Connect with your team at a human level

"I turned down a job that pays more because for the first time in my life I have a manager who is invested in me and is truly a mentor."

This is the kind of result you can have when you listen deeply to your team member needs, pain points, and the way they engage with projects. They feel heard, valued, supported, and inspired to stay.

Retention starts with human connection.

A leader I coach shared how she was able to motivate, engage, and inspire her team more than in the past, and what a team member shared with her in a recent performance review.

One of her goals, when we started working together a few months ago, was to "more a more inspirational leader, motivate and drive high performing teams."

I asked her what stands in the way of her being an inspiring boss, she said "I come across as intimidating, and I've been working on being softer. My directness doesn't come from a place of aggression, it's just that I'm driven and want to get things done."

She was focused on results and rushing to meet deadlines, understandably so. She knew she was missing an important piece, and didn't know how to go about it.

She found that by slowing down and being more mindful of each of her team member, she was able to connect more deeply at a human level, which built trust.

She paid attention to their energy in meetings, their engagement and proactivity on different projects.

She asked open ended questions such as "what about this project is interesting/energizes you" vs. the typical "does this make sense? good, lets move on".

Her team started to feel appreciated. She is the kind of boss who cares enough to see what it's like for them.

So often we forget the human behind the professional, in our quest to meet tight deadlines and over-perform.

Commit to paying deep attention to your audience - your team, your stakeholders, your peers.

Next time you meet or send an email remember to start with your audience in mind - what are their needs, pain points? See how this shift changes the energy in the meeting and connection with the other person.

#leadershipdevelopment #peoplemanager #mindfulleadership #humanconnection #effectivecommunication #happinessatwork #retention