You Can't Buy the Wag of a Tail

I don’t know Josh, but his quote applied to more than just dogs, it applies to people too! If you know me, you know I grew up training dogs in obedience trials and many of the things I learned there apply to what I know about helping people to win. Training dogs is a struggle because they can’t tell you in words what they are thinking. The only way you know the training works is that your pooch performs for you seeking out your recognition and praise for a job well done. Think about what you would have to do if your employees and managers couldn’t talk…..oh, that would be fun to see!

Now finding great employees and managers can be tough but not because of the economy. It’s tough because the really great ones are working somewhere they love. Why do they love it so much? Because they work for a person or Company that they trust and want to work for. Now you can pay them a lot, but if they don’t trust you they will eventually get tired, bored, frustrated and will leave to go find something that fulfills not only their pocketbooks but also they want to enjoy what they are doing and YOU, the boss, are what provides that environment. If you can’t provide an environment where people want to perform, no amount of money is going to keep them around because “Cash is not King”. It will only go so far.

The number one solution to making sure your team is engaged and believes in you comes down to one thing in my mind….TALKING to them. Here are some questions you might try to display your desire to create an awesome work environment that will keep them around for a long time.

-Do you love working here? If there were one thing I could do to make this the best place to work, what would it be?

-Do you have everything you need to take care of the guests? What could I provide you with today that would make doing your job a lot
easier?

-Do you enjoy working for me? Do I motivate you to want to do a great job? If I could do one thing to be a better leader what would it be?

-Does your work schedule provide you the opportunity to do what you want outside of work? If you had a perfect schedule, what would it look like?

-Is there anything I could do for one of your coworkers that would make there jobs a lot better?

While you are getting the answers to the above questions, shut up and listen. Write down their responses, affirm that you hear what they are saying, and above all…actually do what they tell you. Do this process as often as you can with as many of your team as possible and watch your turnover go down, your sales go up, and yes more employees will come walking in your door, because word will spread fast that not only are you the place to be for guests but also the best job in town!