Whether you have the word entrepreneur on your business card, business leader or manager, it doesn’t really matter; one of your most important responsibilities is inspiring those around you to be the best versions of themselves they can possibly be. It’s about making them more productive, effective and efficient. It’s about boosting their morale and helping them become happy in their roles. It’s about you being the best leader you can. The big question, of course, is how? How can you become a better leader without it impacting your other responsibilities?
To help you answer his question, we’ve pulled together a list of ways you can get more out of your employees. Enjoy.
Just Be You
One of the most important characteristics a leader can embody is authenticity because if there is one thing millennials are born with, it’s a BS detector, and fakeness doesn’t fly right with them. But not only will any fakeness risk your employees’ trust, it will also make your life harder and less enjoyable.
Be More Transparent
Building a transparent culture is crucial to getting more out of your employees. It’s what will make people feel free. So make sure you are doing all you can to help this culture come to life.
Have an open door policy, boost your HR department, admit when you are wrong, offer feedback and make sure people know there is no such thing as a silly question. Anything.
Invest In Tech
Do some due diligence, run an audit of what tasks people do or bring in some IT Support that knows what tech is best, anything that will help your employees become more efficient, which is what tech does. It automates repetitive and lengthy processes, it speeds up people, it allows people to work on the move, lets you incorporate remote employees and improve collaboration, all of which will help you get more out of your employees. Fact.
Get To Know Them
The more you can get to know your employees – really get to know them – the better. It will make them feel valued as people and not just employees. That’s why you should take a genuine interest in their lives outside of the office. Ask Susan how her husband’s operation went, see if Dan’s little boy won his soccer match, and ask Benjy where he took his new mother-in-law to dinner when she was in town. Anything that makes people feel cared about because this will see them enjoy their job more and that’s the secret to productivity.
Freedom Is A Must
No one wants to feel micromanaged or that they have to complete a task in a certain way. It wears thin and wears thin quickly. That’s because you’re asking your employees to not be themselves and that is a highway to unhappiness, which will make them less productive. Instead, let them be free in their methods. Give them more autonomy and watch as you get rewarded for your trust and belief in them.