Mike Michalowicz's Blog, page 28

How to Scale Your Business – Break Some Industry Rules



One of the best ways to scale your business is to start breaking sh….I mean, the rules.

While there are rules in place for a reason, are you following some that aren’t serving your business?

The key to succeeding at marketing and sales is to continuously ask yourself, “What if I tried a different way?”

There are rules in every industry and business. And we often comply with them blindly. 

Don’t comply. Defy!

Look at me starting a revolution and breaking your businesses. There are key aspects that most companies base their brand on and build from there. The best insight I can give when approaching these however, is to get different. Really different. So different you’re breaking the rules in your industry.

Great offers need different marketing.

Now here’s the confusing part. Do what doesn’t scale – because no one else will do it. You have to look at how you can scale your offer differently than others in your industry to stand out and  truly serve your clients.

Before you start your grand plans, hit the refresh button and take a few minutes to answer the following:

Who are you?Who is your customer?What’s your purpose?What’s your product?How will you get there – what systems are in place?Is your team ready?

Now, try this this step by step exercise to start scaling your small business:

Ask yourself, “What if? What if you weren’t concerned about scalability? What if the inability to scale something was just an industry myth, and you can in fact grow your business? What would you offer, or how would you deliver your offer differently? What if you simply did what can’t be scaled in your industry and filled the gap with raw effort? That just might be your secret sauce. Ask yourself who benefits from the product or services you provide. Beyond your customers, there are vendors, suppliers, contractors, and others in the food chain. Document all the other people who participate in the creation or delivery of what you do. They are the beneficiaries. Now ask yourself, “How else can they be partners?”Create a list of all the things in your industry that cannot be scaled. Ask yourself what the industry doesn’t do because people say it can’t be done. Then pick one and actually do it.

What if you bucked conventional wisdom, or set aside industry norms, and tried something completely out of the box? When you reimagine the big stuff – what you sell and how you sell it – you just might discover your true calling. 

Break a few rules. You, your business, and your clients deserve it.

– Mike

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Wellness in the Workplace – My Interview with Authority Magazine

Employees are reconsidering their options. If you’re a small business owner and you want to stay ahead of The Great Resignation, I strongly encourage, no, demand, that you find ways to support your employees’ wellness.

From mental health, to social health, to physical health, it all counts. Recently I was interviewed by Karen Mangia, of Authority Magazine, to discuss her new series, Working Well. Check out How Companies Are Creating Cultures That Support & Sustain Mental, Emotional, Social, Physical & Financial Wellness – and apply some of these methods to your business today.

Be well.

-Mike

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The Best Way to Request a Review



When you’re considering a purchase, what’s one of the first things you check? Reviews!

Reviews have the power to make or break your small business. This is why it’s paramount that you have a stellar system in place to request reviews from your community. 

Before you go out requesting people’s opinions of your offering, I want you to consider how you will convey your request, because that will make all the difference when it comes to your customers’ experience and potential response. 

Recently I received a letter from a toner company who I made a purchase from. This was a great example of getting different with marketing and I appreciated it. It was pleasant enough and I certainly didn’t expect a letter. Overall, I give it a four out of five stars, but there were a couple of oversights that really got me thinking about how we as small businesses can turn these types of communication into something mutually beneficial. 

The beginning of the letter was a little wishy-washy in that they said they hoped everything went well, without offering an opportunity to reach out if something wasn’t working out. While they did do this later, by then I was a little disengaged. Then they went right into asking me for something, which was the review. Hey man. I just bought toner, now you’re expecting something from me? And, they asked me for a four or five star review. Kind of presumptuous. And then…here’s the no no: They offered me an Amazon gift card for the higher review. I could see the stars I may have offered fading. I’m also quite certain this isn’t an allowed practice. In the end, the letter was signed off by the marketing team. That doesn’t scream, “We care about your consumer experience!”.

Still, I did smile when I received the letter and I did leave an honest review. It was also a great exercise for me and I reviewed the importance of how I request reviews as well. Some suggestions when requesting reviews. 

