“All managers should be taught the subtle signs of a disengaged workforce,” says Todd Patkin, author of Finding Happiness: One Man’s Quest to Beat Depression and Anxiety and—Finally—Let the Sunshine In.
“They should all learn which words and actions tend to upset employees and which get people fired up. They should know how to handle employees’ mistakes productively, as well as how to adjust the behavior of disruptive employees.
“The fact that a person is in a position of authority doesn’t mean that he or she instinctively knows how to engage a team. And at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how much knowledge, experience, and skill a manager has if he or she can’t motivate and connect with employees.
“In my opinion, just about any phrase that affirms, encourages, reassures, thanks, or shows that you trust an employee is valuable,” says Patkin.
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Here are three of his favorite phrases that help drive engagement that you can pass along to managers during training:
- What do you need from me? The answer can provide insight into how to improve the company and develop and support individual employees.
- Thank you. “People love to hear positive feedback about themselves and, in most cases, they’ll be willing to work a lot harder to keep the compliments and thanks coming,” he says.
- That’s OK. We all make mistakes. Let’s talk about how to fix this. “Mistakes are an essential part of growth,” he says. Employees should feel comfortable taking risks—without fear of reprisal if things go wrong.
And why don’t more managers use these phrases? Patkin explains that:
- There is a lack of training on employee engagement;
- Some managers are reluctant to “get personal” with their teams and step down from the “leadership pedestal”; and
- Most often, managers are simply busy. They have so many responsibilities of their own that they just don’t think to stop, take a few seconds, and nurture the relationships they have with employees.
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In tomorrow’s Advisor, we’ll present 8 tips for managers to promote employee engagement, plus we’ll explore a dynamic online leadership training resource for managers and supervisors.