DEAR CHIEF: I’m an owner and manager at a small convenient store.
I supervise
eight people
and
not one of them
is
worth the money they get paid.
They’re lazy, come
to work late, and
they
don’t heed my threats to fire them.
How do I get their respect? I really can’t afford to fire them, though, because I
have a hard time keeping the work
force
I have, as most
quit after about four
weeks. Where can I find good people to
work
for me? My store is in shambles!
DISRESPECTED STORE OWNER
DEAR DISRESPECTED
STORE OWNER: Sounds like you have some serious
challenges on your hand. It
also appears
you don’t think very highly of
your workforce.
First, I recommend you evaluate your training and indoctrination
programs
and make
sure you’re
upholding your responsibilities
of
training and preparing your employees
to perform required
tasks. Be sure your employees are being properly taught and oriented
on their roles in your store.
Are you communicating
your values and expectations and more importantly, are you sure they understand them?
Quite often, when someone doesn’t
do a
task correctly
within established guidelines,
it’s because they lack one or
more
of the following:
1)
Knowledge
2)
Skills
3)
Attitude
Which ones apply to
your employees?
If
one or more of them apply, it’s time to
take action to improve your training and
orientation program. If your program
isn’t providing your employees with
knowledge
and
job skills, then how can you expect them to know what they’re
supposed to do or how
to
do it?
It is also important for you to
make sure your
employees
are physically
capable and have the necessary
tools to perform
required tasks.
If
someone can’t lift a 20-pound box over their
head or doesn’t
have the ability to type more
than
twenty
words a minute, then you’ve placed the wrong person in the wrong job.
Additionally,
make sure your
employees are people with good
character and that they have a good sense
of responsibility and a desire to excel. These traits are generally exhibited by
a good attitude.
Hire people with good attitudes and don’t hire people with bad attitudes.
Furthermore,
you should provide
your employees with
incentives
for good performance and behavior.
Praise
them appropriately (when deserved) and
reward them when they exceed your
expectations. Rewards like
a free
meal,
a day off, or a small
bonus can have great
dividends in return for you and
your store.
If
an analysis of your training
and orientation
program reveals
you’re already doing these things then it appears
you are the common denominator in
your employees’ situation.
Have you
looked in the mirror
and
evaluated yourself ? Are you lacking in leadership
and/or management
skills?
Perhaps it’s
time
to hold yourself accountable rather than blaming and cursing everyone else.
People prefer to work for leaders who care about them, respect
them, inspire them,
value them, and like them--not
leaders who
continually
threaten to
fire
them! It’s only natural, at some point, that employees
will get fed up with
mistreatment
and
disrespect and quit
their jobs.
And
when they quit when
you
can
least
afford it, who’s
left
filling in for them until replacements are hired? You!
Well, it’s time to take your head
out
of your hands and reverse this trend.
For starters, you’ll find your employees
will
respond
to you in
a more positive way if you simply get to know them a little bit. Learn about their families, their likes, dislikes, wants and
needs.
Establish
bonds by talking with
them
about things other than work and
soon you will have improved
rapport
with them.
Along with
bonding with your
people, you’ll need
to inspire them in a positive way by demonstrating excellent leadership
skills on a daily basis. After all, when you first hire people, they don’t really
care much
about your store other than the fact it gives them an avenue to
collect a paycheck. However, in time,
through effective leadership, they will begin caring if they are properly guided,
respected, and cared for.
Leadership expert John
Maxwell
has
been proclaiming for
years
that “Everything
rises and falls on
leadership.” If your store is in shambles
because
you
lack
leadership skills,
then it’s time for you to get leadership training. SkillPath is a training organization
that provides in-residence, on-site, and online training in leadership
and communication skills, among other topics for
an affordable
rate. Check
out
what they offer at www.skillpath.com. Or you can engage in a personal
reading program
to self-educate
yourself.
A great book on leadership
is
John Maxwell’s Developing
the Leader Within You.
Either way you can
certainly change and transform yourself
into an effective
leader if you sincerely desire to do so.
Wouldn’t
it be great to turn your store
into a highly profitable operation with
employees who will respect you and
work hard in achieving your objectives? In
little-to-no time you
can do just that!
Are you someone striving
to achieve your maximum potential, develop
your leadership and/or management skills, enhance your professional development
or self-improvement efforts, or improve your
professional relationships? If so, then get
advice from a proven leader and mentor. Jeff
Urbaniak is a retired
Air
Force Chief and
current Leadership Consultant
with over 30 years of leadership and management experience. For an opportunity to have your
issue or concern addressed in the Dear Chief
column,
go
to www.LeadershipChief.com
and submit your comments
or email
them to Jeff@LeadershipChief.com.
