LEADERSHIP INSIGHTS
By taking a page from The Container Store ’ s book — hiring fewer people and paying them more — your overall productivity will go up and management teams will become more efficient because they will have fewer people to oversee . You may also see cohesion increase as a result of having smaller teams .
# 2 - PROACTIVELY SHOW APPRECIATION
A little thank-you note can go a long way . As a manager , how often do you genuinely thank your top-performing employees for all their hard work ? Recognizing the efforts of your team is important , and a handwritten note is an excellent format for this .
The power of a specific and personal , handwritten thank-you note is unmatched when it comes to employee appreciation . In your notes , tell team members exactly what they did that you noticed and why it meant so much to you . This simple gesture communicates to your team that you see them and that you want to take time out of your day to personally recognize what they are doing . When you make your team feel valued , it encourages them to work harder knowing all their hard work is making a difference .
# 3 - SET CLEAR EXPECTATIONS
Your top performers can ’ t perform well if they don ’ t fully understand what ’ s expected of them . Be sure you take the time to set clear expectations for your team and explain what exactly good performance looks like . Include a line of sight with your expectations , detailing how and why your top performers ’ specific contributions are invaluable for the company ’ s strategy , growth , and success . When your employees know what is expected of them and how their role plays into the grand plan for the company , they can optimize their performance to meet the demands of their role .
# 4 - ELIMINATE DEMOTIVATING FACTORS
Picture this : you ’ re an “ A ” Team basketball coach and you have your star player out on the court . However , before the game , you gave them an old , worn-out pair of sneakers and told them they had to play in those . How demotivating is that ? If that was the case , do you think your star player would even stick around , let alone play a good game ? Probably not . The star is going to go play for a team that lets them shine .
The presence of demotivating factors in the company will turn “ A ” performers off faster than anything else . “ A ” performers want to perform well , but they don ’ t want to jump through a bunch of hoops to do it . When there are roadblocks in the organization that prevent top performers from doing their job , they will quickly lose their motivation and may even look for hassle-free work elsewhere .
Five demotivating factors I see impacting top performers all the time are company tolerance for a lower level of performance from other employees and even clients , inadequate tools and resources , unnecessary policies and procedures , slow decision making , and a lack of trust . Let your “ A ” performers shine by eliminating these demotivating factors and giving them the resources and the freedom to do what they do best .
# 5 - LEVERAGE TEAM STRENGTHS
Take the time to identify the strengths of every person on your team and leverage them to improve productivity . For example , if you ’ ve discovered that someone on your team is highly talented at designing intelligent Excel spreadsheets , have them do that all the time . They probably love doing it and can likely accomplish in an hour or two what other people on your team may take a day or more to do .
Every single person on your team has a native genius they are better at than anyone else in your company . Label it and format their role in a way that optimizes it . Doing this will improve productivity for the company while simultaneously increasing employee satisfaction .
As you go into 2022 , I challenge you to put these five key attributes to work for your management team using your own leadership style and resources . You will see your company flourish as a result .
Andy Buyting ' s thought leadership journey started when he published his first business book in 2007 and first magazines in 2009 . Since that time , he has leveraged custom magazines and online digital content strategies to establish himself as a leading authority in content marketing and brand positioning . Through his company , Tulip Media , Andy and his team make these content marketing strategies and tools accessible to their Client-Partners .
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