What do leaders and their teams need most post-pandemic?
Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic being in control has been such a challenge. Even pre-pandemic a lack of control was a major cause of stress, affecting all of us both mentally and physically. Feeling in control is crucial to both our well-being and performance. Shawn Achor covers this in his book “The Happiness Advantage - How a Positive Brain Fuels Success in Work and Life”. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to experience more positive emotions and success.
One of the studies Shawn Achor mentions in his book is a study of 7,400 employees found that those who felt they had little control over deadlines had a 50 percent higher risk of coronary heart disease.
Another startling example of how powerful the effects of lack of control can be comes from a study with elderly mentioned in his book. In this incredible study, researchers found that giving nursing home residents more control over simple tasks such as putting them in charge of their own plants not only improved their levels of happiness, but that their overall mortality rate dropped in half! Isn’t it amazing that giving people a tiny bit of control over their lives has such a dramatic impact?!
Just giving people more control over what they’re doing not only reduces their stress levels, but also shows you trust them. A leader that does this creates a much calmer and happier workplace. And this will positively impact the team’s performance, which in turn will translate into a positive impact on the business’ bottom line.
Here are a few practical tips on how to give more control to people in your organization:
1. Choose the right person for the project
Knowing your teammates’ strengths and preferences will help you do this. A great strength assessment tool is Gallup’s Top 5 Strengths-finder. It’s a small investment compared to the ROI. Also, to learn about your teammates preferences you need to get to know them. Have monthly 1:1s where you’re focused on the person and their development - not projects and deadlines. The 1:1 should be structured. They will have the tendency to talk about projects, but you should bring them to their personal development and professional goals.
2. Empower people to make decisions
If you’re asking someone to do the work, then make sure to empower them as much as possible. Let them feel not just the weight of responsibility but also your trust. Contrary to popular belief, people like responsibility when they’re in control and can make decisions. Of course let them know they can come to you at any time for any support.
3. Check in with the person and provide feedback
Check on the work you delegated by following up with the person responsible and remind them that you’re there to support them. And hold any blame when things go wrong. Give feedback (positive and anything you learnt through this experience) to improve for future projects. Sometimes you win and sometimes you learn. Remember you are investing for the long term with this person, beyond just this project. With experience they will get better and better.
4. Show appreciation
This is so easy to miss yet so easy to do! In all the busyness appreciation gets neglected the most. Tell the person what you loved about the way she/he handled the project. Be specific. Such an easy and motivating behaviour. Feel free to put in a daily reminder to express appreciation.
What I genuinely hope for everybody is to be in more control of their lives (professional and personal) so that we have healthier, happier and more productive people.
What are some of the other things you think leaders and their teams need at the workplace right now?