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If you manage or supervise others, both in the home as well as in the work environment, you may find the information in this blog useful.

Staff can often seem to let you down, behave in ways that appear to be inefficient, conflictual or disinterested and this is only an additional and unnecessary burden on top of all the other issues you face at work.

Although it is easy to point a finger and blame a particular staff member, it is also a good idea to look at where you can take responsibility for how your staff behave and help to bring about changes.

The 5 tips below have been used repeatedly by management in organisations when working with their staff; following implementation, the feedback I’ve received has always been positive and inspiring.

1. Be consistent - if your behaviour is erratic and unreliable then your staff will find it hard to take you seriously. When we demand or expect consistent, reliable, responsible behaviour from people who work for us, we need to set the example. Otherwise it creates feelings of resentment and reactive behaviour which is not conducive to a positive, efficient, working environment.

2. Follow through - if you say you’re going to do something, DO IT! The biggest repetitive area this crops up in is PDRs (Professional/Performance Development Reviews). So many times the staff member finds the appointment for their PDR is put off for weeks at a time. Again, feelings of resentment and not being valued are typically reported when this happens.

3. Show respect - if you behave in a way that is respectful to people around you, including those who work for you, you’ll find that they will behave similarly back to you. It is human nature to mimick behaviour and we tend to respond to others in a way that reflects how they are to us.

4. Listen to them - listening is a totally free and easy tool to show someone respect and interest. You may not agree with or act on what they say, that’s OK. What IS very important is the act of paying attention, listening without interruption, without being distracted, and responding appropriately. People feel valued when they are listened to.

5. Recognise and acknowledge their thoughts, opinions and visions - this is the natural follow-on from the tip to listen to them. By giving them the time and opportunity to voice their thoughts, opinions and vision they feel respected, acknowledged and worthy. And you never know, sometimes your staff member may come up with a fantastic concept that is of huge value to your team, department or the whole organisation.

In conclusion, we are emotional beings and we respond positively when treated well and we react negatively when we feel devalued.

Knowing this you can apply any or all of the 5 tips above and you will find that your staff respond to you better than ever before. Be a true leader and you will see that those who work for you have more to give than you ever imagined.

All the best,

Natalie

Hani Al-Qasem and
Natalie Dee
co-authors of
Self-Confidence Building in 7 Steps

If you want to have the self-confidence to lead a more fulfilling life, be sure to read the tell-all guide
Self-Confidence Building in 7 Steps to rocket your self-confidence and self-esteem to achieve all that you want.

Year after year we sit down with our special New Year notebooks, a bunch of coloured pens, and we start our list of resolutions, which seem to be surprisingly familiar. 

We’ve definitely seen this list before; was it last year, or maybe the year before?  Most likely it’s a variation on the same list we’ve been writing for years and years.

Ouch! 

This year, I’m going to make two very small and very simple recommendations, which will make a huge difference to the New Year’s Resolution business, which so far, seems to have got you nowhere!

1.  Keep it simple; most people find that their list of things they want to achieve is really very long, sometimes even many pages of how they want it be and what they want to do.  There’s so much there it’s quite overwhelming just to imagine it!!  Can you imagine how your brain feels when it sees this really long list?  My guess is your brain does a double-take and says “Oh no, not again!!” and shuts the ‘creative achievement’ door.  Do you blame it?!

This year, from the very start, it’s all going to be so much more fun!  This year you’ll guarantee success by setting yourself only three resolutions.  And, this is the most important part of this tip, two of the three have to be easy to achieve. 

There’s two very good reasons for this.  

Firstly, it’s no longer overwhelming, it looks and feels smaller, simpler and easier, so your brain (the subconscious or ‘creative achievement’ part) will be open and excited about doing this. 
Secondly, when you’ve achieved the two easy ones, you’ll feel so good about yourself, you’ll see yourself as an achiever, you’ll have the experience of success, and this will give you the fuel and motivation to achieve the third resolution.

And, the bonus is that next year, you’ll definitely not have those resolutions repeating themselves on your list!

2.  Set an intention.  Forget about lists, they’re dull and lifeless and no wonder your unconscious mind switches off when you make them year after year!  No, this year, you’ll do something more imaginative, more colourful and more enticing by far; whatever you want to achieve, whatever your resolutions are (remember, only three!) this year you will set them as intentions.

Here are some examples to make it even clearer:

• My intention is to make a serious career change;
• My intention is to meet someone wonderful;
• My intention is to become fitter and maintain a new and regular routine.

Alongside each of these, write a small paragraph describing exactly what you mean when you say ‘a serious career change’ or ‘meet someone wonderful’ or ‘become fitter’.  This part is where you can be colourful and creative with your language, so that you can see it, feel it and hear it, as if you were already living the resolution, as if it was already happening, already achieved.  

The reason this works is that we tend to focus on what we don’t want in life (When someone says to you “What would you like to eat?” do you find yourself saying “Well, I don’t want the chicken, and I don’t want the mash…”)  By setting intentions you are doing exactly the opposite, you’re focusing, committing and consciously thinking about what you are going to actually make happen in your life.

Remember, with two simple and easy tips, and only three do-able and achievable resolutions, you’re on your way to huge success in 2009!!

And when you’re ready to go further, I suggest you seek out a coach of your own, who’ll work with you and support you with whatever you want to make happen.  You’re also welcome to contact me anytime.

Wishing you an exciting, healthy and prosperous 2009!!

All the best,

Natalie

Hani Al-Qasem and
Natalie Dee
co-authors of
Self-Confidence Building in 7 Steps

If you want to have the self-confidence to lead a more fulfilling life, be sure to read the tell-all guide
Self-Confidence Building in 7 Steps to rocket your self-confidence and self-esteem to achieve all that you want.