I was recently asked a question by a leader who was struggling with his team. He asked, “How do I influence team members who may not be at my maturity level, and not under my direction. They spend our time whining or deviating from the work at hand (distracting), even after we established principles.”
© Shawn Stratton
The simple answer: add more value to them. You see leadership is about having influence. Add more value gain more influence. Of course, the follow-up question would be “that’s nice, so how do I add more value to my team members?”
As a leader, there are many ways to add value to your team members. Below is a list of 10 surefire ways to add more value to your team. If you are struggling with the level of influence you have on your team, ask yourself at what level are you adding value to the lives of your team members? A good exercise would be to go through the list and grade yourself from 1 to 10 on each item.
© Lap Fung Chan
- Provide Learning Opportunities In And Outside The Organization – Invest in their education
- Role Model The Behavior You Expect – Their respect grows as they watch your every move.
- Maximize Their Strengths – Allow them to build on their mastery.
- Provide Constant Quality Feedback With A Ratio Beyond 3:1 Positive To Constructive – The greatest learnings come from feedback, show them you care.
- Trust Them – Allow them to make real decisions that are in alignment with their skills, training and experience.
- Encourage Taking Educated Risks – Great achievements and discoveries are never achieved without risk.
- Give Them Autonomy – Tell them what needs to be accomplished and get out of their way.
- Know How They Like To Be Appreciated – The wrong type of appreciation can be a waste of time and money and can cause you to lose influence.
- Take Interest In Their Life In And Outside Of Work – Regularly inquire about their history, families, and hobbies.
- Listen To Them! – Ask questions and really really listen.
Great leaders grow their influence daily by constantly practicing these 10 value-producing actions. Once you score yourself on each action, focus on the 3 lowest and seek opportunities to implement them in your daily interactions with your team and I guarantee you your influence will start to grow.
Let me know in the comments below how you add value to your team.
Until next week… Embrace the Adventure!
Shawn
Shawn Stratton is an international leadership and team building consultant, professional speaker, bestselling author, Ironman competitor, expedition guide and podcast host.
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