They Aren’t Acting! Your Employees Probably Hate Their Jobs….. and you!

Before I get to it, I am going to hit you with some cold, hard facts from Gallup.

• 70% of employees are not engaged in the workplace.
• 51% of employees are actively looking for a new job or are open to one
• 85% of employees hate their jobs
• The best performing employees are the fastest to leave. According to the study, these employees were the least engaged and have high expectations of their workplace.

These statistics are high and alarming. Most people reading this article, don’t need it because they are already managing thriving workplaces and want it to remain that way, so they dig into the research, the articles and studies to make sure they are bringing the best versions of themselves to their staff every day. However, there may be one or two people reading that have finally decided it was time to be truthful with themselves about their management style. If that is you, welcome to the party! I commend you on taking the first steps and being honest and realizing things need to change.

Your employees aren’t acting dry and disengaged for no reason. Every single one of them may have their own reasons and we can’t spend all day trying to guess them. Those reasons can be exposed when managers, no LEADERS, are willing to have honest and open conversations.

I can however, give you five things you can implement in your workplace to get your employees back liking and eventually loving their jobs…..and you!

1.Smile

The first thing I want you to do is SMILE! Yes, I said smile. This is probably the easiest thing you can do in the workplace to start changing the culture. Simply making eye contact with your staff, smiling and genuinely asking them how they are doing, is a good start!

2. Build Relationships

There is a huge myth going around that you can’t be human in the workplace. You can’t truly care and be engaged with your reports. Throw that myth in the garbage and start building real relationships.

3. Give Knowledge

Don’t bark orders at your staff. Get in tune with them, offer them opportunities for development in areas that interest them or areas they are weak and can get stronger. Your employees want coaches, not micromanagers.

4. Provide REAL Support

When you come to work, don’t go hide in your office. Be engaged and see where they need support. When they tell you where they need support, believe them and give it in those areas. Stop making assumptions about what your staff needs and talk it through with them.

5. Be Real

Your staff knows when you are being phony or when you try and do any of the other four methods and you are not being genuine. In my work, I have had countless conversations with employees who say, I can tell my boss read something somewhere and just want to check the boxes. Our bosses aren’t genuine with us, they just think we are stupid. Share the successes and the failures! Let your staff know what is going on.

Although every company is different, there is one thing that is the same, we are all dealing with human beings. Human beings need to feel and know they are wanted at the core. It is quite easy to say people don’t need to love their workplace, but humor me, try one or all of these things and let me know if employee productivity increases, which in turn can increase your bottom line.