Being a boss and a business owner can be difficult at times, as there will be many situations where you will simply have to be the “bad” guy. Furthermore, if you want your employees to respect and trust your professional decisions, your position will often be seen as unfriendly. This is the main reason every company ought to have an HR department, because employees ought to feel free to confide in someone, share any issues related to the workload, co-workers and the work environment in general. Even though you can’t be among their close friends, if you show your employees that you see them as valuable assets, create a safe working environment and encourage productive communication, it will result in everyone appreciating their job and your company.
Healthy communication
The power of communication can be used to prevent or solve the majority of problems involving two or more people, regardless of the specific context. The implications of this context being the work environment can be seen as crucial, as it will impact team effectiveness, productivity levels, client relations and much more. If you
emphasize the importance and lead by example, you can avoid various conflicts due to misunderstandings or employees feeling ignored. Improving communication within your company will make them understand each other better, which will result in improvement of their overall performance and satisfaction levels.
Help them grow and improve
Everyone comes to a certain position hoping they will be able to improve their knowledge and acquire new skills. For the first period they will certainly have many new aspects of their job to learn about - your company’s culture, the ongoing projects, other team members etc. But as the duration of this “new environment” comes with a deadline, you must find ways to help them grow professionally. Bear in mind that stagnation always leads to frustration, and understand that by helping your employees improve, your company is improving as well. Cover entrance fees for any professional training, lecture and course as a sign you want to invest in people. They will appreciate you more, and not everyone will want to attend, so you will get valuable insight into their motivation levels as well! Show genuine interest in their wellbeing
Of course you don’t need to organize weekly meetings to check up on your employees’ health and family issues, but when in a situation to talk with someone, do it openly and genuinely. Because you should care about many aspects of their personal lives, as they are usually reflected on their work performance. Help them minimize the tension of our modern and fast-paced lives and provide company services of physiotherapy such as
SportsTec Clinic offers, or a nearby gym membership. This is a great way to boost their morale, as well as show them you do care.
Team building activities
Even though most of these activities should be designed to be fun for your employees, the intention behind them is layered and quite complex. They will feel more comfortable with other team members if the line between professional and personal relations is occasionally blurred. Not only will it show your company culture as positive, but will also allow your different level employees to get to know each other better, and in a different light. Activities such as paintball, bowling, escape rooms and similarly will foster their creativity and help them learn from each other, while building trust among your employees. Avoid micromanagement
Being a leader doesn’t mean you have to micromanage your subordinates. Quite the contrary, it often ends up being counterproductive, as the main implication is you don’t trust their decisions and reasoning. Micromanagement has
downsides for managers as well, as while dealing with minor issues, they risk losing sight of the big picture. There is an amazing solution for having the supervision without any of these disadvantages, and we are talking about mentoring. By having a mentor, your employees won’t feel alone and endlessly struggle with certain unknown issues, but will create an opportunity for guidance when they feel they need it.
Conclusion
The most important thing for you as a leader is to lead by your own example. This way you can inspire people to strive to perfection and help them feel the most comfortable in an environment where they spend the most of their day. When your employees feel valued, they will be free to share their perspectives and ideas for improvement. Be open to any suggestions and ask for feedback to help them think out of the box. Another important thing is to make sure they know it is acceptable to fail sometimes, as long as they learn something from their mistake. Showing emotional intelligence is the first step to get your team to function like a well-oiled machine!
