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Morale is King (and Queen) of the Workplace

Guest post by: Sylvia Lafair

Article Overview: Here are four important ways to keep employee morale at a high point. What you are looking for is that mystical win/win that sounds better on paper than it usually plays in real life. So, pay attention and whether you have one employee or many, these tips are worth their weight in gold.

Morale is King (and Queen) of the Workplace

Any business, from large corporation to entrepreneurial start up is all about productivity. And productivity is all about good morale at work. So, if you are a leader you will want to pay attention.

Here are four important ways to keep employee morale at a high point. What you are looking for is that mystical win/win that sounds better on paper than it usually plays in real life. So, pay attention and whether you have one employee or many, these tips are worth their weight in gold.

• 1. Communicate, communicate, communicate. Individuals do not leave companies, they leave managers. And they leave managers who do not communicate with them. All work relationships begin and end with how you talk with one another. Here is a key point: you will do better if you ask questions rather than merely make statements. Then, and here is the best part, wait and give the employee room to say more. Don't start and counter what they have just said with your own ideas. They want to be heard and once that happens they are more willing to listen to you.

• 2. Feed the feedback fast and furious. Learn the basic skills of giving feedback without destroying the person you are talking with. Feedback is merely an adjustment to the system, not a report card of what is not working. Feedback needs to be timely. Let me say that again, it needs to be timely. If you wait till the end of the first quarter to have a meeting about something that happened months ago you lose the validity and realness to discuss the situation. Also feedback is good as well as negative. If you see it as merely an adjustment, a slight turn of a wheel to make the system run smoother, you are on the right track.

• 3. Conflict must be confronted. In "Don't Bring It to Work" I discuss the behavior patterns that are the most costly in the workplace. One that is a part of our society is the "avoider". I rarely meet anyone who thrives on conflict. I meet mostly those who would rather lie on a bed of nails that face an unpleasant situation straight away. If expectations are not met or if two co-workers are sparing, you need to take a strong stand and use a simple word to begin the dialogue that magic word is on every road in the country. It says STOP. That word is called a "pattern interrupt" and will certainly get the attention you need to begin talking about tough things.

• 4. Cooperate and collaborate. We all want to be part of something greater than ourselves. There is a deep wisdom in teams that will shine through if you provide the visions that working together matters. There is some magic that is hard to explain. When the vision is there, most teams will start to come together and take their positions based on their skills and interests. There are limited upsets and a new found delight and higher morale shine through. It takes a leap of faith to let the team configure itself, that what they do at Gore inc. and they have been mighty successful for lots of years.

Okay, if you are really ready to take on the next phase of success join one of our Total leadership Connections programs that hundreds have found amazing. We are starting our tenth year and the speed and complexity of our world makes a program that teaches how systems work is needed now, more than ever before.

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Article Tags: Business, Conflict, Leadership, Patterns, Workplace Culture



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