As a leader or a manager, do you tell people how to do their job or do you inform them what needs to get accomplished and allow them to determine the best way to complete the work? Let's look at it from the position of the employee. How much personal satisfaction is there when the assignment is completely programmed and the staff feels unfilled? I have been in team meetings where the boss would come into the room, state the problem, and then offer his or her opinion of how the issue should be fixed. They then decided to go around the room and ask for any input on how the task should be completed. What employee is going to say anything contrary to what the boss has just said? If the boss is really interested in employee input, a better way to handle the situation would be for the boss to enter the room, state the problem, and then open up the floor for any comments the team members might have to offer as a solution. According to a LinkedIn article (Shreve - 7/5/2022) here are five freedoms for promoting workplace independence: 1. Freedom To Be - When a workplace is psychologically healthy and safe, employees feel empowered to bring their authentic selves to work. 2. Freedom To Flex - Whenever possible develop a "get the job completed" mentality demonstrating you trust your staff to to work when, where, and however best leverages their individual talents. 3. Freedom To Probe - Foster an environment where your team can ask difficult questions that will improve the process of accomplishing the mission. 4. Freedom To Try - If you have developed a "fear of failure" culture your team will resist any type of new innovation that could improve productivity. Mistakes will happen. The difference will be, how you respond to those mistakes. 5. Freedom To Grow - Do you empower and encourage your staff to explore new opportunities, even if it may be a detriment to you? Or do you create a culture that growth or new opportunities is a betrayal to the team? Leaders or managers who give their teams the autonomy to get the job done will usually enjoy increased morale and productivity among their staff. Having happy and healthy employees makes a leadership role much easier to manage. Please watch the short video below about some additional ideas leaders can use to provide more freedom to their team to accomplish the mission. Also, please leave me a comment about how you provide a safe and independent workplace where your staff can be in control of how the job gets done.
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![]() ![]() Author & SpeakerTerry is a sought after speaker who believes in the power of a story to motivate, inspire, and help others lead their uncommon and extraordinary lives. By combining his thirteen-year terminal cancer journey with his diverse business, athletic coaching, and hostage negotiating expertise, he delivers compelling yet relatable presentations for conferences, on-line events, panels, meetings, and seminars. Archives
February 2025
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