Motivational Communication From The Top Down And All Around

            We’ve all had “that” day - a Friday before a long weekend, you’re caught up on work with not a worry in the world.  Why push everyone to make follow up calls or emails?  Why push your team when everyone is tired from a long and busy week?  The easy answer to making someone do something is to say, “Because I said so.”  However, that is the wrong answer.  That answer will not motivate the team to strive for greatness.  That answer indicates that your team is not important enough for an explanation.  And that answer will create a level of animosity that will eventually hurt job performance.  Instead, coworkers, especially managers, should make all work related decisions inclusive among their peers.  This does not mean that the final decision has been relegated to someone other than the manager, but rather that the manager has effectively communicated the basis and reasoning for such a decision.  Strong communication reduces confusion in the office, it keeps everyone well informed and better apt to make knowledgeable decisions.  Strong communication provides a sense of worth, happiness and value as being part of a team.  This team feeling will reduce employee turnover, as well as resident turnover.

     

       In order to effectively communicate, managers must avoid creating a parent-child relationship with their team, and instead create a peer-peer dynamic.  With a peer-peer dynamic, everyone respects each other as an equal.  This effectively allows those in “lower” positions to feel comfortable presenting effective ideas for improvement.  When you entrust your team with a sense of ownership in the decision making process, it will naturally motivate them to want to perform at a higher level.  Recognize and praise their great performance -and really mean it! 

        

    Equally important is the inter-office communication between office and maintenance staff.  Constantly cross-training each other in their respective positions will help both departments understand the restraints and issues the other may be facing at any given time.  As part of a team, each department must know where the other is heading in order to function effectively.

        

    Finally, establishing staff events can help open up the channels of communication.  In a comfortable and laid-back environment, such as mini-golf, bowling or simply eating out for lunch, everyone can relax and freely communicate.  Sometimes the best ideas come to fruition when the pressure is off, and everyone is engaged in a completely unrelated activity. 

         

   The bottom line is, there is no “I” in Team, but there certainly is an “I” in Winning, Productivity, Improvement and Competitiveness.  Cliché, yes, but also true.  Effective communication will yield these results, so listen up!

-Team Bradley