It's not 'Business as Usual'
How often do we hear the phrase ‘business as usual?’ In these challenging times, business is far from usual and managers and business owners have to acknowledge this reality, otherwise they will not be seen as credible. You may not be able to give your people the answers they are seeking, but you can demonstrate that you care enough about them to listen to their concerns.
Here are 8 ways to coach your people through these uncertain times. The beauty of these strategies is that you will be positively engaging staff and boosting their productivity at the same time.
1. Deal with the emotions
Many leaders wrongly believe that addressing difficult issues and the emotions that go with them, distracts staff from their jobs and forces them to focus on the worst. The most effective leaders know that as humans we are emotional creatures. Unless emotions are dealt with, fears acknowledged, stressful issues discussed, confusion clarified, progress will never be made.
2. Be Visible
You may be busier than ever, but staff are looking to you for clues as to how to think and behave. If you are not visible they will assume some bad news is being withheld from them. Increase your visibility and availability. Set up a process for communicating information and adhere to it. The recipe is simple
- Regular team meetings
- Regular 1-2-1’s
- Open door policy (not just saying it, but making sure employees feel comfortable approaching you.)
3. Clarity of message
Clarity and certainty are the antidotes to anxiety and stress. Make sure people know what they should be focusing on. In today’s information rich world it is not more information people are seeking, but a way to make sense out of their information overload. As a manager your job is to provide clarity and certainty so people know what is important and what is merely nice to know.
To reinforce clarity always follow up a verbal communalisation with a written note. This ensures the message does not get distorted.
4. Consistency of Message
If you are consistent in communicating relevant news when you get it, you will enhance your team’s trust in you. Gossip will always fill a communication vacuum and gossip is never positive. If you withhold information, even for the noble reason of not wanting to cause concern, be certain that staff are thinking the worst anyway.
5. Integrity
It often happens in business that you will find yourself in a situation where you cannot share certain pieces of information that will impact on staff. To maintain integrity, be honest and say to them that you are not able to discuss the issue at this time. Never lie. No matter how bad the news, that fact that you lied to them will last longer in their memories and trust will be irrecoverable damaged.
6. Be Proactive
Don’t wait for staff to come to you; you have to go to them. With the economy in recession and businesses being forced to tackle difficult issues, the old adage of ‘no news being good news,’ couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, it is ‘no news means more bad news.’
Start new conversations with your staff by asking ‘what are your concerns?’ ‘what would you like to know?’ ‘what rumours can I put to rest?’ Most effective of all can be a genuine ‘how are you doing?’
7. Be Caring
You may know what it is you should be doing and even how to do it, but if you don’t care about the well-being of the people who work with or for you, then you will not want to leave your ivory tower. If your intention isn’t genuine, your body language or tone of voice will betray you. If you are not conveying genuine compassion, no matter what you say, your employees’ anxiety levels will continue to escalate. This is not about acting: people see through insincerity. This is about getting yourself into a people perspective, standing in their shoes.
8. Give Praise
This simple action is unfortunately often overlooked by too many managers. When we understand what we did right during unusual or difficult circumstances, it makes it more likely that we will exhibit these behaviours again under stress.
To apply the above eight steps, situational and personal awareness are crucial, as are empathy and emotional mastery. Remember, you will never be able to control a situation unless you are in control of yourself, mentally, behaviourally and emotionally.
Putting the above steps into practice will not alleviate the fears and anxieties that times like these create, but it will help your staff feel involved and respected.
Seeking to give yourself an injection of Self Confidence, check out my new CD '15 Ways to Boost your Self Confidence.'
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