If you are a manager of any business, one of your main responsibilities is to inspire others to be the very best version of themselves. If done properly, everyone on your team will become more efficient, productive and happier with their jobs. This results in more productive employees.
As a manager, you’re responsible for harnessing and improving all of your employees’ skills to ensure that they remain productive at work. Hiring the best employees will be useless if you don’t have any idea on how you can help employees to become more productive.
One of the biggest challenges – especially for those new to the management role – is to balance the leadership mindset (i.e. helping others on your team) with actually getting your own work done. Balancing these responsibilities can be tough especially if this is your first time to handle a managerial position.
From handling complaints and disagreements among team members, to finding time to effectively schedule your employees – time is short, and demand is high. The good news is, you can still inspire your team, get your own work done and be a better manager with the tips found here.
Authenticity is invaluable. People know if you are being fake. If you have to put on an act with your team or employees each day, you will not only wind up losing their trust, but it can also make your job less enjoyable.
It is not helpful to try and overcompensate with certain types of leadership styles you see in others – especially if the actionable style is not in your own, personal comfort zone. If you behave in a manner that’s consistent with your values and beliefs, it will provide you with more energy every day and send the message to your employees that they should be themselves, too.
Being yourself is one of the most effective ways for you to create more productive employees as you’ll get to inspire other people and allow yourself to work as easily as possible. There are many leadership styles available today, so find one that suits your style and stick to it. Avoid copying other person’s leadership style thinking that it will bring the same results. The key is to find a leadership style that you’re most comfortable in and embrace it as your own.
While some managers are hesitant to do this, admitting when you are wrong is essential to building a culture of honesty and transparency. By doing this, you are creating an environment where everyone feels capable of doing their very best while at work even if people often commit mistakes.
In some cases, if you are in a leadership role, you believe you have to always be right and constantly demonstrate control. However, it displays more courage to admit when you don’t know the answer or that you made a mistake. By doing this, you are establishing a layer of transparency with workers, and promoting a culture of learning.
If you’re handling more than ten employees, make use of an employee time clock app to determine the schedule of your employees and set up one-on-one sessions with them for their feedback. It’ll be challenging for you to manually track the schedule of your employees and determine when they are free, so it’s best if you use these kinds of apps.
It can be difficult to remember all the small things each of your team members tell you. However, following up on these “small” things regularly shows that you genuinely care about your team and employees.
By asking about something that has been happening in someone’s life or checking in on someone when they seem down can help to build a stronger connection between you and each of your team members.
When you develop this connection, you will be able to build a better understanding of what motivates your employees. When your workers know you care about their success, they're going to be motivated to work harder. It will also make giving constructive feedback easier when they understand you have their best interests in mind.
Getting to know your team members is also essential as this allows you to create friendships with them, helping them become more comfortable to work with you. Sure, being a manager is an important role but this doesn’t mean that you should put yourself on the pedestal because of the position.
If you give recognition for work that is subpar, it can set a bad precedent. While this line may be hard to draw, being attentive to the effort, output and growth of your employees will help you give recognition when it’s due.
You will be surprised of how much a simple “good job” means to some people. It can make a huge difference in productive and happy employees, versus someone who decides to leave the company.
Contrary to popular belief, showing appreciation to your employees doesn’t have to be taxing or expensive. A simple pat on the back can go a long way to make your employees feel valued and appreciated.
As you can see, it’s not difficult to keep your team or employees happy; however, it does take some time and effort to develop more productive employees. Using the tips here will help you turn your team into productive, effective and efficient workers.