Ask your customer to send you an email, or send them a follow up letter or email. A thank you note for a purchase is unexpected and if worded correctly, can make a big impact.Be sure that you are first addressing the customer and make sure you have lived up to their expectations. Ask about their consumer experience and if there is anything you can do to make it better. If you have any additional resources or guides relating to your business that may benefit your customer, include those links or tips for them in the letter so they are receiving a little something for free. Then, and only then, can you ask them for something, like a review. When requesting the review, be sure not to ask for a four or five star review. Ask for an honest opinion so you’re not seeking to manipulate them, giving them license over their own experience. Also, be transparent in your motives. Let people know that the best way for clients to discover you is to leave a review, and that selfishly this helps you as well as prospective clients. Of course, be sure to let them know how much you appreciate the time they may take to do so. Give an “out”. Saying there’s no pressure to post a quick review, that you really appreciate their patronage either way and are looking forward to serving them in the best possible way in the future. Sign off from the small business owner or the customer care team. The letter should open with concern for customer service and end on that note as well. 

Ultimately, we know we cannot please everyone. Not everyone is going to love your email request, letter or email sent to them. That’s ok. There will be a positive group of your customers who see the value in what you offer, and want other people to benefit from it too. 

Stay authentically you. That gets the best review. 

Wishing you big, big success.

-Mike 

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Reach Your Goals With Small Steps



When we create our goals, it’s with a great transformation in mind.

Before you start working toward them, I want you to remember that it’s the small, consistent steps that create big wins.

You have a lot of goals. So do I. 

Instead of ending up with paralysis by analysis (a trap we’ve all fallen into), I’ve found it’s easier to gain momentum when I take small steps toward my goals. 

When we’re standing in front of our dreams, we just want to get there. But most dreams aren’t realized overnight. We toil away at plans to make things happen fast, but in my experience, anything worth achieving takes time. 

Sometimes our goals can seem overwhelming and unattainable. But if you break them down into small steps it’s easier to get started. Those small steps are more likely to establish a tangible path because they’re doable, and more likely to stick. They add up together to equal the bigger leap that may be too unrealistic to take. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

“But, but!” Don’t resist the smaller steps. You just want results. Now. I get it. But something I do is limit the scope of my goals. Instead of setting a lofty goal, I set smaller acheivements to build to “the big one”. Say I want to write a chapter, for instance. If I attempt to write a chapter all at once it’s not going to happen, I’ll feel disappointed, and likely procrastinate. Conversely, if I create a smaller daily or weekly goal that I can commit to, say, writing one hundred words? That’s feasible. I may even write more than that. 

Make a plan and track it. When you create your goals, map out those mini goals that will give you a clear, succecessful path. Remember – small steps makes consistency equals consistency. Consistency equals progress. Progress equals momentum. You know the rest.

Have short deadlines. Short enough so you can work toward your goal without procrastination. When we have a goal set for too far in the future we may not prioritieze it. But if you create a daily or weekly routine that accomplishes a mini goal, you’ll maintain momentum.

You can attain any goal you want. Pick a very small step you can accomplish consistently, and you will see transformative results. 

What’s the baby step you can take toward one of your goals today? (Yes, pick one).

My challenge for you today is to pick a goal, maybe one that feels overwhelming, and take five minutes to outline how you will achieve it in smaller, more frequent steps.

I cannot wait to hear what you’ve accomplished. 

-Mike

 

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Get Out of Your Own Way – Lead Less



I cannot drive this home enough:

The biggest linchpin in your business is you.

Ouch!

It’s true.

Many times, your great leadership means great removal of, well, you. 

It took me a few years, but now I realize that as the leader of my company I had become the linchpin in my business. 

I want you to ask yourself if you’ve become the linchpin. It’s easy to fall into the trap of wanting to monitor everything, but that’s incredibly counterproductive. When you are the one controlling the decisions, production stops. Your employees have to wait to hear back from you. Not only do you have to halt the flow of what you’re doing, but it’s also likely you won’t make the most informed decision that serves your company, team, or customers best. 

Empowering your employees with autonomy in their roles and providing them the license to make larger decisions is imperative in your business. As leaders, we can be somewhat removed from the day to day interaction with customers and may not have the best gauge of the overall temperature. We may not make the best decisions for each thing that comes up considering that the employees are the ones who are on the front line. They are who implement the systems you’ve created to make your company work efficiently. You hired them for a reason.

If you hire the right people, you’ll trust them to understand the community you serve, how to serve them well, communicate effectively with them, and time that communication far better than you may.

You can’t be reluctant to delegate. If you are, you have to look at if it’s a “you” thing, or a “them” thing. 

