21. Ensure you encourage each member of your team on a regular basis.
Everyone needs encouragement from time to time, and often don’t receive it.
You can change that.
22. Ensure that each member of your team is regularly and continuously appraised of their performance
Everyone wants to know how they’re getting on with their work. Regular appraisal is a way of providing that feedback.
Think about doing this in an informal manner, such as giving a thoughtful critique about something that has been completed by a team member. Your appraisal has to be perceived as valid to have any effect.
23. Ensure your team members each appraise you on a regular and continuous basis
This should be seen within the principle of sharing responsibility with employees that their focus is on the future success of the organisation - and not your success.
Your team appraising you should be about your contribution to the future success of the organisation (and team), and about how you manage your team to achieve future success.
24. Ensure that you respond to any domestic crisis your team members may experience
The crisis may appear trivial, but trivial matters can often disrupt whole days and cause anxiety and under performance.
It is easy to put this right by responding positively to domestic situations.
25. Ensure that your team takes part in training and development opportunities
This demonstrates their value as the organisation is investing in their future.
It plays to everyone’s desire to acquire new skills, knowledge and experiences, and enhances the skills for current day performance.
The time taken for development is repaid in intensive engagement in current work because they feel psychologically well and positive about the workplace.
26. Ensure your team thinks like a Chief Executive
They should feel they belong to your team and organisation; have an identity within your team and the wider organisation.
And feel they ‘own’ the organisation – that it is theirs, and its future success depends on them.
27. Ensure your staff have access to healthy food and take regular breaks
Food that is not processed but which restores energy and helps concentration.
Ensure your team does not eat ‘on the job’ but takes a rest and eats elsewhere.
28. Help your colleagues to remain alert by encouraging physical activity
This could be walking, going up and down stairs rather than taking the lift, keeping their cardio-vascular system pumping away.
Encourage your team to stand up during the day.
Actively promote, support and participate in corporate Health & Wholeness benefits.
29. Stop your team from sending emails to people in the same building (or the same floor)
Ask them to go and talk to the person instead, or leave written notes if people are otherwise occupied.
30. Ensure your team members start the day by completing a task before they look at emails or get a coffee
Completing something first thing is important to psychological wellbeing as you feel great at completing something and then being rewarded with a cup of coffee, or something similar.
Ensure your team avoids reading emails first thing. It can depress mood.
Read emails after completing something successfully.
See below for other parts in this series.
Taken from our Leadership Masterclass October 2016.