Karl Staib - The Work Happy Guy on Jul 28th 2008
How does anyone (Supervisor, CEO, Manager, Co-worker) get an unmotivated person to care about their work?
The best way to do this is to take them through a story that will catch and keep their attention and make them think of it again and again. It’s why we care about the companies that we do. They tell a story that we can hitch our emotions to and we allow ourselves to keep coming back to it.
McDonald’s does this within their commercials. They put people in situations where the food alleviates their pain. We think of McDonald’s as if it’s Advil, helping us out by getting us through a rushed morning.
The problem that most leaders have when trying to get employees to understand the importance of what they are trying to achieve is their lack of angles. They keep telling their employees that the customers’ opinions are important because they keep the company in business and therefore put food on our table.
You need to do better
To get an employee to care he must be able to see himself in his customers. For instance, anyone who was ever a waiter tips well because he understands what type of hardships are involved. My wife always puts the grocery cart back in that cart carrier because she knows it’s easier for the employee to gather them when they are centrally located instead of scattered throughout the parking lot. She does this because she used to gather carts in 100 degree heat when she was in high school. She likes to reduce the pain of the employee because she puts herself in that employee’s shoes.
A leader of an organization must convince her employees to care about the feelings behind the story. That means letting co-workers tell their own stories, allowing customers to tell their stories, and you telling the story from so many angles until you get 75% of the employees become vested in the concept.
The other 25% will never give themselves over. No leader can win them all.
It takes a strong leader to realize this. Just let them go and bring in new people that can be won over.
In a very distant way here are some Related Articles:
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Karl Staib - The Work Happy Guy on Jul 2nd 2008
This is a post for the Americans in my audience. If any of you are from Australia, England, Canada, India or another country just substitute 4th of July for your country’s Independence or another great Holiday.
The founders of this country, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, Ben Franklin and so many other great men took every chance to celebrate their hard work. Freeing ourselves from Great Britain’s reign was worth every droplet of tears, sweat and blood (I make it sound like I had a gun in the trenches. I can’t help it; I’m just proud to be an American). They had a goal and were determined to succeed. I have a goal and that’s to make work a great place to be for as many people as possible.
Our Forefathers worked their butts off to make America a better place to live. On a smaller scale so do you. Whether you are checking people out in the grocery store or creating jobs within your business, you are making America a more enjoyable place to live.
Work Happy Now salutes your efforts.
There aren’t many holidays that are recognized by the entire country, but the 4th of July 2008 means a three day weekend for most of us.
Although, not every working American will be off this 4th of July. If any of you go out to eat on the fourth then give an extra generous tip and also give an extra smile to your cashier at Blockbuster or wherever you patron because they are still trying to work happy while you have off. I think we need to be extra kind to these hard working people because they are making our lives easier on one of the greatest days of the year.
For those of you who have the day off I would suggest you celebrate in style.
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Forefathers
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Shot guns in the air
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Drank beer and were merry
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Ships were decorated with red, white and blue
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Ben Franklin held a dinner for his fellow Americans in France
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Felt like great men
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America’s July 4th, 2008
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Go see a fireworks display
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Drink beer and be merry
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Decorate your house in red, white and blue
white and blue.
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Hold a Barbecue for your friends and neighbors
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Feel like one of the luckiest persons in the world to be able to live in such a great country
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We aren’t a perfect country. We have a long way to go to improve our working conditions, but we’ve made great strides over the past 232 years. The best part is that we have the tools to make work life fun, happy and exciting.
Check out these past articles from Work Happy Now to learn a little more:
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Karl Staib - The Work Happy Guy on Jun 29th 2008
Every employee wants to work happy. I don’t know anyone that believes that they enjoy their job more when they are sad or angry. It’s up to managers and supervisors to create an atmosphere that supports happiness and productivity.
In my early stages of managing people I ran projects that clunked through to the finish line. It was perturbing and eye opening. I was so worried about myself that I forgot to be a leader.
This confession was inspired by Penelope Trunk’s post How to be a good manager: Be generous. I was afraid to help others while I was struggling. The problem with this attitude is its lack of foresight. When a good manager listens to his/her employees and empowers them to do great work, they will help the manager succeed.
“A good manager pops up all the time, just to check in. Not because you are micromanaging and you don’t trust anyone around you. But because you can’t know how to help people if you don’t know how they are doing. And take time to chat when things are going fine, because that’s when it’s clear that you’re just talking because you care as much about the person as the work they’re doing.”
- Penelope Trunk
Not every manager will be good at the personal stuff, but in today’s business environment these skills must be developed. The managers that get great work out of their staff are the ones that care about who they are. It will take practice and stubborn discipline to make this a habit, but once you do you can create a team that will walk through fire for you and you for them. That’s the type of relationships that a manager can build a career on.
Every manager must find his or her own way to learn to encourage employees and help them through difficult spots. It’s not easy to give away time and energy, but it will help you and your staff work happier and become more productive. If you are managing right now, what techniques are you using to become a better manager?
Does your supervisor or manager check in with you on a regular basis?
Related Articles on Becoming a Better Manager:
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