The secret is knowing that life happens.
The truth about management is that managers would never fail if they simply read every management blog available. There are literally hundreds upon thousands of blogs, books and articles directing managers on how to lead, how to multi-task, and how to communicate. The secret to management is not a certain communication or leadership tactic. The secret is knowing that life happens.
Managers need to be open minded that employees have lives outside of the office, and that from time to time things are going to come up that will keep that employee from coming to work. Illness is one thing. For some reason managers don’t like illness, but they understand that people get sick, and if your company is lucky even the sick ones can work from a remote location. It’s the other absences that seem to cause problems, but with flexibility and some management tricks, they don’t have to.
There are ten stressors that managers should be aware of when considering how to manage any working environment. The top ten stressors are:
1. Spouse’s death
2. Divorce
3. Marriage separation
4. Jail term
5. Death of a close relative
6. Injury or illness
7. Marriage
8. Fired from job
9. Marriage reconciliation
10. Retirement
Notice any similarities? Six of the top ten stressors are relationship-oriented. This should tell managers that their employees may put on a brave face at work, but what takes place at home is what will dictate an employee’s overall stress level. Pregnancy, childbirth, and relocating or moving almost made the top ten, and are almost as stressful as losing a loved one.
What takes place at home is what will dictate an employee’s overall stress level.
Life comes at unexpected times, and managers should embrace the fact that their employees will have to take time off at one point or another to deal with the complexities that accompany stressful times. Just because an employee is absent does not mean that productivity has to diminish.
Investing in tactics such as cross-utilization can provide mobility for companies who need to stay on top of projects despite a lack of man power. Each employee within an organization should be knowledgeable of a few jobs within their team to ensure that an absence of a team member does not result in the absence of work.
Coach your employees to be organized. Inform employees to follow the “If you died tomorrow…” method when it comes to labeling and organizing important files so that other team members won’t have to waste time finding certain documents or materials.
Manage in a way that teaches prioritization so when employees leave they don’t feel stressed or behind.
Manage in a way that teaches prioritization so when employees leave they don’t feel stressed or behind. If an employee has an expected absence, such as a wedding or birth, encourage that employee to work on their prioritization, so that they never feel overwhelmed or under-productive.
To be a truly successful manager you need to be accepting when life happens. Managing with a human perspective and understanding will encourage employee loyalty and trust. Despite a manager’s best attempt to maintain productivity, the best managers are the ones who realize that life always takes precedence to business, and that compassion is the key to keeping employees motivated and productive.
