are three things wrong with this thinking: Most positions do not require a level of expertise akin to that of a concert violinist. Most employees are not hired to perform one set of tasks over and over. The demands placed on employees change over time. In reality, most employees learn many new skills throughout their careers and adapt to a wide variety of demands. As the company changes and their roles change, employees must change and they must do so in far less than 10,000 hours! So, work hard and long to develop the skills and knowledge you most crave, encourage others to work hard and constantly practice to improve their performance, but hire talent!
We are most committed to a course of action when we have some “skin in the game.” We get into the game in a number of ways. One is by investing time and money. Public announcements of our goals and intentions are another significant way of cementing commitment. It is hard for us to walk away from a plan once we have told others. I can vouch for this personally. The night before my wedding, I could not sleep a wink. I was wondering whether I was even capable of seeing glaring evidence of folly while the ball was rolling so vigorously toward our wedding day. As guests made travel plans, the word spread more broadly, and gifts began to arrive, the snowball took control. Even as my thirtieth anniversary approaches, I remember vividly that lesson about the power our prior decisions, public statements, and invested time and money have over our thoughts and options.