Masonry Magazine October 2000 Page. 26
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LISTEN
This next part is important. You need to listen to what they have to say. Some suggestions will be good, some bad, some petty, and some stupid. Don't panic and don't take anything personally. You'll very likely be surprised by what you hear. There really are some very bright and en-lightened people working out there - even those that you never thought possessed a "high-concept" kind of minds. Discuss their comments openly and (for those ideas you feel are worth considering) set specific goals to address and/or remedy any negative situations. This shows your people that you take their input seriously. Also, by letting your workers air their concerns and convictions, you have (perhaps unwittingly) taken your first step towards empowering your employees.
EMPOWERMENT
I'm a strong believer in empowering people. Empowerment is the act of giving some level of power to your employees. In the old days, it was known as "delegating authority." Now, I know this can be very difficult for some of you owners. It can be very difficult to let go. It's understandable. After all, you've built this baby from the ground up and there's naturally a strong emotional attachment. But by empowering others, you not only improve the self-esteem and self-worth of your employee, you also free yourself up to explore other avenues (marketing, expansion of territory, philanthropical endeavors, etc.), making your company even stronger. Empowerment means giving your employee (perhaps a superintendent) more responsibility and decision-making capabilities. By relinquishing just one level of your total command, you're telling the employee that you acknowledge his skills and abilities. Pride can be a strong motivator. By realizing that now it's his decisions and actions that affect the end-product, he'll, more often than not, become more responsible, more inventive, and more attentive to his work. In addition, he'll become more proud of his role with the company-and more proud of himself as a human being!
REWARD PROGRAMS
It's hard to talk about improving morale without discussing reward programs. People are people and, like it or not, there are few things on this earth more motivating than being rewarded for a job well done. And that's how it should be. If your employee does work above and beyond the call of duty - he should be rewarded. Now, if you've read other morale articles, this is the part of the article where I'm supposed to say, "but there are methods of reward other than money...". Wrong! Money is a grrreeeaaatttt motivator. Given the choice between my boss's praise and $500-gimme the $500! But seriously, if you're like me, your absolute first priority in life is to provide for your family and praise doesn't put food on the table! Praise and small rewards are fine, but don't fool yourself money is what people long for. But it's not just that. From a business perspective, I cannot think of a better place to spend money than on the self-esteem and the future motivation of an employee. That employee's attitude is very arguably your greatest avenue