How to Be a Better Boss

If you want to be a great boss, you will need to make developing relationships top priority. An excellent boss understands the need for teamwork and realizes it's all about establishing professional relationships.

Instructions

A Great Boss Makes Great Use of His Human Resources

1. Understand the people who work for you. Know the strengths and weaknesses of each of your workers and capitalize on them. Have them take a personality inventory like the Kiersey Temperament Sorter. (See Resources below.)These will help them understand their strengths and it will also help you with placement. Having the right people in the right positions can increase effectiveness and productivity exponentially.

2. Listen to the people who work for you. Have brainstorming sessions and listen to their concerns, complaints and suggestions. Listening doesn't obligate you to do anything but it shows that you are willing to hear. Realize that everyone is capable of a great idea so offer people a time and place to be a greater asset to you.

3. Mentor, don't boss. Great bosses don't boss people, they mentor them. People respond really well when they feel that you have their best interests at heart rather than just your own. You really do want them to grow and improve, to develop better skills and to have more confidence because then they will be better workers. As you mentor (or teach by example) your top people, teach mentoring skills to them to use with the people they manage.

4. Treat people with dignity and respect and they will respond in kind. If someone has done something wrong, talk to them privately and reasonably. Never embarrass or shame employees by correcting them in front of others. Even in private, you will get farther with kind words that will encourage someone to do better than by belittling them.

5. Don't show favoritism. It's natural to click better with some people than others but don't let these feelings show. If you have office rules and standards, make sure that all people are held to them equally. Office politics will destroy morale and performance and productivity. If you want to shower someone with praise, say a word or two publicly and say anything else in private. Don't do anything that will breed resentment and pettiness between workers.

6. Delegate. If you must do everything yourself, your business will always be less than it could be. Great bosses spend their time building relationships and planning ahead and they delegate the bulk of the work to their employees. If you're doing too much of the work, these more vital areas will be neglected.

7. Learn how to save time and money explaining what you and your business is all about. Draft an employee manual with workplace ethics, professional standards of dress and conduct--written in intelligent and kind language rather than hard and fast will prevent endless debating and explaining these issues. Don't forget to include a statement of your company's vision - where you are going and how you will get there.

8. Maintain a standard of professionalism and excellence. Behave like a professional in your dress, speech and conduct and you will set the stage for your workers' behavior as well. Insist that workers behave with professionalism even with each other. It will not only keep things running more smoothly but it will give workers a sense of pride and confidence in their work.

9. Being a good boss all comes down to setting a standard of professional conduct and personal character that your workers both respect and want to emulate. This will be how you take your business from adequate to excellence in every level.

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Keirsey Temperment Sorter