Developing people is a tricky balance – would it be more cost effective to just carry on with untrained staff at push harder to generate more revenue?
Perhaps it would and if that works for you, then you must carry on doing it – but the question hangs around like that unwanted stranger....the elephant in the room....the strange nagging about whether you left the gas on.....am I missing out on something?
If youre not thinking it, your staff certainly will be. There is a great deal to be said for a tried and tested method in all walks of life and in all industries, however what does training do? So somebody knows the proper way – that counts for nothing in the face of experience we all proclaim as we guffaw and smirk at this training nonsense....
....but is that really what we think? Are we having this reaction because we know better or is it because a trained individual has the furrowed field in which to plant the seed of experience to grow into a more flourishing and steadfast tree than our own? Training provides an individual with galvanisation – temperance – confidence and trust – knowledge to carry out complex tasks knowing that they hold more know-how (and we know that know how is equal to KAPOW...or to be traditional, knowledge is power) than perhaps their client, colleagues and most importantly....their competition.
Learning and Development leads us to ask questions – questions of ourselves, of our environment, of our methods – these questions lead us to innovate and find new ways of completing old tasks – perhaps more efficiently, more proficiently, more professionally....this is the value in training, and the environment for breeding excellence. And when excellence becomes second nature, business is no more difficult than floating in a little wooden boat down a river on a summer day.
So really, the question now becomes not "Do I really want to invest in training my team?" but instead "How difficult do I want to make this for myself?"
That could be seen as a pessimistic way to look at it – because youre not finding things difficult right now – its all going rather well in fact – Sales are coming in, theres a good tick over and youre not going to bed at night in a cold sweat wondering where the next sale is going to come from so you probably can cope fine without any new-fangled new-age wacky hippy coming in to your business and telling you how to do it.
And thats exactly right. Keep doing what youre doing because you know your staff better than anyone else – you probably even know what colour underwear they have on (OK perhaps youre not that kind of boss, and if you are dont worry the harassment suit doesnt stay on your record for long) but either way, youre doing the right thing – but if youre like any normal human being you will have a moment every now and then where you sit back and look at whats being achieved and will think "now....this is good, but can we make more revenue? How can we do that? How can we do what we do right now, but better and for free?" well there are many things, and no they dont involve phoning us and paying us huge sums of money in brown paper bags, although that would be nice and youre more than welcome to do so if you wish.
Heres some free tips to be getting on with;
Communicate – talk to your team, ask them what theyre finding positive and what is a drag – do this openly and without reproach. If you have a two way dialog with your team youre more likely to be able to understand the challenges they face and adjust things to boost their productivity.
People Manage – dont spend your day micro-managing your team and fire fighting. You need to exercise leadership and vision – you employed your staff because you trust them to do their jobs. Let them do their jobs – focus your energy on delegating responsibility, leaving you free to provide the structure which is necessary for employees to feel that they are a vital part of the machine and that their contribution has made lasting impact on the company as a whole. This is what youre best at – you are not a parrot on a pirate ship, so stop sitting on their shoulder repeating the same pre-learned message.
Take A Walk – Getting up from your glass cubicle empire and popping out of the office to grab a Starbucks might be something you already do regularly – great! Keep doing it. If you dont, give it a try. Its a well known fact that getting a little exercise will get the blood pumping and re-energise you. Sitting behind your desk getting more and more wound up will not. This tip is also worth putting in place for your staff – encourage regular breaks and walking around the office – at the very least, when the sh*t hits the fan youll all look super busy! The cumulative result will be a team that look fresh, ready to take on a challenge and happy to help, rather than a drab sour-faced bunch of misery-guts. Who wants to do business with that lot? (The answer, if youre struggling, is – Nobody.)
Relax – So its a business, were at work...everyone knows that, everyone is aware of where you are and what youre doing and why youre doing it. So cool it, take a chill pill, kick back and have a cold one (non-alcoholic of course) loosen your tie – even take it off and undo your top button, be comfortable and play solitaire for a while. Nothing is more palpable in a workplace to an outsider (new colleague, visiting dignitary, or CUSTOMER) than a tense, unhappy and unfulfilled atmosphere. The walls and ceiling will be dripping with stress and you can bet your bottom quid that if your competitor over the street is a fun and happy place they will be beating you over the head with your own potential sales which will only make your mood worse – learn to let go and roll with the punches. Smile once in a while and tell a joke – youll notice a huge change in yourself, and your staff. Theyll be more honest with you, and more loyal too.
These are just a tiny handful of small changes that can have an immense impact on your bottom line, and as we mentioned earlier, they will cost you NOTHING. Nada. Zip. Zilch.
Youve got no excuse not to try them, other than your own pre-conceptions about how your business is perceived. What have you got to lose?
If you DO try these, wed love to hear how it affected your business and what results you discovered.
Evolve L&D
Evolve Learning & Development
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