Let me begin this article by saying how grateful I am for all the feedback I received last week in my article on communications. This week we are re-looking at Pillar 4 of Mid South’s culture: To Inspire. I realize that there are so many things in our workplace that simply are beyond our control. At times, we may feel like we cannot move the needle much in terms of making changes to make things better for our teams. I read an article this week entitled, “Creating a workplace your team doesn’t want to leave”. It talked about the fact that demands to keep good people have become almost too much to bear. Employees want more and more flexibility; many simply do not want to work as hard and many are just unsettled in life and work. Craig Groeschel says that it is safe for us to assume that most of our team members are unsettled right now.
So, what can we do to INSPIRE team members who want to stay on our team? There are four steps that we can take to help move our people in a positive direction:
Meet one-on-one with our team members as often as possible and LISTEN. Listen to what’s being said and what’s not being said. Lean in as a leader and focus on ways you can serve them.
When you can make a change that helps your team, make it. When you hear a need that you can meet act. Find a way to make small changes that equal big impacts.
Be prepared to let (or occasionally help) some people move on. Jim Collins says we must make certain we have the right people on the bus and the wrong people off the bus. Sometimes the greatest thing we can do for someone else is to help them move on and find something that fulfills them in life.
Just lead. Tell the truth, create a place people love to work, cast a compelling vision, celebrate people, and share wins with your team. Remember your team members are not a commodity to be leveraged. They are people to be loved. (Craig Groeschel)
I hope this message inspires each of you and puts you in place to inspire others around you.