5 Ways to Be There: Friday Fish Philosophy
February 27, 2009 by Phil Gerbyshak
Filed under Business
One of the best ways you can practice living the FISH Philosophy is to be there for your team.
5 Ways to Be There For Your Team
1) Single task your direct reports
3) Open your door to your team
4) Open your heart to your team
5) Listen, I mean really LISTEN, to what your direct reports are saying
Dad's the Boss - Image: Flickr
What can you do to BE THERE for your team?
Listen to the music photo credit to vagawi
Walk-around management is always good! But when it comes to talk – it doesn’t always have to do with business. After all, we all have lives outside of work! I would suggest making some small talk to get to KNOW the person you’re adressing! “Hows the kids?” “What a game last night!” Spend a few minutes to make them feel comfortable so that they can open up to you without diving too deep minto their persoanl life but to keep it light and professional. If they feel comfortable with you on the little stuff then they will fell comfortable when it comes to the BIG stuff that you NEED to know!
I agree with CK. At my previous place of employment, talking about non-work related things was forbidden, so during non-work hours, the employees would get together and talk about how much we hated our boss. No one ever lasted more than a year. The funny thing is, other than that, it was a great place to work.
Open your heart to your team is the right way to achieve success. I totally in agreement with you Phil. This approach will build confidence in fellow team mates. There will not be any iota of doubt among the team mates. Doubt creates negative feelings. Doubt dilutes enthusiasm. When a person is not open the other person will not also open.
Totally agree, i go on and on about how important it is to listen to your staff (thats why i started a staff survey company) i got so sick of working for a company that went on about how much they listened to us when they absolutely did not – hence i decided to give staff a voice myself!