Having a workaholic boss often means working long hours and sacrificing personal time to meet all the demands. Forget about having any work-life balance — for workaholics, work is life. You can’t change your boss, but you can take steps to deal with the demands:
Avoid notorious workplaces. Do your research to find an organization in line with your views of work-life balance.
Set your own boundaries… Don’t be afraid to share your work philosophy with your boss to help establish boundaries.
… and stick to them. If you decide to go in over a weekend to finish up a project, make sure your boss knows this is an exception, not an expectation.
Acknowledge, then negotiate. If a deadline is too tight acknowledge the request and then work to find a compromise.
Find the right balance. If weekend work is unavoidable, make it part of your schedule so it doesn’t disrupt your personal and family time too much.
Show your sacrifice. If you have to skip out on family or personal time for work, let your boss know and work to find a compromise that won’t interrupt your life.
The key is to coexist with your boss. You can’t change their approach to work, but you can manage your expectations to ensure a successful collaboration.
“Most people chase success at work, thinking that will make them happy. The truth is that happiness at work will make you successful.” – Alexander Kjerulf
Repetition can be a useful communication tool, but if you find that you constantly needing to repeat yourself, your communication style may be to blame. By following the six part “speak like you mean it” framework you can spend less time repeating yourself, and more time on what matters.
Be authentic. Be true to who you are when you communicate.
Be clear. Think about the recipient, is your message clear to them?
Use influence. What does your message mean for your team? Keep it relevant and influential to what’s going on now.
Inspire. When your team member feels it, they’re more likely to be part of it.
Use physical and vocal energy. Your body language and tone help you connect with your message recipient.
Bring the conversation to life. Stories, anecdotes, and metaphors make the conversation more relatable.
By using this framework, you can get your message across most effectively. Staying on the same page with your team takes work, but speaking like you mean it can make things easier!
“If you aren’t authentic and people don’t feel that you’re being real, it’s a little bit like a dart hitting a dartboard, but there’s no point on it… you can’t connect with somebody who’s not real.” — Melissa Gordon
The answer is… Yes! The key is knowing when to be which.
In some circumstances a leader must be a grim-faced pessimist, while in others it requires being a cheery-faced optimist. How do you know which -ist to be? Here four easy guidelines to get you started!
Number 4: A leader must be a pessimist when… … making financial forecasts in a challenging season.
Any leader who has led through tough times will tell you the first step to stop the bleeding is by taking a worst-case scenario approach to budgeting.
Number 3: A leader must be a realist when… … developing the team.
Nothing will crush the spirit of a rising leader quite like giving them too much responsibility too soon. Effective leaders must be realistic when it comes to each team member’s potential, and design their development plan accordingly.
Number 2: A leader must be an idealist when… … Casting vision.
Effective leaders embrace the ideals of their organization’s mission and vision and communicate them with authentic passion.
Number 1: A leader must be an optimist when… … building a healthy culture.
When the going gets tough, it’s the leader’s job to remind the team that, together, things are going to get better. The mission is worth pursuing, and success will come.
Effective leadership requires being a combination of pessimistic, realistic, idealistic, or optimistic. As a leader you can develop the skills to know when to be which!
“Often times success doesn’t come from strength, but from flexibility and adaptability” — Debasish Mridha MD
Generational differences are real and can result in real tension on your team. While everyone may have the same goal in mind, growing up in vastly different times means team members will come up with different approaches to the same problems. Let’s take a look at some of the tips you can use to reduce tensions and successfully lead across generations:
Avoid pigeonholing. The majority of differences among employees are not driven by generation, but by their unique personalities. Get to know each team member as an individual instead of simply focusing on the year they were born. As a leader you can focus on their individual needs, rather than generational stereotypes.
Examine your style vs their expectations. If you feel resistance from an employee who is much older or much younger than you, it’s possible they have legitimate concerns because your style is different from how they expect things to be done. Address these differences head-on, and help your team understand the reason you lead the way you do.
Tap into your empathy. Sometimes resistance isn’t about your leadership style. An older employee might be reacting to the youth of their peers because it reminds them they have been passed on their career track. A younger employee might be responding to the perception of the organization as being slow and rigid. Be empathetic to how difficult this can be, and work with your team to handle the emotional backlash.
One thing you can count on is that, regardless of age, everyone wants to be valued. Start by engaging each person in a conversation that demonstrates you are interested in their thoughts. When most people know their voices are being heard, they will help build the bridge that crosses any divide.
“We all require and want respect.” – Aretha Franklin
Even as the world changes at an ever increasing pace, kindness and gratitude will never go out of fashion. Science tells us that grateful people are happier, healthier, and nicer to be around. Leaders who express gratitude build a team culture that reflects their values.
How can you cultivate an attitude of gratitude? Here are seven tips to help you get started:
Look for the good in everyday situations and in those around you.
Make a list of what you’re grateful for.
Develop a culture of appreciation for the people and things in your life.
Verbally express your appreciation to those who have a positive impact on your life.
Write thank you notes and letters of appreciation to others.
Meditate on the things you are grateful for.
Start having positive conversations with yourself and others, focusing on the good.
Remember: what you focus on gets magnified and manifested. Give yourself the gift and power of gratitude, you’ll feel better and do better!
“Gratitude is the single most important ingredient to living a successful and fulfilled life.” – Jack Canfield
