“They’re people, not robots.” That’s what my dad told me when I joined the business full time. Interesting that this would be part of my informal orientation by him.
“If they wanted to be treated poorly or ignored they’d go work at some big faceless, nameless company out there they wouldn’t be here. When you’re here you’re part of this company and you need to know we have an open door policy. We make ourselves accessible to our employees. They are people who have thoughts and feelings they want to share with us and they must know from us they can do that because we want to hear what they say even if it’s not what we want to hear. Especially when it’s not what we want to hear, they need to know they need never be afraid to speak up.”
My brothers and I were encouraged [that’s putting it mildly] to do whatever it took even if it meant our precious free time to be there for them in good times and bad times. That often meant going to the hospital whenever one of our employees was hurt or sick. You know how hospitals can be a frightening place to be. The other thing about hospitals is that time can crawl along and it can become overpoweringly lonely if you feel you’ve been forgotten. A visit to someone in a hospital is one of the best things you can do for anyone.
This can be especially so for a team member at your company who is not at home, worried about what’s going on or what’s to come and feeling disconnected and forgotten.
You, as owners and managers would be well-served to also go out of your way to find ways to treat them as people. People that work for you need more than your orders, your approval and your paying them. They have to feel they matter to the organization and to you personally.
When I was young, I attended wakes and funerals for past employees and unfortunately current employees who passed away all too soon. As a 20 something, it was hard to look at death. My mom died when I was only 4 years old and to say I came to know death all too personally would be an understatement. That didn’t make seeing a lifeless body in a casket any easier. Hey, I don’t think it ever gets easy. But, reaching out, pushing through my squeamishness and being there for them through their family and friends in their time of grief makes you more human and a better person. And not that it’s a reason to do it but your other employees do take note.
You don’t get to use people up and toss them out like an empty soda can. They work hard for you and try to give you all they have. But, we all age, we can get tired, we get hurt and we can get sick. They are still people. That doesn’t mean we carry them at the risk of burdening the business and their co-workers. But, we need to make every effort to help them transition to whatever is next for them. That may mean limited work hours, a new position at the company or just a great send off when they choose to retire.
Making time together not just at work but outside of the workplace is something you would be wise to champion. It can be a company picnic, fishing trip or sporting event to name just a few ways to bond as a group and reach across the employer-employee divide and make a human connection.
Be there at holiday times with parties and accept invitations to visit if an employee offers it and open your home up as well. I’m happy to say my people invited us to their homes at holiday time and we all had a good time.
Birthday parties, weddings and more are times to celebrate together.
I’m not advocating necessarily being friends but I’m absolutely advocating being a friend in good times and in bad and to always make an effort to be friendly.
Work is work but it doesn’t mean we can’t be friendly and be kind to one another or even just empathetic. I remember stopping on my way to meet guys at the job and bringing them soda, coffee or donuts. I remembered what it was like to work in the field and how much I appreciated that someone else thought of me.
In this world where social media and texting counts as social interaction, I still believe nothing beats face-to-face interaction and when that is no longer possible a phone call that remembers their birthday and work anniversaries are not just your obligation but a reason to celebrate.
Think I’m off base here?
I have to admit I was oblivious to the need to be acknowledged at work. I was so oblivious staffers would come to me and tell me, “Hey, did you know I’ve been here 10 years today?” many were at our company 25 year and more. A lot of them.
When I finally realized how bad this was on my part, we immediately went out and bought really nice company-logo watches to acknowledge the 10 year landmark and the 25 year achievement.
Wow! They wore those watches everyday like they had just won an Olympic medal.
If you treat people well, all things being equal, they will want to stay with you and your company to maintain the family connection that a well-functioning business provides outside their own family connections at home. Sorry to say but the reality is to some, they don’t have a strong family unit at home or they didn’t grow up in a loving supportive home and coming to work and being acknowledged is one of the greatest rewards they can get.
We all are kids no matter how old we get. We love to be acknowledged. We crave it. Do yourself and them a favor. Find them doing something good and make a big deal out of it. The biggest misconception is that if you do that they’ll figure they can relax and they won’t keep it up. Not so. Positive reinforcement especially in front of others is like milk to a cat…they will want to keep lapping it up and they’ll be looking for more.
After all, we are all humans and not robots.