Floor Tape Store

Monday, November 19, 2018

Lean Tips #132 (1976-1990)

For my Facebook fans you already know about this great feature. But for those of you that are not connected to A Lean Journey on Facebook or Twitter I post daily a feature I call Lean Tips.  It is meant to be advice, things I learned from experience, and some knowledge tidbits about Lean to help you along your journey.  Another great reason to like A Lean Journey on Facebook.


Here is the next addition of tips from the Facebook page:


Lean Tip #1976 - Invest in Your Team's Training and Development.
To keep talent motivated they need to feel as if you're investing in their growth. Millennials, in particular, value having the tools to make better decisions. They want to know they're not just executing on your behalf, but that leadership prioritizes their personal and professional growth.

Lean Tip #1977 - Hone Your Listening Skills.
Leaders typically know how to talk, but aren't as good at sitting back and listening. Yet, allowing people to be heard not only helps with relationship building, it allows leaders to learn from the capable people in their circles.

Lean Tip #1978 – Give Your Team the Right Support
Change usually implies that the team has to learn new skills to understand and interpret new ways of working. The team leader must give opportunity for the team and individual to develop and try new approaches. Make sure your team has appropriate training, development resources, and time to confirm their new skills.

Lean Tip #1979 - Show Your Team Appreciation
You must invest time and energy in your team. Everybody needs to be appreciated and your team is no different! They need to know that you have a personal interest and commitment in them. Recognizing their worth shows that they are valued and the work they do really does matter.

Lean Tip #1980 – Empower Your Team
Employee participation places emphasis on communication, openness and the direct involvement of team members in decision-making. Provide support and facilitate discussion to help the team solve problems. As confidence, commitment and competence increases delegate tasks and let team members take decisions or find solutions to problems.

Lean Tip #1981 – Invest Time in Your People.
The people who show up to work for you every day bring value to your organization. But that doesn’t mean they’ll blindly follow you. Spend some time investing in your team. That could be as simple as monthly team-building events. It could be handwritten notes on Friday mornings. Whatever you choose, don’t just go through the motions. Be curious about your team members. Ask about their backgrounds, their families, their dreams. Implement development programs so your team can continue to learn and grow. If you invest in them, they’ll invest in you.

Lean Tip #1982 – Become a Better Listener.
Many people don’t know how to truly listen. The good news? Following the lessons we learned in grade school—pay attention, don’t interrupt, don’t be distracted—is all that we need to do to become better listeners.

Of course, listening doesn’t just mean paying attention to the words that your team members are saying. It means understanding the emotions behind those words, as well as the nonverbal cues, including body language, tone of voice, and mannerisms, that speak to your team members’ state of mind. If communication is 80 percent nonverbal, as is popularly claimed, then focusing only on the words being spoken means you’re only getting 20 percent of the message.

Lean Tip #1983 – See Things From Employee’s Point of View.
Sometimes it can be really difficult to get a clear read on the emotional state of your team. One way that you can gain this insight is to put yourself in the shoes of your team members. Ask yourself: How would you feel in a similar situation? What would you do? What would you want or expect from your manager? What would you not want? Use these insights to inform your management techniques, build rapport, and foster the level of communication that you need in order to be effective at your job.

Lean Tip #1984 – Leave Judgment Behind.
Even when the feelings of others are in direct opposition to their own, empathetic leaders don’t judge. They let go of their biases and allow themselves to be open to new perspectives. When you’re an empathetic leader, you don’t look at the feelings of others in terms of agreement or disagreement but as a window into their perceptions and world view, an opportunity to better understand what they’re experiencing and expressing.

Lean Tip #1985 – Encourage Creativity
If you want your staff to do their best work, you need to give them the freedom to brainstorm and explore. Be open to your team's ideas and suggestions, and be ready to consider them and possibly develop them further.

A good leader also gives the team new challenges, preventing them from becoming bored and complacent while showing confidence in their potential.

Lean Tip #1986 – Cultivate a Culture of Innovation.
Great business leaders drive their teams to step out of the confines of routine and achieve the extraordinary. Building teamwork and rewarding collaboration are key to achieving your goals.

Cultivating a culture that values innovation is one of the most difficult responsibilities a business leader has. Here's how the best nurture innovation in their companies:

·        Proactively introduce mechanisms that naturally boost creative and innovative thinking.
·        Make incremental improvements in the workplace to facilitate out-of-the-box thinking.
·        Use tools to measure how employees spend their time.
·        Encourage practical shuffling of duties and departments to help employees gain a wider perspective of the organization's work.
·        Show employees how they can use time-tested methods of creative idea generation (brainstorming, mind mapping, story boarding, etc.) by organizing and participating in sessions.

Lean Tip #1987 – Strive for Perfection But Also Understand That No One is Perfect.
As a business leader, you should always strive for perfection in your work. At the same time, it is essential to understand that no one is perfect.

A leader should not scare away employees; instead, an employee should feel secure in the presence of the leader. Here are some ways you can lead effectively while working toward perfection:

·        Identify the potential of each employee and delegate tasks to them based on their work persona.
·        Do not scold employees when they do something wrong. Help and guide them when they need you the most.
·        Continuously groom the skills of your employees and motivate them so they feel greatness is achievable.
·        Cultivate a culture of working smartly so employees achieve more in less time.
·        Don't let your quest for perfectionism turn into an obsession.

Lean Tip #1988 – A Little Humility Goes a Long Way.
There’s a difference between a leader and a boss. While both are in charge, a leader shares the spotlight and is comfortable crediting others. While it might seem counterintuitive, being humble takes more confidence than basking in glory. Your employees will appreciate it, and your clients will, too.

Lean Tip #1989 – Win Trust of Your Team.
Your team will become engaged and loyal if they feel they are surrounded by people they can trust. The first and most important aspect of building trust is to get involved in coworkers or employees’ everyday work problems. Pay close attention to those who are behind everyone else, and devote some time to explaining their task to them. The second step is to get to know their lives outside the office. But, don’t overdo it—no one likes intrusive bosses.

Lean Tip #1990 – Make Time for What’s Important

A leader has so many responsibilities and a lot of pressure to handle. Sometimes these pressures can become too much to handle, and this is when it is time to step back and get away from everything. Spend time with your family and friends so that you can refresh your mind. Get work off your mind for a couple of days so that you can completely rejuvenate and come back to your business with the energy needed to lead your team towards success.

Subscribe to my feed Subscribe via Email LinkedIn Group Facebook Page @TimALeanJourney YouTube Channel

No comments:

Post a Comment