How to keep employees. Part 1

How to keep employees

Part 1 

I have had the blessing of being on both sides of coin. I have a business and hire, but I have also worked for many places and have been an employee.  Seeing things from both angles has really offered me a unique perspective. This is part 1 of a multi-part blog on how to keep people working for you.

Today we will start with one of the most important ways to keep employees working for you. Here is a hint: It has NOTHING to do with money!

GROWTH

There is an old saying, “If you’re not growing, you’re dying”.  If you follow the work of Tony Robbins , this is one of the things he always talks about. We need growth in life in order to feel as though we are achieving.  Growth leads to happiness and a happy employee is a good employee.

The following are examples of how to stimulate growth. Some I have used and some are experiences of friends.

Team education  .  I have been fortunate in the last few years to have presented to some really great staff’s.  Friends of mine will call me up to go teach their staff about new training methods or teach about leadership.  This is important because it gets expensive to send your staff to seminars all the time. Getting someone to come in and educate your staff keeps everyone on the same page while increasing their ability to perform.  When they learn new training methods, it keeps them excited.  They will want to work more in order to try these new methods on clients.

Keeping everyone on the same level with education also prevents you from having too many weak links. Granted, its hard when you keep getting new people. It’s time consuming to catch them up to the level of those that have been there for a long time. However, it is necessary to maintain a standard level to training in your facility.

 Networking  Anyone who knows me knows that I preach the importance of networking to EVERYONE. Whenever possible, invite your employees to meet other people in your industry. We have developed theFLOnetwork, which is a network of health professionals that meets at events once a month. My staff is always invited to these events. This is where they get to talk shop with others in their same position or in positions they wish to get to one day.  Networking with these people is important because it will help you develop your own identity within the industry. Everyone wants to be known for who they are and not just for whom they work for.

Meeting with others can also give you some perspective on what else is out there. If a boss is really crappy, trainers will vent about it.  Hearing this may keep your staff happy, knowing they get treated better than someone else.

Promotion :  Since I run a small business there is not much room for promotion.  I do however have friends who work in corporate jobs and have been promoted.  Knowing there are new roles within a company to fill is a huge advantage. This gives employees something to aim for. This will keep them wanting to work hard so they can earn that top spot.  I also encourage business owners to promote from within. If you find an outside person to fill a higher end job it may break some of the bonds and trust of those who already work there.  No one likes an outsider coming into a company and barking orders at them.

I want to also mention that you must be cautious when promoting. Often times in business the company will promote you outside of your competency level. For example if you are a great trainer and they promote you to trainer manager, you may fail at that. Maybe you’re not good at leading a team. Your goal is to promote the person to success not failure.

Personal Growth : Networking also leads to personal growth. When you bond and interact with others in the industry it can help you learn to navigate your way in social environments.  Helping someone become a better person in priceless. The lessons learned will help them for the rest of their lives.  This is the ultimate goal for any employer. You want people to be better because they knew you. You want them to shine and become who they were destine to be. Too often jobs try to stop this for fear that the person will leave and move on.  But it’s my belief that we are all here to help each other grow and change.  If change means moving on then so be it.  In the long run this approach will help you. People will feel comfortable coming back or even referring to you because they know you’re a good person.

These are just a few of many examples of how to promote growth in a company. If you find this helpful please share, comment and like.

Stay tuned for Part 2