Manager

Prevent Your Employees from Making Costly Mistakes

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Mistakes.2As a boss, how do you take an active role in preventing your employees from making costly mistakes?

  • -Address and simplify written employee policies and company procedures.
  • -Develop mentoring programs to help everyone navigate unwritten rules.
  • -Review practices employees have inadvertently created.
  • -Have an open door and open mind to hear what employees are telling you.

As you implement the above actions, be aware:

  • -In the U.S., average reading accuracy and comprehension is 8th-grade level or below. (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development)
  • -Many workers lack experience on how to prevent mistakes from occurring.
  • -Many fail to understand that shortcutting has an impact on others.
  • -Many employees lack the confidence to stand up and speak up.
  • -Employees are afraid of the repercussions from unwritten rules. This often includes “don’t tell or else.”

The good news is, mistakes can be prevented with awareness, training, and focused action.

Pay Now or Pay Later

Take Responsibility. When your employees suspect a problem, don’t downplay their concerns. If you do, you are less likely to hear about future issues. Never assume theft, harassment, or safety violations can’t happen on your watch.

Hire and Promote for Job Fit. When people fit their jobs and have strong work ethics, they are interested in doing their jobs well. Studies show job fit reduces costly mistakes in communication, ability to work with others, and work habits. Job fit also improves effectiveness in handling challenges. Use a scientifically validated assessment tool to determine job fit. Don’t forget to use an honesty and integrity assessment to uncover information about the theft and/or other previous employment issues not found in public background checks.

Review Confidentiality Requirements. People love to gossip. But, you never know who is listening at the next table. When insider information is shared, it hurts sales opportunities, funding, and the ability to launch new products. Remind everyone of their confidentiality agreements and advise them to keep sensitive information private.

Talk It Out. Talk It Out! Preventing mistakes can be a challenge since many people don’t believe there is a problem until after a mistake has occurred. Ethical issues are more challenging since spinning the facts has become an acceptable excuse. Remember, the truth will come out! When mistakes occur, your job is to listen with the intention of uncovering the facts. Investigate immediately before addressing with the person or persons directly involved. Be resilient in ensuring the right things are being done the best way for everyone.

Review Systems. When was the last time you and your employees reviewed policies, procedures, systems, and protocols? (In my experience, these are done maybe once and never reviewed again.) What needs to be updated? Periodically, facilitate a review with your employees. Provide training for how to handle concerns and make changes for the benefit of everyone.

These practices are how you can take a proactive role in preventing mistakes from occurring, now and in the future.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

For the past 26 years, Jeannette Seibly has been a champion for people achieving results. She has helped 100s of bosses create more fun, 6-figure incomes, and success when working through confusing situations. To ensure you are preventing mistakes from occurring, contact Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

Successful bosses have coaches! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to learn how to solve your 3-P concerns (people, project, and performance). When you register, you will receive FREE “How to Select the Best Coach for You!”

Bosses Build Valuable Team Loyalty Each and Every Day

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Portrait of business people discussing a new strategy at a seminar
Portrait of business people discussing a new strategy at a seminar

One of the biggest challenges many bosses are facing today is a lack of loyalty.

  • -Employees leave for lunch and don’t return … the boss has been ghosted.
  • -Team goals don’t align with the company’s values … the team doesn’t “feel” the values meet the customer’s needs.
  • -Bosses talk the talk, but, don’t walk the walk … employees are circulating resumes to find trustworthy bosses.
  • -Employees fail to stand up and speak up … they don’t feel valued, heard, or appreciated.

Recently, I talked with a boss who only wanted his employees to show up and do their work.  “I know what needs to be done; they simply need to do what I tell them to do.”

While this type of mindset may have worked a decade ago, it won’t create employee loyalty today. In fact, it will do the exact opposite.

Today’s bosses need to focus on developing their teams. In turn, loyalty will be created while improving profits and performance.

Build Loyalty, Not Followers

Ask for Input. Many employees love sharing their ideas. As a boss, it’s important to listen for the gold. When you focus your attention on building the team’s performance, they will learn how to brainstorm, listen, build alignment, and develop solutions. As one client stated, “We have 100’s of ideas, but usually only one has the ROI to meet the needs of both our company and our customers.”

Don’t Create Change for the Sake of Change. Many bosses today create change to embellish their resume for the next promotion. (It’s why over 30% of executives fail in the first 18 months in a new job.) These self-focused bosses end up creating uncertainty and distrust. Remember, change is a process, not an event. Listen more than talk to determine teams’ and customers’ concerns. Allow employees to spearhead these new initiatives. Ensure they are aware of the impact they have on the company and its customers. A new VP already believed he knew what was best for his new employer. While he listened to his team’s ideas, he had no intention of incorporating any of them. He thought he knew what was best. When his ideas failed to make a positive difference, he was fired six months later.

Hold the Team Accountable. When you change the goal to fit the results the team has achieved, everyone loses credibility. It’s demoralizing. Instead, hold the team accountable for achieving the intended results. Your focus is to coach the team on how to handle team dynamics (e.g., conflicts, egos, and shiny object syndromes). When they become stuck, don’t swoop in to fix it. Instead, focus on providing them the resources, initiatives, and encouragement to excel. That builds loyalty and trust.

Appreciate Everyone. Sincerely appreciating your employees is easy to do. Yet, many bosses fail to acknowledge and brag about their teams. Take time each and every day to do so. It builds better loyalty, trust, and better results.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

For the past 26 years, Jeannette Seibly has been recognized as a catalyst and leadership expert. She has helped 100s of bosses create more fun, 6-figure incomes, and success when working through confusing situations. To build employee loyalty, contact Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

Successful bosses have coaches! Sign up for our weekly newsletter to learn how to solve your 3-P concerns (people, project, and performance). When you register, you will receive FREE “How to Select the Best Coach for You!”

