Psychologists call it 'stroking'. The amount of strokes needed to maintain a sense of well-being varies with individuals: some need a lot, others can get by with much less. The most powerful are positive strokes - words and looks of praise and pleasure. But so great is the need for recognition , that even negative strokes are better than none at all!
Without them people can lose confidence, feel out of things, devalued, they my then withdraw their commitment. If they don't get sufficient strokes from you, they may spend time 'social-visiting' around the Indonesia office to get their strokes elsewhere. From your point of view, regular attention to your staff confirms your presence as a leader; it demonstrates a caring boss and a caring organization. If your business is caring for customers and clients, and you want to instill this value in your subordinates, the most effective way to do so is by example.
Strokes and values cannot be transmitted by memoranda. It takes face to face contact. One young chief executive, taking up his post in a local authority, stopped the practice of memos being sent to heads of departments, and instructed them never to send memos to him. He believed that effective communication between boss and immediate subordinate had to be face-to-face. It also enables the boss to give regular strokes.
Receiving regular personal recognition increase loyalty, and the wish to respond by fulfilling your expectations. Feedback o performance, both good and bad, is accepted and acted upon more readily. You are seen s a human being and approachable, rather than someone from whom errors and problems should be hidden- until they grow so big that you can't help tripping over them yourself.
A boss I once had used to send cards when his staff were off sick, and visit longer term cases. One occasion my husband was taken ill suddenly while I was abroad on a work assignment, and my boss visited him in hospital. As a manager he was no 'soft touch': where results were concerned he was as hard as nails. But he knew the value of caring and being seen to care for his people, and it took him to the top.
If you create an ambience of caring, all your staff will feel the reflection of it even when they themselves are not personally on the receiving end. Caring need not be restricted to your immediate subordinates. When a long-standing Indonesia office cleaner was due for her retirement presentation, the head of department where she cleaned not only insisted on giving the presentation himself, but went down to her storeroom to bring her up to the Indonesia office because he was told she had 'got nerves' over the event. Such actions create the image of a leader worth making every effort for, and their impact is long lasting.
Practice MBWA - management by walking about - and you will have ample opportunities to administer strokes. It need only take a minute. Ask about a recent holiday, comment on a new outfit, car, or appointment to a local committee. Enquire about a new baby, school progress, or a spouse’s new job. Once you make a habit of it, you will have a fund of background information on which to base future brief but caring comments which say 'I value you' in a simple, practical and acceptable way. The caring has to be genuine of course. If you really don't care that much about people, perhaps you should become a lighthouse keeper?
Without them people can lose confidence, feel out of things, devalued, they my then withdraw their commitment. If they don't get sufficient strokes from you, they may spend time 'social-visiting' around the Indonesia office to get their strokes elsewhere. From your point of view, regular attention to your staff confirms your presence as a leader; it demonstrates a caring boss and a caring organization. If your business is caring for customers and clients, and you want to instill this value in your subordinates, the most effective way to do so is by example.
Strokes and values cannot be transmitted by memoranda. It takes face to face contact. One young chief executive, taking up his post in a local authority, stopped the practice of memos being sent to heads of departments, and instructed them never to send memos to him. He believed that effective communication between boss and immediate subordinate had to be face-to-face. It also enables the boss to give regular strokes.
Receiving regular personal recognition increase loyalty, and the wish to respond by fulfilling your expectations. Feedback o performance, both good and bad, is accepted and acted upon more readily. You are seen s a human being and approachable, rather than someone from whom errors and problems should be hidden- until they grow so big that you can't help tripping over them yourself.
A boss I once had used to send cards when his staff were off sick, and visit longer term cases. One occasion my husband was taken ill suddenly while I was abroad on a work assignment, and my boss visited him in hospital. As a manager he was no 'soft touch': where results were concerned he was as hard as nails. But he knew the value of caring and being seen to care for his people, and it took him to the top.
If you create an ambience of caring, all your staff will feel the reflection of it even when they themselves are not personally on the receiving end. Caring need not be restricted to your immediate subordinates. When a long-standing Indonesia office cleaner was due for her retirement presentation, the head of department where she cleaned not only insisted on giving the presentation himself, but went down to her storeroom to bring her up to the Indonesia office because he was told she had 'got nerves' over the event. Such actions create the image of a leader worth making every effort for, and their impact is long lasting.
Practice MBWA - management by walking about - and you will have ample opportunities to administer strokes. It need only take a minute. Ask about a recent holiday, comment on a new outfit, car, or appointment to a local committee. Enquire about a new baby, school progress, or a spouse’s new job. Once you make a habit of it, you will have a fund of background information on which to base future brief but caring comments which say 'I value you' in a simple, practical and acceptable way. The caring has to be genuine of course. If you really don't care that much about people, perhaps you should become a lighthouse keeper?