When employees are happy, great things can happen…3 things you must know to have happy employees.
Happy employees matter. It is the happy people that go the extra mile, impact the culture and elevate the team to the next level. Happy employees make the difference between mildly successful and wildly successful.
You think, and want others to think, that you do care about the employees that work for you. But if you examine your actions- and this is where the rubber hits the road, Folks- are they in line with this thought or is it nothing more than lip service because you know that it the expectation?
Here are a few things that may help you determine if you truly care to impact your employee’s happiness:
1. Employees are people- not assets. You can’t act like people are things. As soon as you don’t consider feelings (I know it is almost innate in business people to want to divorce themselves from this “soft” stuff but it causes more problems than they are willing to admit), you are acting as if your employees are no different than a piece of equipment to be used by you and discarded when they have expended their usefulness to you that is how they will act. No one will be happy if they feel expendable. (Notice the repeated “you” in this section- it was not an accident. Whose interest comes first in your world?)
2. People need a vision– your employees will gladly pitch in to do whatever it is that needs done, IF they can see how their efforts will positively impact the direction of the company. Employees that have the feeling of belonging and being able to contribute to a common goal will happily do what it takes to ensure success and isn’t that what you want?
3. Trust is paramount to leadership success and good leaders are paramount to happy employees– Leaders, PLEASE listen closely…trust is the most valuable commodity you can ever hope to have, it takes time and effort to gain it and it can be downright elusive: do not jeopardize it for any reason. Once it is gone, it is gone and it will take more than a miracle to try to build that again. And guess what, you might not even realize that it is gone. Employees are NOT going to come up to you and tell you that they don’t trust you, period. So what can you do? While this is a topic big enough to fill several books, I can give you my bottom line, basic thought on it…be ”real” with your employees. You might think that employees believe the façade you have built, but I can guarantee with 100% certainty that they don’t. So… What is real? Tell the truth, keep your word, maintain a high ethical standard, never break the Golden Rule, admit when you are wrong and be transparent. People need to know what to expect from you and if you don’t offer that “real” you to them they will not trust you.
Happiness is not going to come to your employees because you buy doughnuts on Friday mornings or throw pizza parties on occasion. They will be happy if you treat them as valuable, unique individuals that you want to be part of the team. They need to know you care and that you have their back—and they will in turn have yours. When employees are happy, great things can happen. –Tony Hsieh. CEO Zappos
Save Spontaneous for Vacation-Employees Need to See the Map
Several years ago, I was having a particularly bad week and by the time Friday got here I was fried! My husband, in his infinite wisdom, decided the best way for me to keep my sanity was to come home and inform me that I needed a vacation. Of course I did! Who doesn’t? But this, instead of thrilling me, actually immediately added to my stress level.
Great, I thought, still one more thing to add to my to-do list…plan a vacation. After voicing this concern in maybe not the most loving tone, my husband agreed with me. So, once again in his infinite wisdom, told me to go and pack up a few things for me and the kids for the weekend- he was taking us on a spontaneous vacation.
Well, let me tell you, it was AWESOME! We loaded in the car and headed west with no destination in mind. It was crazy and impulsive and an absolute blast that my kids still talk about today (and request that we do it again). Given my story and the great result, you would think that I am going to advocate the “flying by the seat of your pants” approach but nothing can be further from the truth.
I think our spontaneous vacation was a success because we had no fixed outcome in mind other than to be together and enjoy some time away from home- easy to succeed with such loose parameters and with really nothing to lose. But let’s be honest, in our careers and in business we have a serious desired outcome that usually is attached to our livelihood giving it that extra bump on the critical scale. We have to know where we are going if we even have the slightest hope of getting there.
It seems very elementary and very cliché but I don’t know why then so many managers do not feel it is important for their employees to have a vision of where the company is headed. And I don’t just mean paying lip service to a vision statement but a real, truthful, transparent look at the future of the company. Giving them that does not reduce management’s power but shares the power with everyone who has the ability to help impact the outcome. Doing this helps everything else fall into place. People want to be part of something bigger than themselves and will work very hard to ensure the success of something that they feel a part of. Share- share the vision, share the responsibility and share the success!
HonestlyHR 
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