"Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them to become what they are capable of being." -Goethe
Two hundred years ago, Johann Wolfgang Goethe, German poet and philosopher, knew how to inspire and interact with others: recognize the best in them and act upon those positive expectations. This takes conscious effort and constant vigilance to be self-aware of our actions. And we owe our fellow human beings nothing less. Successful supervisors live this sentiment daily in their connections with their fellow human beings. They believe in the basic goodness of people and consciously act upon their beliefs in every contact, every day. These staffers guide the people with whom they work toward self-esteem, self-confidence and self-determination.
Effective supervisors, those who develop staff who are trusted, productive and stable, assist them to become what they are capable of: self-managed, productive and trusted. This requires a combination of the best of 'soft' skills, or how we treat people, and 'hard' skills, or how we engage and support their capabilities.
Supervisors are stronger in one of these skills than in another, but the best supervisors become good at both and make a conscious effort toward a balance. The following ABC's make an immediate and measurable change in the workplace. The A's and B's, or act and believe, are the soft skills in practice, and the C, or coaching, employs the hard skills.
A's & B's: Actions and Beliefs
The seven back to basics beliefs which help us treat people the way Goethe intended:
Wasn't it your mother who said, actions speak louder than words? Our beliefs dictate our actions, but most of us are too busy to really take each of these and hold them up to the light, inspecting their every attribute and power. We do business as usual without reconsidering our commonly accepted behaviors toward employees.
Do our actions unequivocally manifest positive beliefs? Do our actions demonstrate that we believe that staff are trustworthy, or do we lock up our supplies? Do we act as if frontline staff are the most important worker in our organization because they do the work for which the company is paid, or do we interrupt a meeting with them to take a call or make them wait for us to arrive for an appointment? Do we hover over their work or insult them with insignificant gifts or raises? Do we recognize them for their daily efforts or thank them for being at their work station so we don't have to do their job on any given day? Do we educate them in the business side of the company and ask them for their opinion in big decisions?
These soft skills and actions make the difference between humane or harsh workplaces, between bosses to whom staff will be loyal or bosses who staff plan to leave. All actions articulate our beliefs.
C: Coach as Leader, Manager and Supervisor
The workplace coach functions as leader, manager, and supervisor to support and elicit exceptional performance. Each of these three roles has distinct behaviors, intent, and purpose. The coach as leader: The leader imparts philosophy to create and support care-full staff. Philosophy is the only signpost to give guidance in unanticipated situations. Every coach must lead by imparting philosophy. Vigorously ask & answer "why" questions such as, Why does the company exist? Why does the world and our community need us? Why do we choose to join this endeavor? Why do we do something this way instead of that way? Every one of us wants to aspire to a higher purpose. To be part of something greater than ourselves fulfills our desire to belong and provides us with an important place where we can make a difference in this world.
The coach as manager: The manager conveys knowledge to create and support staff who are mind-full and power-full. The coach in the role of manager answers "what" questions. What business are we in? What do we do to fulfill our purpose? What difference do we make to our customers? What are our goals? What are our expected customer outcomes and business objectives?
The coach as supervisor: The supervisor establishes structure to support staff who are success-full. The coach as supervisor answers "how "questions: How do we do our business? How do we meet our goals? How is this task or activity performed and how do I prove it? How will we know when we get it right?
A good coach supports direct-care staff who are care-full, mind-full, power-full and success-full through imparting knowledge, philosophy, and structure. Goethe gave us the answer to creating humane human service workplaces 200 years ago.
Act, believe and coach your way to being a supervisor who staff will admire and want to work with. Focus on these basic ABC's, to develop a solid team of skilled, self-managed and stable employees.
About The Author
Linda LaPointe, MRA, has trained thousands in these simple but powerful practices. More free articles and pages from her book can be seen at http://www.thenewsupervisor.com; lapointell@yahoo.com
As crazy as it seems, some people spend more time... Read More
Employers pay a high price for absenteeism, often more than... Read More
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
Have you ever asked yourself the question? "Is this a... Read More
As an HR professional, you have responsibilities in several broad... Read More
Life can sometimes be unexciting if not refreshed by the... Read More
The quickest way to cancel out all the thought, work,... Read More
We live in a relentlessly competitive world. The daily pressure... Read More
Because, like you I suspect, they have key target audiences... Read More
Want to get more from your people, but you don't... Read More
Managing Client Relationships: Even the best run organizations occasionally run... Read More
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
A good consultant provides specialist abilities and experience, innovative ideas,... Read More
Everyone wants to succeed yet everyone has a different perception... Read More
KEEP WRITTEN RECORDS: "Document !Document! Document!" Keep a record of... Read More
Nearly every office, be it commercial or home-based, may have... Read More
This article relates to the Manager/Supervisor competency, commonly evaluated in... Read More
Often, collaborating documents in a team or in a business... Read More
Speak of operations assessment, and we'll hear its significant value.... Read More
My client had faced the same challenge, which was frustrating... Read More
Do you manage by walking around? What do you see?... Read More
Do you have some goals you want to achieve or... Read More
Picking people for a job is like going... Read More
In today's competitive environment, companies realize that a good boss... Read More
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
Change is not simple. Why do we repeat behavior that... Read More
The Comfort Zone I... Read More
Imagine the following scenario - you pay a visit to... Read More
Marketing ISO 9001 2000.Lately we've been seeing a lot of... Read More
Meetings can be the life-blood of an organisation or the... Read More
IntroductionThere are a group of people in the community that... Read More
Q: I started my small business about a year ago... Read More
Want to bring out the best in people?Edward W. Smith,... Read More
Most of us have found ourselves working on a team... Read More
Leadership is only sustainable when leaders consistently come up with... Read More
Is building your own inventory management solution really your best... Read More
It's all very well having a flashy (and expensive) advertising... Read More
Each day millions of workers spend 8 hours or more... Read More
You've had many years of training in your craft as... Read More
I see a PR firm has done a survey on... Read More
For the past several weeks, we have focused on some... Read More
THE CHANGING BOSS-SECRETARY RELATIONSHIP: Imagine a partnership at work. One... Read More
Inventory management may seem complicated to some, but if one... Read More
Comparing Corporate and Personal goal attainment programs that have developed... Read More
The CultBecoming a part of the Cult, consists of being... Read More
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
All of us have knowledge, expertise, and experience that others... Read More
How do you select staff for international assignments? It's an... Read More
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
To release creativity in employees, managers must get involved in... Read More
We have all attended meetings that were boring, mindless and... Read More
It is sometimes valuable to bring the sales manager into... Read More
Do you have more projects than time? Help might be... Read More
Avoiding inert measures that anaesthetise your performance management.INTRODUCTIONYou sit before... Read More
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
In many ways there are no secrets to implementing effective... Read More
Human beings and the way they interact are extraordinarily Complex.... Read More
Every Manager has experienced the frustration of not understanding why... Read More
Interest in the field of human resources has exploded in... Read More
In management seminars I often compare debt to an infection.... Read More
In any event, getting the process right is a vital... Read More
Tis' the season for business and corporate gift-giving! If you... Read More
Ok, you say, I know I need a budget, but... Read More
PERMISSION TO REPUBLISH: This article may be republished in newsletters... Read More
When the typical new business operator starts a business, they... Read More
1. Sell more back end products to your existing customer... Read More
Business Management |