Listening
Listening to what your direct reports say about the things that concern them shows them that they are important to you as individuals. You should:
- Be "in the moment"
- Actively listen and try to understand
- Don't be impatient and interrupt
- Don't be distracted
Sharing and disclosing
Sharing and disclosing information creates a two-way exchange of information and builds trust. There are several things to remember about sharing information:
- When you ask for an opinion from one of your direct reports, you should be willing to share your opinion as well
- Pass on information your people will find relevant or interesting
- Disclose some personal information about yourself as appropriate
- Explain the reasoning behind your decisions
- Share your thinking about work issues
Knowing about direct reports
Showing that you know something about your direct reports as individuals lets them know you care. To discover their individual needs and concerns to some degree:
- Know at least three or four nonwork things about each of your direct reports
- Be aware of all the work factors affecting them
- Ask questions about their lives
- Observe their behaviors at work
- Recognize their different skills, abilities, and areas of interest
- Keep in touch with employee concerns and emotions over time
- Get your direct reports' view on things
- Ask curiosity questions to show you care what your people think and feel
Showing concern
Being concerned with the things that affect your direct reports shows them you care. When showing concern, you should:
- Avoid acting as a therapist
- Focus on being helpful, rather than simply being a sounding board
- Recognize there are some things you can help with and others you can't
- Strike a balance of being empathetic while still retaining the option of being firm
- Help, but don't go overboard
- Interrupt ramblers by summarizing
- Allow angry people to vent without encouraging or resisting
- Move complainers toward solutions
- Criticize constructively and focus on helping
- Ask people how things should change
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