If you’re concerned about entrusting big projects to your employees, I have some suggestions:

Mission alignment: First, make your mission clear. This can’t be a generalized statement either. For instance, our mission here is to “Eradicate Entrepreneurial poverty”. It’s a mouthful, but there’s also no question about what we want to do. If we said, “Help small business owners”, is our mission statement, it would leave room for interpretation. Help with what? Be sure to make your mission clear. Another important aspect here is to understand what your employee’s personal missions are. Ask what your teams’ professional and personal goals are. Then try to align the work and compensation so that your employees are even more jazzed about supporting the company mission. It’s a win win.

Role alignment: If you read the blog you’ve seen this before, but it’s for good reason. Everyone is good at something. If you find an employee who is dedicated to the mission, but has a skillset that can add value to your company, create a role for them or tweak their role to better suit them.Yes, work will offer challenges, but you when your team feels like they fit, their sense of belonging, creativity, and work ethic combines into one big productive ball of fire.

Reciprocity: Great loyalty is born out of reciprocity. When you, as a leader, instill your trust in your team, more than likely they will work to continue to earn it. And, they will offer their dedication and trust in you in return. 

Lead like a human: I cannot stress it enough. You are a human leading humans. It’s not about the headcount and the budget. Allow for flaws. You have them. Allow for mistakes. You make them. Allow for learning within your business. You still are. It’s so important that while running a business, you acknowledge that the quest for perfection can be a stick in the wheel (and horrible for morale). When you give yourself and your employees grace, beautiful things begin to happen. I see it in my office. Folks are less anxious about messing up. And ironically, there is less messing up these days, and more laughter and employee satisfaction. 

Remember: empower your employees with some license to make decisions for your business. They will make you proud.You’ve got this.

-Mike

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The Key to Successful Marketing – Your Call to Action



The key to successful marketing comes down to this: your call to action. This is also where so many companies fail.

When you overwhelm people with things to do, they choose to do nothing.

And your sales suffer. 

This is why it’s imperative to have a strong, clear, concise call to action. 

When your marketing is cluttered with information about what your offering is, and all the ways to get it, it’s human nature to just tune it out.

I saw a prime example of this the other day while I was walking through town and saw a marketing sign in the window of a local business. I have to say, I was overwhelmed with the options they were giving me. Unfortunately, I wasn’t curious about their offering because I didn’t want to take the time to read through and extract what it was. (But I did want to help them with their messaging. Get Different book drop off!)

If you confuse, you lose. 

Whether you want to get sales or sign ups, your directive needs to be doable at the moment. You must be extremely obvious and extremely clear. If you get cute or overwhelm your prospects with choice, you simply confuse them. As my friend Don Miller says, “If you confuse, you lose.”

Marketing is every step you take to get the customer to the buying decision. The sale is the financial action in their decision to buy. So your concise, singular, directive should easily get them to the first step. After that first step, you can build the next steps from there.

Creating the best call to action sequence starts with the first step.

Make sure your first ask, that first call to action, is a reasonable, safe step for them to do to increase your conversion rate opportunity.

Step 1 – Perhaps step one is to get an email address to begin communicating your offering. You’ll want to offer them something useful for them that can solve a small problem now. Say a demo or FAQ.

Step 2 – Your second email can include an offering for a demo, to learn more, or perhaps a coupon for a product. Watch your deals here, don’t dilute the value of your offering in an effort to get new business. Remember, you want those big Pumpkin Plan clients.

Step 3 – Now you can begin promoting your larger offerings

Now you’re giving direction to your prospects or clients and not overwhelming them. By leading them through a tangible, actionable sequence in bite size steps that people will actually feel inclined to take, you’ll be able to convert prospects into clients much easier. 

One last note – when selling, remember that you’re serving. It’s not just about the sale. It’s about getting your offering into the hands of the people who need it, who’s lives and businesses it will improve. Always sell with as much integrity as you can.

You’ve got this!

-Mike

 

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Why Employee Ownership is So Important



Our businesses are continuously changing. It’s the way of the world now. And I want to share something really wonderful that has enhanced our company’s performance. It’s the concept of psychological ownership.

Psychological ownership is something I have been researching intensely for my next book. And I’m all in.

By definition, psychological ownership theory (Pierce et al., 2003) suggests that individuals experience a cognitive-affective state, i.e., psychological ownership, in their interactions with objects when the individuals feel as though the target object is “theirs”.

“But wait, this is my company!”

I think when entrepreneurs and small business owners start our companies, we think about how we’ll implement our ideas, create our impact, and crystalize our mission. Great! But it’s incredibly important to remember that a great leader of a company leads a great team to make it efficiently fall into place and create that envisioned impact. So hire a phenomenal team, give them stake in the game, look out!

