Uplift the Employee, Empower the Individual
Hustle and bustle season has arrived! Kids are back at school, fall sports are underway, holiday season is quickly approaching, and we have just begun our final quarter of the year. Needless to say, people will be under a lot of pressure for the next few months.
It’s not uncommon to get caught up in all this commotion. In order to reach professional objectives while juggling personal responsibilities, this is the time of year when individuals need the most support. For organizations and your leaders, there is no better time to leverage kindness practices to elevate the morale among your employees and stimulate productivity.
Elevate Your Leadership
Our job as leaders is to support our employees so they can reach the goals we’ve set for them. However, managers and leaders also need support from their organizations in order to optimally support their teams.
As we consider all the challenges that leaders and their teams are balancing, focusing on how kindness elevates the workplace has never been more important.
4 Ways to Leverage Kindness:
Teach Empathy with Intentionality:
Science shows that intentional kindness decreases burnout and stress. Elevating kindness in the workplace doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. This isn’t rocket science. If kindergarteners can elevate kindness in the classroom so can working professionals.
Model Kindness:
It’s likely your managers are juggling more than ever. Shower them with kindness and listen to what would help them. Your managers need to be shown kindness so they in turn can share it with their staff.
Demonstrate Communication Standards:
Make sure how and what you are communicating is received as intended, and don’t be afraid to go back and clarify or correct instances of miscommunication.
Facilitate morning meetings:
Meetings are a perfect opportunity to help set the tone of your culture. Give a shoutout at the beginning of a team meeting to acknowledge a recent achievement, celebrate what’s working, and openly acknowledge who is cultivating kindness. This will set an intentionally kind tone for your culture. Beginning your meetings positively can help set the tone of gratitude for all the work your employees do.
In order for employees to maintain productivity and resilience in upcoming months, leaders will need to go beyond supporting the employee and also support the individual. Lead with intentional compassion and empathy, model kindness, and provide recognition to your teams.
Resilience for All
We often ask resilience of our employees, especially today as our work environments change so frequently. While resilience is not easy, there are strategies managers can use to bolster teams’ resilience through the coming months.
When employees are supported by their managers in ways that make them feel relevant, important, and that they have the support of their corporate group, they are able to maintain efficiency and effectiveness in their roles.
All employees feel more inclined to commit to their job responsibilities when they are managed with kindness and supported as individuals. Empowering individuals leads to a culture of collaboration, autonomy, and resilience. By supporting managers in vital ways, companies are in turn supporting their organizations.
Looking to wrap up this year on a high note? Maybe you are already planning for 2024.
Out of all the leadership and management strategies, kindness never loses its effectiveness. Start a conversation with me to learn more about how kindness can transform, prepare, and unify your organization today.