How to Create a Work Family

No matter what we call them, teams, family, staff, employees, or co-workers, our people are our most valuable asset. They only work well together when they feel like they belong. Today I’m going to refer to these people as the “work family”. I remember a friend once telling me that she was creating a family environment for her family. I found that funny because my family took no creating, so I thought. I have changed my point of view. My mother & father did such a great job of bringing us together that I did not realize it took effort. In a business, like in the family, one or two core persons set the tone. In my family it was my mother who set the tone. While my mother & father set in motion the standards for family, my extended family helped reinforce them; Respect Acceptance Empathy Gratitude Honesty Trust These six standard characteristics can be used to build and maintain the work family.

Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• A job
• A position of influence
• A desire to create a work family/ culture
• Time

1. Respect has to be mutual. A lack of respect can create drama and distraction. In this environment the work no longer is the focus but the drama is. With drama as a focus any work is difficult to complete without quality being sacrificed. Short term, the work family can accomplish some goals in this environment. Usually not without sacrificing the other 6 characteristics listed above.
   
   We can make respect work by giving it to everyone, especially when you think someone is not deserving of it. Only then will you gain the rewards of respect. When given in this manner respect can be the tool that breaks down resistant employees or clients for that matter.
2. Acceptance must also be mutual. Acceptance of all words, gestures or actions. We may not like what someone has to say but do not take it personal. All differences accepted and expected.
   
   Acceptance works when each person’s differences are expected and accepted
3. Empathy in line with respect and acceptance helps build strong relationships. A manager can make an educated decision about what is best for the entire work family. If the decision is made without empathy the employee will know that the decisions were not made with their interests in mind. When it comes time for the employee to support the rest of the work family, they will less likely support a group that does not care about them.
   
   Empathy works when you listen and respond to the needs of the people around you. It is not good enough to seek out others feelings. Your decisions have to be based around them.
4. Gratitude is to be grateful, happiness in, your surroundings. If you have this it can affect your overall attitude and how you respond to others around you. When you are grateful the people around you will notice and react accordingly. It sets a feeling of calm and comfort, rather than panic.
   
   Gratitude works by creating a calm and content environment. Be careful not to let this go to the extreme. Be grateful not only for all of the differences between your employees but also between you and your competition.
5. Honesty, do I actually need to explain this one? It is the one characteristic mentioned that can, alone, destroy the entire family. A person once told me that if someone is willing to talk about other persons negative attributes with you, they will surely speak with others about your negatives. This simple act, not discussing negatives of others when they are not around, will do wonders for developing trust in a work family.
   
   Honesty works, when you hold yourself and the entire staff to the same standards and make sure not to be flexible when managing honesty.
6. Trust and honesty go hand in hand. Without it the family will divide and fall. However if you have all of the other characteristics mentioned trust will happen.
   
   To gain trust make sure that you display respect, acceptance, empathy, gratitude, and honesty consistently and you will have your employees trust.

Tips & Warnings

• So there you have it, no matter what the situations we are faced with remember to react with the 6 characteristics mentioned here and you will build a strong family that will stand the test of time. The better you become at it the less it actually looks like your working at it.