When I started, yes, it was just me and at one point I definitely thought I could do it all. I had to. It was, after all, my company. Maybe I’d hire an assistant. I did. When she began to serve in more widespread capacities, she was an obvious fit to become the company president. Then over the years she brought on wonderful employees, who then introduced others. And, we still offer the team new responsibilities when they ask or if we see a fit. We hire new members as needed. 

What I’m getting at, is that there is a healthy amount of ego that needs to be removed to make your company everything it can be. No pigeonholing into hierarchies here. If there is a big brain to tap into for innovations, we want in.

Having a team not only aligned in your mission, but adding to it with as much loyalty as you have, is a game changer. Your missions quickly become realized in a more efficient way. 

Yes, you are still the leader. Moreover, you are the steward. 

And that is more important than ruling your roost. A steward leads through offering ownership to the rest of the team. Why? Because when you do, your entire team will be just as dedicated to your business as you are. It’s invaluable.
What gives your team members a sense of ownership?

So this all sounds good, right? Let’s get to some actionable steps for you to implement psychological ownership in your business.

How to establish employee ownership via physiological ownership – and give your employees stake in the game.

Reciprocity – There is a great amount of reciprocity expected here, no doubt. You must exchange your resources in order to succeed, and offer a high amount of trust and communication.Autonomy – No micromanaging! At the same time, this doesn’t negate the importance of communicating and utilizing a project management platform for updates. We like to have in person meetings too to make sure we’re getting that human time in as well. Having a status update is enough to keep your finger on the pulse of the project. But if you get too involved, the idea of ownership will lessen, and your team members will actively or subconsciously begin expecting nudges from you to finish the project.Creative license and voice – Similar to autonomy, giving someone agency over their creative ideas they are bringing to the table will empower them to take more responsibility over the ideas, and the outcomes. As a byproduct of feeling ownership in the company and in their jobs, employees feel more accomplished. Something to consider considering The Great Resignation is still in action.

What can you do to have your colleagues take a larger part of ownership in your company?

If you want to give your team a sense of ownership, ensure that they are participating in the creation of something.If you simply share your idea to have your team roll with, they may embrace it, but likely won’t feel ownership. Conversely, if you approach your team requesting their ideas and input, the increased engagement alone will get everyone excited.

The benefits of psychological ownership: I know this all sounds very, well, “nice”. And it is. The facts are however, that there are studies and data that back up how employee ownership positively affects your business. Psychological ownership:

Enhances company performanceCreates better company stability and employee retainmentHas a closer relation between what’s being produced and revenue outcomeOpens up the doors for innovation that may not yet be exploredIncreased motivationCompany stewardshipLoyaltyFosters productivity – efficientlyCreates the desire to belong or make idea work for the betterment of the company

When your team is not only aligned in your mission, but provides additional value to it with as much loyalty as you have, it’s a game changer, an “ah ha!” moment. Your missions become realized in a more efficient way. So you can focus on the next awesome offering for your clients and the world. 

-Mike

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Better Business Leadership – Improving Connection and Employee Confidence



 

Regardless of the size of your business, your success depends on your leadership.

How we’re defining leadership has changed here in my office, and after seeing the significant increase in productivity, profit, and overall employee satisfaction, I hope other businesses follow suit. 

I believe we need to move from the old leadership model. We were formerly in this sort of command and control type of leadership model. There was a boss and subordinates. The boss made the plans, designated tasks, and the employees just kind of fulfilled their duties. Ho hum.

Do you know what your employees really want? With The Great Resignation taking place, we are hearing more and more that your employees want a sense of purpose, belonging, and to be of value to your team. 

This translates into leaders realizing, or remembering, that they are in all reality, a servant to their business and a shepherd for their team members. A modern and effective leader knows it’s time to move away from the antiquated model of leadership. If you haven’t already, it’s time to quit command and control, to become a steward of collaboration, connection and confidence. 

Connection

Leadership/employee connection – It goes beyond lunch. The job of a leader in today’s environment is to help form connections, both interpersonally and professionally. Leaders need to make sure their team is connected to their own personal mission within the company, at the same time, driving the overall mission of the business. Team connection – We call our co-workers our “wamily”, because we have become a work family environment. To some, it sounds a bit silly, but we really have become each other’s biggest supporters. When you have this kind of relationship and connection within your business, there is heightened dedication to each other and enhanced ownership over relationships.How to create connections – There’s no one size fits all model but I can share what we do in our business. Our team members have a quick, 10-15 minute mini huddle each day to list their “big ones”, that one task they must complete, report in if they completed their big one from the day prior, and to give a personal update. Here’s the thing – having time allowance to share what you’re working on does two things. 1. It keeps clear communication with your team regarding what you’re working on. 2. Sharing what we’re working on offers an opportunity for others to support someone in that task and collaborate together if something is tricky. We also keep it fun. Anyone who completed their task gets entered into a drawing to spin our prize wheel. On it, are an assortment of prizes from a compliment circle, to picking music for the day, to  lottery ticket, to a large monetary gift to a favorite charity. 

