Now is the time to act. Don’t squander your new skills and insights.
The Bad News: As we slowly emerge from COVID 19, most organizations are struggling to hire, retain, and motivate their workforce. Many employees are burnt out, demotivated, and planning to quit.
The Good News: Strong leaders can make a big difference. You have learned five critical leadership lessons during the pandemic.
#1) Humility — Recognizing it’s not all about you
You’ve gained an essential insight for leading others — you no longer take yourself too seriously.
In the hustle and bustle of a busy workplace, it was easy to be seduced into thinking that whatever you were pursuing was more important than anything — or anyone — else.
Once your employees saw you in your home environment, you couldn’t maintain a haughty self-centered attitude against a backdrop of dogs barking, kids interrupting and doorbells ringing.
Going Forward: Remember that you are here to serve your employees, not the other way around. Find ways to maintain perspective and stay humble. Create activities that keep you grounded and approachable. For example, institute a “Bring your Pet to Work” Day.
#2) Emotional Intelligence (EQ) — Understanding employee reactions to uncertainty
You have personally experienced the stress, fear, and anxiety of a sudden, unprecedented, life-changing situation. You’ve seen that no amount of communication reduces that angst.
You understand that people have emotional needs in addition to informational needs. There’s a reason you have two ears and one mouth. You’ve learned to listen more than you talk.
Meanwhile you, and others, are behaving in unforeseen ways. Many people are still on edge. Some are flipped out. Nothing is back to “normal”.
Going Forward: No one knows what the future will bring. You only know that the workplace will be fundamentally different. Apply your insight into the ways people respond to ambiguity.
Continue to listen with empathy. Lead your team by accepting the lack of clarity, rather than trying to provide pat answers in the face of the unknown. Acknowledge the emotional strain that you and your people are continuing to undergo.
Find ways to connect emotionally. For example, lead with humor by opening staff meetings with jokes, cartoons, or funny songs. Find opportunities to connect your team on an emotional level such as preparing a meal together.
#3) Schedule Awareness — Paying attention to your best employees
It was so easy to fall into the “squeaky wheel” trap. Problem employees consumed an inordinate amount of your time.
Suddenly, during COVID, people couldn’t hang out by your door waiting to ambush you. The virtual environment made time allocation (planned or unplanned) more obvious. And created the opportunity to be more proactive about your time.
You’ve learned that your high potential employees have the biggest impact on your personal (and team) performance. Helping good employees become better employees is the best way to invest your time. Which is a lot easier to do when you’re not distracted by trying to transform weak employees into not-so-weak employees.
Going Forward: Continue to monitor your scheduled and unscheduled meetings. Proactively determine how to allocate your time to each employee based upon their current and potential contribution. Develop a plan and stick to it.
#4) Attitude of Gratitude — Appreciating everyone
Before COVID, you took a lot of people for granted. As Joni Mitchell sang in Big Yellow Taxi, “Don’t it always seem to go, that you don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone.”
You now have a renewed awareness of the importance of overlooked workers, such as the cleaning staff in your office. You’ve seen the impact a few well-chosen words in a supportive email can have upon an employee who’s trying to do their best in a tough situation.
You understand that attitude is contagious. Your attitude — positive or negative — infects the people around you.
Going Forward: Continue to cultivate an attitude of gratitude in yourself and others. Let your employees know that you recognize their contributions. Remember that immediate and sincere praise has a big impact. As Ken Blanchard recommended in The One Minute Manager, “Catch people doing something right.” Thank them and let them know what their actions mean to you personally.
#5) Mindfulness — Taking Breaks
Work-life balance went out the window at the beginning of COVID. Without a clear delineation between work and home, you — like many leaders — lost your familiar daily structure.
While working from home you were forced to take breaks due to household interruptions. You’ve taken opportunities to simply stretch or go outside.
You learned that sitting at a computer all day long is counterproductive. You discovered that when you are focused on the activity of the moment — rather than exhausted or multi-tasking — you actually got more done. You developed new habits.
Going Forward: Cherish and hold tight to physical and mental breaks. Schedule break times into your day and keep them sacred. Create blocks of time with no interruptions. For example, use a walk as time for strategic thinking. Or as an opportunity for a one-on-one conversation with an employee. Monitor your stress levels to recognize when additional breaks are needed. Encourage similar behavior in staff.
In summary . . .
Reflect on what you’ve learned about humility, EQ, schedule, gratitude, and mindfulness. Commit to apply these lessons going forward. Help others to do the same. Become a role model for your entire workforce. Lead.
