How to Reboot Your Leadership Momentum in 4 Practices
The ongoing pandemic has really knocked me for a loop. The up and down of meetings happening and being canceled at the last minute. The constant change of messaging on employee safety. The increase cost of supplies feels like it will never stop. I feel like my body stays on high alert for sickness and emergencies. It’s been a tough few years to say the least.
Today I’m sharing some ways to reboot your leadership in this pandemic times. The word “reboot” is defined here as resetting and even restarting practices that may have fallen to the wayside during this pandemic or even new practices that are more important than ever right now. Before I share any further, I encourage you to take 5 minutes to reflect on the following question, “Past or present, what is the best team experience you’ve ever had?” We will come back to you answer later.
The world is changing. In fact, it is shifting in three specific ways: the workplace, the workforce, and the global economy. The workplace has experienced major shifts in how we deliver goods and services and when in-person work is acceptable. The workforce has been permanently altered by remote-only work options and the recognition of low wages. The global economy has developed in a way that our work in the United States is connected to a global supply chain.
Even more so, you may have noticed a critical transformation with your employees. These world changes have awoken hidden needs and desires for safe, meaningful, and sustainable work throughout one’s life. Have you heard any of these comments in your workplace lately?
· “I need to make more money. What are you going to do to keep me?”
· “I want to stay here, but there is no place for me to grow in my career.”
· “I don’t want to work in the office anymore.”
· “There is a clear lack of trust and stability in this organization.”
Employee turnover is a major problem right now. How are you facing this challenge?
Gallup Research released a study in March 2022 that highlighted why people are leaving jobs (also known as the Great Resignation). Not surprisingly, 62% of respondents noted that pay and benefits were the driving factors. Pay and benefits are a whole other discussion, which we will save for later. However, the next two answers are easy fixes for most businesses. Forty-two percent of respondents said they left a job recently due to bad bosses and toxic organizational cultures. Another twenty-one stated that they had concerns about their personal well-being and safety in the role.
What can you as a leader do right now to address employee turnover, especially if you have a tight budget? You can focus on building and deepening a healthy organizational culture. Culture is defined as how everyone shows up to work and accomplishes goals together. If you concentrate on these four things with collaborative intention, then you will make a huge difference in your culture and ultimately decrease your employee turnover.
1. Teambuilding
2. Working agreements
3. Decision-making
4. Communication routines
Teambuilding can be defined as activities and/or events designed to increase motivation and promote cooperation within a team, department, and/or organization. What do you think of when you hear the term “teambuilding”? No doubt some of you have horror stories about cheesy games. Maybe some of you have a funny TV show clip. No matter how much teambuilding has been lampooned, it is still really important. Connecting as individuals before we work together provides a basis of shared experience and starting place for trust.
One teambuilding activity that I use regularly is checking in and checking out of meetings. This involves crafting a question for everyone to answer at the beginning of the meeting. Using a check-in question allows every voice in the room to be heard, offers a shared connection at the beginning of the meeting, and deepens understanding between attendees. Here’s an example question for you to try: “What is your goal for our meeting today?” I use this question often because it helps me in building an agenda that meets everyone’s goals.
You can find a million check-in questions in online searches; I just encourage you to find ones that fit your team. For instance, “name one emotion you are feeling today” is a great check-in, yet it may not work well if your team hasn’t been building emotional intelligence vocabulary together. Asking other team members to rotate in providing a check-in question is a great way to involve people and share power in the facilitation. Try a check-in question for your team meetings for the next month. Then ask your team what’s been helpful about the practice and go from there. You might be surprised by their answers.
This is the first article in a four-part series on rebooting your leadership momentum. Come back next week to learn about working agreements. Wanna learn more about virtual teaming? Try this series from 2021.
Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash