Don’t confuse engagement with being busy. That’s a completely different thing and makes the topic of a different piece, warns Mihaela Berciu
Coming back from holiday and entering a more settled routine can be challenging, especially when in a leadership position. On top of re-engaging yourself, you must re-engage your team and motivate them to focus. That could be hard work, but it is part of your responsibility, it comes with the role.
In this article, I thought I’d bring a different perspective on team engagement and motivation. I start by presuming that it is common knowledge that to be able to motivate someone, they first need to be engaged, willing and focused. Otherwise, you’re wasting your time. I see motivating attempts failing miserably, simply because the person who needs motivating is so disengaged that all efforts end up backfiring.
Workplace engagement is the key performance driver and shows the extent to which one feels connected to and is passionate about their job and predicts the level of the commitment to the workplace. There are several ways to ensure workplace engagement, probably the most important one, and, I dare say, the one most overlooked, being alignment between personal and company values and purpose. Values are much more than some random words or sentences. Values are the drivers of our behaviour and critical to the way we relate and interact with others. Alignment with the workplace values is fundamental to our mental health wellbeing.
If I were to pick one challenge that I believe can make or break both our professional and personal success, it would definitely be the ability to stay engaged. Staying engaged through the ups and the downs, finding that alignment, takes a high level of awareness and commitment to self-knowledge.
I am currently working with a client who has serious communication issues with one of the most important departments in his business, primarily because the members of that team act like one-man bands, each to their own. This situation has been going for a while and my client reached exasperation point. Raises, bigger bonuses, flexible working hours, you name it, he tried it, but to no avail. He was missing the key to their motivation, engagement.
Assessing the situation, we observed that there were a few ‘pain’ points that were currently being displayed:
- Broken employee – manager relationship
- Lack of fairness and safety
- Absence of learning and development opportunities
- Toxic work environment
- Inoperative co-worker relationships
- Lack of communication and clarity
- Absence of recognition and appreciation
As a result, to his surprise, my client came to realise that he too was completely disengaged when it came to this department. He thought he was doing all the necessary things, but it felt forced, a chore. He felt constantly triggered and worked himself up every time he had to meet with them. Their charged and passive-aggressive interaction became the norm and it was leading to nowhere good.
Becoming aware about what was actually happening and how he was reacting rather than responding to their behaviour, was the first step to creating change. His focus shifted from motivating the team to first of all getting them and himself reengaged. It took planning and effort, it took introspection and open dialogue, but probably the hardest and most complex task was to rebuild trust. Trust in each other and trust in the commitment to make things work.
When trust is established within a team, it truly shows. Team members feel secure in sharing their opinions without the fear of judgment or retribution, freely share information and openly collaborate on projects and know that if the leader pushes them, he does so with their best interests in mind.
A leader is only as effective as the team is. But building trust takes time and conscious effort. People don’t trust words, they trust actions.
Below are few of the tried and tested actions to initiate rebuilding trust, transforming the interaction with and within the team and ensuring re-engagement.
Lead by example
If you want your team members to display certain behaviours, you need to display them first. You cannot ask someone to do something that you wouldn’t do yourself. For example, if you expect your team to work late, do so as well. Showing your team that you are one of them and their equal in being responsible for outcomes will go a long way in building trust.
Overcommunicate
Transparency builds trust. Secrets destroy it. True leaders are direct and honest. And they communicate all the time. Lack of information creates assumptions that are usually negative or disruptive to team’s motivation and productivity. Over-communicating is always a winner.
People can smell you hiding something a mile away. If there is some information you can’t share with the team just yet, tell them what you can and show them you’ve got their backs. This is especially critical in the times of reorganisation or layoffs. Always follow the rule: ‘tell the truth, point to hope.’
Admit your mistakes and acknowledge your limitations
Publicly own up to your mistakes when you make them. Admitting you were wrong isn’t a sign of weakness, but one of strength. Acknowledge the mistakes and outline the new course. No one knows everything. We all have our limitations. Build a team around you that complements you – and each other – in knowledge, skillsets, and capabilities. Don’t try to do everything. Let your team members drive certain projects and outcomes. That will make them feel valued and will make you look good. But always have their back when something doesn’t go according to plan.
Keep your promises and stick to your commitments
No one trusts those who don’t keep their word. Keep your promises and, if you make a commitment, stick to it. If due to certain circumstances you find it impossible to do so, be open and communicate.
Trust your team
Trust is a two-way street. If you don’t trust your team, they won’t trust you. Always remember: take the blame, but give away the credit. Acknowledge people for their contributions. The more credit your give away, the more motivated your team will be to move mountains for you. And when something goes wrong, acknowledge the fact that the mistake was made under your leadership and don’t throw your team under the bus.
Ask for feedback
No one is perfect. All of us learn as we go, even towards the end of our career. Ask your team for feedback: what you can be doing as a leader to help them be more productive, how you can improve their work environment, what process you can change for the whole team to be more effective, how you can better communicate with them, etc. And when the feedback is provided, accept it with grace and say ‘thank you.’ It’s not easy to hear constructive feedback, but it helps you improve as a manager and as a professional.
Don’t play favourites
A double standard is the fastest way to trust deterioration. Playing favourites destroys strong teams. Don’t do it. Just don’t.
Treat everyone fairly
Always treat everyone fairly. Have the same set of expectations for every team member and create team rules that you expect everyone to respect and follow, such as a ‘don’t gossip’ rule, for example. Some leaders create the team rules collectively with their teams which ensures that everyone agrees to uphold the same set of standards.
Setting clear expectations upfront, including clear roles and responsibilities, ensures that there are no surprises. This takes extra stress out of the daily routine. Each employee knows what they are expected to deliver and are not surprised during their performance review discussion.
After a while, their interaction began to improve and his behaviour and attitude started to be reflected in the way his team was behaving, not only towards him, but towards each other too. There’s still work to be done on all sides, but they are looking and acting more like a team now.
The learning? Pay attention to yourself. Your team reflects your status quo. If you are engaged, focused and committed, so are the people you work with. And once you engaged them, motivation comes easy, as not only they motivate themselves, but they tell you what they need to stay motivated.
My advice? Don’t confuse engagement with being busy. That’s a completely different thing and makes the topic of a different piece.
Mihaela Berciu is an creates fundamental and long-lasting change for C-Suite executives and business owners, using The Core Values MatrixTM blueprint, a unique method that she developed.
As a leadership breakthrough specialist, Mihaela works with board members, top-level executives and entrepreneurs who are seeking to experience their excellence. She focuses on exploring personal and professional values, understanding aspirations, removing barriers and visualising the path to success.
Mihaela’s client portfolio ranges from prestigious national to large international businesses in a wide range of industries including banking, consulting, pharma, FMCG, retail, entertainment and aviation services. In addition to her professional expertise and experience, Mihaela holds an executive coaching certification from Cambridge University; professional image consultant diploma from the London Image Institute Association of Image Consultants International; MBA from the American University in London, and studied psychology of mind and theory of knowledge at Oxford University.
