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What have you done recently to motivate your employees?
"I'm a big believer in giving folks complete responsibility for their
actions. Seems to help folks grow and be a part of the business and it
helps to weed out the garden. [...]"
On a typical day at work, what activity takes up most of
your time?
"I would
definitely
say my one-on-one meetings with my staff. I have 18 people who
report to me, and it is important that I touch base with them each month [...]"
Is this job different from what you
expected when you were
first hired?
"No, I knew that the new job would
come with overtime, stress and chaos (especially since it’s at a
start-up
company)."
Emotional lows inevitably follow emotional highs. Nagging stress
pulls you down like a lead weight. In addition, monthly physical cycles,
duties you’d like to avoid, unexpected failures, and reoccurring
problems lower your defenses and drain your emotional energy.
On the other hand, unexpected successes, individuals who exceed
expectations, positive outcomes to ugly tasks, and affirming feedback
lift you. They fill your emotional tank.
Admittedly, some leaders are more susceptible to emotional ups and
downs than others. However, every leader feels the ebb and sway of
emotional highs and lows. If you aren’t careful, you’ll ride an
emotional yo-yo.
Eight ways to deal with the emotional yo-yo
#1. Make investments in your emotional well-being. You may become
consumed with serving others, completing projects, and solving the next
problem. Do a quick inventory. Are you rejuvenating your emotional
well-being? If you aren’t careful, your emotional tank will run dry and
you’ll get stuck on empty. [READ
MORE...]
Here’s something I rarely observe managers do, but is immanently
useful and helpful: Keep a log of the employee’s behaviors and
performance.
Here are a few reasons why it is useful:
1) It will help you remember all the stuff that happens over the course of the year
A lot of stuff happens of the course of the year, and it is hard to
remember all of the details about what happened, what you said, what the
employee did, and what were the results. A week after an event, it’s
easy to forget that something ever happened. And when the situation is complex,
it’s even harder to remember. If you have a team larger than three
people, which describes most managers, this is especially useful.
2) It makes your feedback more artful
As described elsewhere in this blog, the feedback you provide should be specific and immediate.
If you do not keep a log, you will be less specific and less immediate,
making for less artful feedback. With a log, your details will be more
crisp, your recommendations for preferred behavior will be understood,
and your employee has the opportunity to improve.
To succeed as a new manager, Linda A. Hill suggests this
approach:
Replace myths with
realities
Myth
Reality
To manage
effectively…
Example
Managers wield
significant authority and freedom to make
things happen.
You
are enmeshed
in a web of relationships
with people who make relentless and conflicting
demands on you.
Build
relationships
with people outside
your group that
your team depends
on to do its work.
A
U.S. media-company manager charged with setting up a new venture in
Asia initiated regular meetings on regional
strategy between executives
from both businesses.
Automotive, New Jersey
Utility, South Africa