(I’m told there’s no need to pay my team off, but man are folks in it to win it when it comes time to spin that wheel!)

Confidence

A lack of confidence gets in the way of performance and happiness. Kind of goes without saying. Even people grounded in their self esteem can lose confidence from time to time – we’re only human! So how can a leader improve employee confidence?

Communication – In those meetings? Stay transparent in your communication and keep your team up to date on future plans you have for the business. The last thing you want is people speculating about their job security, which makes productivity take a major nose dive.Role alignment – Place your employee in a position to flourish. People perform best when their skills are aligned with their job descriptions. Don’t try to fit a square peg in a round hole. Leaders need to ensure they are matching employees with their innate skill sets. Even if you’re hiring for one position, if you see someone is highly qualified in another area, and is a great cultural fit, don’t miss out on that opportunity to garner great results from that person in a different role. Be a company where employees have the opportunity to explore what’s important to them, expand and grow. Let go of premeditated expectations and accept the happy surprises along the way that can strengthen your business. Autonomy – Not everyone can flourish simply by completing directive tasks. Where’s the autonomy in that? Once you have the right person in the right role, let them go! It’s good to outline the expectations of a deliverable and to have updates, but don’t micromanage (But! But! I know, it’s hard to let go!) You’re only hiring employees you trust, right? So give them the resources and the reins to create systems and complete tasks. The end result will likely be better than you predicted. Empowerment – Each of my employees will tell you that they feel empowered by working here. We offer training and resources so that everyone feels capable of their roles, and then some. Our leadership is sure to listen to perspectives around the business and often take employee suggestions and put them into action. When team members see their personal and professional growth, their dedication grows – and ta da! So does profit!

In our own office, we even invite our employees to start their own business, write books, or what have you if they so desire. The result of our leadership supporting employees’ goals means they feel they have that agency to build their skills. And those skills almost always end up benefiting the company too.

Remember – Move from command and control to connection and confidence. Encourage innovation and collaboration. And most of all, positive leadership relationships equal positive results.

You’ve got this!

-Mike

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Establish an Authentic Workplace and Give Your Business – and Morale, a Boost

Recently, I was asked in an interview what my favorite business quote is. Immediately, this popped into my head:

“Be yourself, everyone else is already taken.” – Oscar Wilde. 

Hands down, this is my favorite quote. It hangs in my office so there’s a constant visual, and it keeps my mindset grounded. 

“Ok, Mike, but how does this apply to my business?” 

The concept of being true to yourself isn’t groundbreaking. But, it is universally applicable, and can be groundbreaking in your business if you implement being authentic in your company. To me, the old way of thinking is that in business, you must play a role and leave who you innately are at the door. The result is that employees spend an incredible amount of energy playing a part in their career. From calculated conversations and body language, to dressing the part, to acting outside of our own character, how do we know when we’re being professional, or if we’re not being ourselves at all?

As I reflect on the elements of what created The Great Resignation, I feel the personas some employees put on creates work anxiety, exhaustion, is ineffective, and detrimental to employee health and well being. 

It comes as no surprise that studies have shown that when we hide our true identities, our professional performance is impaired. Work anxiety is increased and careers can become stagnated when there is fear of being judged. Let’s face it, we do not give our best when we’re anxious.

It’s when we try to serve expectations of others opposed to expectations of ourselves that we are compromised. The crummy thing about fitting in is that you might (maybe) be liked by everybody – except yourself. And you cannot truly be of service to others if you don’t truly like yourself. 

My point? When we lean into who we naturally are, that’s the good stuff. That’s when we excel. A good leader knows that cultivating an authentic work environment is crucial for a healthy business. 

This is all great, right? Now how do you implement this in your business? Guess what? It’s up to the leadership (is that you?) to cultivate an authentic work environment. 

