“Why can’t I find employees who are self-motivated and get their satisfaction from just coming to work every day!”
This was the question posed to me by a frustrated real estate business owner as we were discussing the idea of how to lead your employees.
After I picked myself up off the floor from laughing, we talked about the fact that if our employees were as self-motivated as we think they SHOULD be, and if they did not rely on us for some level of energy, motivation, clarity, and happiness – then maybe they would not need us at all, and simply leave us to go work for themselves. That is NOT the outcome my friend wanted!
Leading our employees (or team members as we call them) is simple to understand, but very hard to do well.
As a leader, you need to bring three things to your team every day. These three things are as necessary and important as bringing your cell phone or your wallet or your purse with you. If you realized that you had left your cell phone in your car as you walked into your office, you would turn around and go and get it, knowing that without it you can’t perform effectively.
In the same way, if you don’t bring these three things into the office with you every day as a leader, you can’t lead your team effectively.
#1 – Energy. A primary goal as a leader is to motivate the people around you. You must motivate them to perform at their highest level. You need to inspire them and energize them. We all look to people who can ‘bring us up’ when we fall down. People will follow and remain loyal to any individual who cares enough about them to want to see them energized. Energy is more than high-fives, it is about knowing your team on a personal level. Once people are excited and energized about what they do, the next thing they need is clarity in order to channel that energy into results.
#2 – Clarity. Your employees want and need clarity. An energized team member without clarity will move fast but get little to nothing important accomplished. They need clarity of WHY their duties matter, HOW they contribute to the overall success of the team, and WHAT success looks like for their role. One way this can be accomplished is through documented systems outlining the job functions for each employee.
#3 – Accountability. By accountability, I do NOT mean micro-management. Healthy accountability is when team members buy into what they are working to accomplish, understand and agree to the clear expectations of what winning looks like, and regularly measure their performance against those clearly stated and measurable goals.
When you bring energy, clarity, and accountability to the office with you every day, the people around you will take notice. You will grow in your leadership and the people around you will become more successful – what a cool concept!
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