T.G. Wall Management Consulting, LLC
6 Emerson Lane, Washington Township, NJ 08080 856-218-7200 · terry@tgwall.com
<< Back To Leadership Unlimited Archive April 2008 Last month's column, about how firing for poor performance should never come as a surprise to the person being fired, prompted an interesting comment from a Philadelphia reader. He noted that when an employee voluntarily resigns, the resignation often comes as a surprise to the BOSS! He also tied his comment to last October's column, by correctly saying that the resignation means the employee has, in effect, fired the boss and the organization. Then the reader says, "It's a little more tricky to tell a boss you are dissatisfied than it is for a boss to tell an employee about what they need to do." He's right, but only if the boss isn't being a good leader. Good leaders should NEVER be surprised to hear that an employee is voluntarily resigning. If such a resignation comes "out of the blue," the leader must look closely at himself or herself as a big part of the problem. One important aspect of this is Emotional Intelligence, which I define as a skill set that helps you manage your own emotions, and the emotions of others. A big part of Emotional Intelligence is being able to read You might pick this up from the other person's body language. Subtle signals like tone of voice, facial expression, or...obscene gestures. Ok, some signals aren't so subtle. But whatever the signal, you detect it by having your Emotional Intelligence radar turned on. Surprise resignations also signify a lack of trust in you as a leader. Last month I said that being straightforward is important in letting people know what you expect, or when you're unhappy with their performance. Straightforwardness is a behavior that promotes the element of trust called Congruence. But when people aren't telling YOU they're dissatisfied in some way (a precursor to them resigning), the element of trust involved is Openness. The relevant behavior that promotes Openness in this situation is Receptivity. You need to show others that you're receptive--to new ideas, to opposing views, and to the news that someone's unhappy on the job. If people aren't comfortable telling you these things, you need to work on sending signals that show Receptivity. You do this by making sure that YOUR body language, YOUR facial expressions, YOUR tone of voice are communicating that you're truly interested in, and receptive to, hearing what people have to say. You've got to be receptive and open-minded, even if what they say reflects adversely on the job, the organizational climate, or your leadership. And, you have to work hard at keeping an open mind. One way to show that you're receptive is to do a better job of listening. When you're listening to your employee, you should devote 100% of your attention to that employee. So stop multitasking. Don't try to have an important If you want to build trust with your employees, if you want them to start telling you what's really on their minds, start spending more time with them. And, spend time with them on their turf, in their comfort zone. That means get out of your office, and get to know them and their jobs. Your job as a leader is to know each of your employees well enough so that you understand their needs. If you can't meet those needs, let them know. That way, you won't be surprised when they leave. The element of Trust we're talking about is Openness. The others are Congruence, Acceptance, and Reliability. To get a free download of a one-page summary of the Elements of Trust, click here: http://www.on2url.com/app/adtrack.asp?MerchantID=55031&AdID=380989 Until next edition, keep leading the way! Copyright (C) 2008 by Terry Wall
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