Hello Everyone
I wanted to wish you all a very healthy and happy Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving for me is a time of reflection and a time to come back to the present. It is a time for me to be grateful for all of the wonderful things in my life- most importantly my wife, my family, and my family of friends.
There couldn't be a better week to talk about gratitude. So in the spirit of Thanksgiving, here are some ideas to show gratitude toward your people.
When a team member is either overwhelmed with their work or underwhelmed, it can lead to a low level of engagement. In other words, responsibility level has to be in line with competency and potential.
Here are a few other thoughts to "gauge" the level of engagement with your team members.
Your life today is an answer to the questions you have asked up until now. The good news is that you can change the questions anytime you wish. Ask better questions and you get better answers. Sometimes changing our lives can be as simple as changing the questions we habitually ask ourselves and others.
- Matthew Kelly, Off Balance
Entitlement:
Empowerment:
I often hear leaders say "I want my people to contribute more in our team meetings."
What most leaders don't realize is that limited conversation is often the result of their individual behaviors. For example, I recently attended a client's team meeting and noticed that he would ramble on for several minutes at a time and then ask "any questions?" and without hesitation begin talking again.
And, he didn't even know he was doing it.
Want to generate more conversation in your meetings?
Try these three ideas.
Another common and costly leader mistake that can result in a loss of credibility and trust.
MISTAKE: Drawing clear lines in the sand.
The challenge in many organizations is that most leaders don’t get to know their people well enough to create a motivating environment. They like to draw lines in the sand between business and personal.
Actually, our business and personal lives often intersect and have a huge impact on each other.We need to make business personal.
Here's a real life situation of a manager providing general praise to a team member.
Manager's email to team member:
"Good job Jordan. Keep up the good work!"
Team member's verbal response to the email:
"Shut up jack a$$. I'm not on your fifth grade soccer team. I'm a professional."
Have you ever wondered what is motivating to your people?
It's important to know, because as leaders, we need to tailor everything we do based on our team members' preferences and priorities.
I was in a team building workshop last week, and one of my participants asked, "...but how do we know what motivates our team members?"
I simply replied, "Just ask."
Here are some questions you might ask your team members and co-workers to better understand their needs and aspirations.
1. What two or three aspects of your work do you enjoy most?