 

Does Gratitude Make You a Better Boss?

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Thank you.BossAbsolutely! Expressing gratitude shows that you care about your employees, job, clients, and boss. It’s a smart way to motivate others and keep morale up, particularly when faced with challenges.

When bosses and leaders are grateful for their employees, these employees will be 50% more productive. (Wharton School of Business study)

Expressing your gratitude can be done both verbally and in writing. Remember, your words and actions make a big difference in keeping talent and building a positive workplace culture.

Ways to Express Gratitude

Brag! Bragging about your employees sets an example for them to brag about each other. Include the small wins as well as the bigger ones!

Be Sincere. When expressing gratitude, it must be sincere. That will develop trust and increase job satisfaction. Set aside your ego. Learn to acknowledge others for each and every effort, even if it’s part of their everyday job.

Be Specific. Vague feedback or compliments are meaningless. Talk straight about the specific behavior or action an employee or boss has taken when expressing gratitude. This provides clarity about behaviors, attitudes, and actions they should repeat.  For example, say to an employee, “Thank you for taking the extra time to work with the client. They expressed to me their appreciation for your patience.”

Set an Example. Be humble and acknowledge specific roles people played in helping you and your team achieve the goals. For example, “Thank you for your great ideas during our brainstorming session. Because of your willingness to think outside the box, we nailed the issue and successfully completed our last project on time and within budget.”

Be Positive. Being grateful is not a one-time expression. It’s being thankful, even in the face of challenges. For example, when an employee hands in an assignment late, express appreciation to start a conversation in a positive tone. Then, you can delve into the challenges that need to be addressed to have assignments done on-time in the future.

Say Please & Thank You! These two powerful phrases still express a lot of gratitude when said with sincerity. Use frequently for best results!

So here we go … Thank you for reading this post! You are appreciated. (It felt good, didn’t it?!)

Remember, developing gratitude is learned by practicing it over and over (on a daily basis) until it becomes a natural part of who you are as a boss!

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

Jeannette Seibly is an award-winning speaker, coach, and business owner. During the past 26 years, she has guided bosses to create more fun, money, and success when working through confusing situations. Stuck in a project or other situation?  Contact Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

Are you a millennial boss that wants to make a positive difference? Sign up for our weekly newsletter to learn about people, projects, and productivity solutions. When you register, you will receive FREE “How to Select the Best Coach for You!”

How to Win and Blast Past Procrastination

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procrastination“Procrastinating today will limit tomorrow’s opportunities.” Jeannette Seibly

Everyone has ideas, thoughts, and plans they would love to achieve. They dream and visualize the results and outcomes. Yet, they don’t take action. Instead, they use excuses and blame procrastination, creating a no-win game!

Why do we procrastinate? The reality is, it doesn’t matter because we all have 100’s of reasons why.

Procrastination is a common phenomenon that you create!

The good news is, you create procrastination, so you can win by blasting past it.

Start by asking yourself these two questions:

  • What would happen if I took action today?
  • How will this support me in one month, one quarter, or one year?

Take Action Today!

Write it down. Knowing what you really really really want is important. Writing it down makes it real!

Recently I worked with a woman who had retired to pursue her dream of becoming a best-selling author. We completed her past accomplishments and created her goal. But, during the process, she shared her true dream of travel. Her fear was she couldn’t afford it. She had stopped believing in her ability to have her dream come true. The first step, she wrote down her true goal and blasted past procrastination.

Be Clear. Once, you’re clear about your true dream, it’s time to write. At the top of a clean sheet of paper, write down the real goal. At the bottom of that page, write down where you are now. Your fears and excuses will come up, procrastination will take over. It may feel like looking up the side of a steep daunting mountainside. To blast past procrastination, successful climbers know to focus on one step at a time.

Breathe and Move Forward! Once you take your first step, you are on your way. Your fear of failure, success or anything else will naturally fall by the wayside as you take one step at a time. Remember, avoid engaging in the “someday, maybe” syndrome that will sabotage you. And, remember, keep breathing as you move forward today in pursuit of your goal.

Honor Your Commitment. Focused action steps speak louder than whatever you tell yourself and others. It’s a step by step process, not a sprint to the goal line. (Think, climbing a mountainside.) Create a focused action plan. Write the milestones on the sheet of paper with your goal to track your progress. Whenever, you feel procrastination beckoning (and, it will), review your progress. Create brags and post them on your mirror. These reminders will fuel more progress and keep you committed.

Talk It Out. When procrastination hits and you get distracted by the shiny object syndrome or run into avoidable problems, talk it out. Hire a coach to guide you through the process. Hire an accountant to create a realistic return on investment (real numbers, not fantasy ones will keep you in action). Find mentors that can provide contacts and insights about your idea or project (use a Non-Disclosure Agreement). Remember, talking it out will provide the critical thinking required to achieve your goal!

Celebrate. Celebrate each and every step and accomplishment. Update your “brags.” As you move forward, notice how other areas of your life expand. Celebrate them too!

Remember, procrastinating today will limit tomorrow’s opportunities.

©Jeannette Seibly, 2019

For the past 26 years, Jeannette Seibly has been recognized as a catalyst and leadership expert. She has helped 1,000s of people create more fun, money, and inspiring results. To learn more about kicking procrastinations butt, contact Jeannette for straight talk with dynamic results.

To receive our keys to your success, sign up to receive our weekly newsletter. When you register, you will receive FREE “How to Select the Best Coach for You!”