Podcast Center
Video Center
Webcasts
Resource Center
Events
December 29, 2014 at 07:00 PM
It may surprise you to hear that one of the main points that the Army stresses when training its officers is that to command effectively, it’s important that your subordinates like you. If that’s true when people have to follow your orders, imagine how much more important it is with business employees.
Most owner-advisors have great people skills—it’s the best way to attract clients—but they often forget to apply those skills to their employees. That’s unfortunate, as it’s the best way to motivate employees, too.
Here are four guidelines for business owners—and those who want to be business owners—to apply their people skills and build better relationships with their employees:
1. You need their buy in. Start with the “Aha!” when you realize that a group of people doing their best—and finding better ways to do things—is better than one person (no matter how brilliant you are). Add in the fact that more often than not, employees are closer to their jobs than the owners are and often have a better perspective on the problems they face. That means they’re also more likely to think of workable solutions. Finally, don’t overlook the fact that motivated employees are way more productive than disgruntled employees.
