Enigin Training - Don’t Say This To Your Employees 1
WE teach Enigin Distributors during Enigin Training to build a team on which they can rely, one which can move forward together on a journey to success.
If you have attended Enigin Training and wish to have increased success as an Enigin Distributor, consider the following advice.
The leader of a team has to fulfill his role - he is the one who leads and the others look to him as to which way to go, not that they are not their own people, they are and to be. A good leader, employer, encourages individual though within the confines of his direction and lead, but the BOSS needs to set the example, and within that lies a danger.
Your employees will constantly watch you, say the wrong thing, even unintentionally, and you send the wrong message, at the very least. It is even possible that what you say could even destroy staff morale.
So, with thanks to Geoff Haden at bnet.com, I would like to present 8 things a good leader should never say to employees - here are the first 4, the other four follow in the next blog post:
- “I’m in charge, so this is what we’re going to do.” Dealing with different opinions or even open dissent is challenging for any leader and can make you feel defensive and insecure. When that happens you might be tempted to fall back on the golden rule: She who has the gold makes the rules. Don’t. Everyone knows you’re in charge; saying you are instantly destroys any feelings of collaboration, teamwork, and esprit de corps. When you can’t back up a decision with data or logic, possibly that decision isn’t the right decision. Don’t be afraid to back down and be wrong. Employees respect you even more when you admit you make a mistake.
- “I have a great opportunity for you.” No, you don’t; you just want the employee to agree to take on additional work or the project no one wants. If you say, “Mary, next week I’m assigning you to work on a new project with our best customer,” she immediately knows it’s a great opportunity. If you say, “Mary, I have a great opportunity for you; next week I’m assigning you to sort out the problems in our warehouse,” she knows she just got stuck with a less-than-plum assignment. Any opportunity that really is great requires no preface or setup. Don’t sell.
- “Man, this has been a long day. I’ll see you guys. It’s time for me to get out of here.” No employee wants to feel your pain. From your perspective, running a business can be stressful, draining, and overwhelming. From the employee’s perspective you have it made because you make all the rules. Don’t expect employee empathy; instead talk about how today was challenging and everyone pulled together, or how you really appreciate that employee’s help.
- “Hey, that’s a great idea - and if we do it this way…” Successful people often try too hard to add value. (Unsuccessful people do too, by the way.) You may be able to improve an employee’s idea and lay out a specific path for implementation, but in the process you kill their enthusiasm. Instead, say, “Hey, that’s a great idea,” then ask questions: How they came up with the idea, the data or reasoning they used, how they think the idea should be implemented, etc. In the process the employee may identify small tweaks on her own, and if not you can gently guide him in the right direction. The best ideas, from an employee’s point of view, are not your ideas. The best ideas are always their ideas, and rightfully so. Make sure employees’ ideas stay their ideas, and everyone benefits.
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