The benefits: 

It’s a matter of trust. Being authentic at work shows others that you can be trusted. If you’re the leader of your team, walk the walk to encourage others to follow suit of being their authentic selves. Where there is a higher level of trust, there is greater employee dedication and loyalty, which leads to greater productivity. Goodbye burnout. When employees don’t feel like they have to fake it till they make it,  they’re less stressed out, and employee satisfaction is increased.Unlock potential. When your team is comfortable to be themselves, they take more risks, are more creative, speak up and are more empowered to problem solve/find solutions. More brain power. Numerous perspectives generate better ideas.No more Monday blues. Your employees may run around telling others how awesome their workplace is because the authentic company culture rocks. Everyone feels more at ease. 

The implementation:

It starts with you. You set the tone. Be sincere when encouraging your team to feel comfortable being themselves by creating the example of what you want. Share a story about yourself and show your personal strengths, so your team does the same without fear of being ostracized. Role alignment. Job descriptions are great and all, but if someone comes to you with a valuable skill that benefits your company, for the love of everything holy, please create or adjust a role to fit those talents. When your employees are thriving, so is your business. Increase employee engagement. The type of company you operate will determine if you can have in person meetings, lunches, and the like. Since we work off a hybrid model here, we have “morning huddles” with our big goals for the day and a personal update.

What’s crucial for leaders to recognize is that If you want your business to prosper, the well being and sense of belonging of your employees must be nurtured. 

I’m looking forward to witnessing a huge shift in leadership. You’ve hired humans. Lead like one. 

-Mike

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How Establishing an Authentic Workplace Will Boost Your Business

Recently, I was asked in an interview what my favorite business quote is. Immediately, this popped into my head:

“Be yourself, everyone else is already taken.” – Oscar Wilde. 

Hands down, this is my favorite quote. It hangs in my office so there’s a constant visual, and it keeps my mindset grounded. 

“Ok, Mike, but how does this apply to my business?” 

The concept of being true to yourself isn’t groundbreaking. But, it is universally applicable, and can be groundbreaking in your business if you implement being authentic in your company. To me, the old way of thinking is that in business, you must play a role and leave who you innately are at the door. The result is that employees spend an incredible amount of energy playing a part in their career. From calculated conversations and body language, to dressing the part, to acting outside of our own character, how do we know when we’re being professional, or if we’re not being ourselves at all?

As I reflect on the elements of what created The Great Resignation, I feel the personas some employees put on creates work anxiety, exhaustion, is ineffective, and detrimental to employee health and well being. 

It comes as no surprise that studies have shown that when we hide our true identities, our professional performance is impaired. Work anxiety is increased and careers can become stagnated when there is fear of being judged. Let’s face it, we do not give our best when we’re anxious.

It’s when we try to serve expectations of others opposed to expectations of ourselves that we are compromised. The crummy thing about fitting in is that you might (maybe) be liked by everybody – except yourself. And you cannot truly be of service to others if you don’t truly like yourself. 

My point? When we lean into who we naturally are, that’s the good stuff. That’s when we excel. A good leader knows that cultivating an authentic work environment is crucial for a healthy business. 

The benefits: 

It’s a matter of trust. Being authentic at work shows others that you can be trusted. If you’re the leader of your team, walk the walk to encourage others to follow suit of being their authentic selves. Where there is a higher level of trust, there is greater employee dedication and loyalty, which leads to greater productivity. Goodbye burnout. When employees don’t feel like they have to fake it till they make it,  they’re less stressed out, and employee satisfaction is increased.Unlock potential. When your team is comfortable to be themselves, they take more risks, are more creative, speak up and are more empowered to problem solve/find solutions. More brain power. Numerous perspectives generate better ideas.Oh, and your employees may run around telling others how awesome their workplace is because the authentic company culture rocks.

The implementation:

It starts with you. You set the tone. Be sincere when encouraging your team to feel comfortable being themselves by creating the example of what you want. Share a story about yourself and show your personal strengths, so your team does the same without fear of being ostracized. Role alignment. Job descriptions are great and all, but if someone comes to you with a valuable skill that benefits your company, for the love of everything holy, please create or adjust a role to fit those talents. When your employees are thriving, so is your business. Increase employee engagement. The type of company you operate will determine if you can have in person meetings, lunches, and the like. Since we work off a hybrid model here, we have “morning huddles” with our big goals for the day and a personal update.

What’s crucial for leaders to recognize is that If you want your business to prosper, the well being and sense of belonging of your employees must be nurtured. 

I’m looking forward to witnessing a huge shift in leadership. You’ve hired humans. Lead like one. 

-Mike

 

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