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WEEKLY COACHING TIP #156
CHILDREN AT WORK
I was having a conversation the other day with a couple of people about their
children, what to do when they misbehave and how difficult it can be to be a
good parent, etc. Of course, I immediately launched off into all the dos and
donts on being a parent, even though I am not a mother. Im sure these people
were bemused by this; however, it didnt stop me. It did get me to thinking
about children though and how we are all still children really with the same
needs. Then I began to think of a manager I have been coaching recently and how
I could incorporate being a good parent into her working life in trying to
manage and motivate employees.
So what is it that children need/want to be well balanced and happy children,
apart from having good values installed in them?
Some of their needs are:
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Love
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Consistency
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Achievement
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Recognition
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Rewards
When you think about it, thats exactly what every person in the work place
wants too and not just in the work place in our relationships.
We all crave approval, recognition. There is nothing more de-moralising than
doing, what you think is a good piece of work and having it go unnoticed or not
even having someone say thank you for it. We feel so undervalued and
anonymous. If companies would only realise this, productivity and employee
satisfaction would go through the roof, not to mention profits. I am currently
working on implementing these ideas into businesses so Ill report back to you
with the results.
Have you ever seen a very small child do something like pick a flower and
carefully wobble over to its parent and offer it to them, you can see the joy
on their little face, and then the parent just taking it without acknowledging
what a wonderful thing s/he just did, because the parent was too busy
reading/talking, etc. Its absolutely heartbreaking to see that child not being
rewarded for its efforts. Well this is exactly the same thing in the work place,
if youve got employees or are a supervisor/manager do you
always thank your staff for doing
something, however trivial, or do you just think well thats what they get paid
for?
Steven Covey said catch your employees doing something right and thank them.
This is so effective. I know many forward thinking companies send their
employees on seminars or bring in motivational speakers to help with
performance. The trouble with this is, most times, the employees will be
motivated for a few days, perhaps weeks, and then it all slips back, no real
change. It needs to be addressed consistently and throughout the company so
people live and breathe it. It becomes part of the culture.
The question is how can you give more love, consistency, recognition and rewards
for their achievements?
Apply this to your employees or colleagues, to your partner, your children, your
friends, your clients, the waitress who serves you well, even the waitress who
doesnt serve you well, everyone!
If someone is consistently late, dont get on their case, instead, use the 1
time when they do arrive early (presuming they do) to tell them, very sincerely,
how wonderful you think it is that they got here early today. This is positive
re-inforcement. Same goes for your kids when they do tidy their bedroom or wash
the dishes, thank them and say how much you appreciate it.
If you do this first, it will make you more aware generally, which is a great
thing, secondly the person you give out genuine encouragement or appreciation to
will respond and blossom (if its done consistently) and thirdly you will feel
great for having said something good to someone its re-affirming something good
in you.
Until next week Onwards and Upwards!
Other Tips you can use at Work and with Children
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