{"id":1048,"date":"2022-05-12T11:22:00","date_gmt":"2022-05-12T10:22:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/?p=1048"},"modified":"2024-07-22T13:34:57","modified_gmt":"2024-07-22T11:34:57","slug":"15-tips-to-not-frustrate-the-heck-out-of-your-team-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/2022\/05\/12\/15-tips-to-not-frustrate-the-heck-out-of-your-team-1\/","title":{"rendered":"15 tips to (not) frustrate the heck out of your team"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

My Corporate Survival Hacks series draws on experiences of working in local, regional and global life-science communications to offer some little tips for enjoying a big business career. This column focuses on how poor managers frequently treat employees; it might hold some hints to support and retain strong talent \u2013 and benefit from their continued enthusiasm and drive for results.<\/strong><\/p>

Throughout my career, I\u2019ve enjoyed some terrific managers, but also some mediocre ones. Each taught me valuable lessons. Even the latter helped me understand what type of manager I never wanted to become.<\/p>

Great leaders inspire their teams and create a vision everyone can strive towards. They help people stretch and grow. They set clear goals but don\u2019t micromanage on how to get there. Their leadership style builds loyalty and gets employees excited about achieving a shared mission.<\/p>

Poor managers, on the other hand, frustrate people through behaviours that limit and discourage that mission. Here are a few examples of bad leadership traits that come with a near-guarantee to demotivate employees, destroy confidence and turn high-potential talent into poor performance.<\/p>

Control and micromanage your team<\/strong><\/p>

The number one behaviour annoying and discouraging most employees, in my experience, is micromanagement. Of course, junior colleagues and those completely new to an unfamiliar role need stronger guidance than experienced people or those who\u2019ve been performing that role for a while. And some may seek close guidance until they\u2019ve become confident in a new position.<\/p>

However, when a manager interferes with the work of capable colleagues every step of the way, the latter will soon become frustrated and likely seek to move on to a different manager \u2013 or a new company altogether \u2013 who appreciates their expertise and maturity.<\/p>

What\u2019s even worse: an insecure manager trying to control their team\u2019s every move, like asking to be copied on emails or requesting updates constantly. That, too, will freak people out, stress them and stifle any progress.<\/p>

Especially with professionals who have accumulated a lot of experience, the way to build trust and encourage them to perform their best is to agree to mutual goals, yet allow them the freedom to decide how to best reach these. Agree to regular check-ins if you must, but don\u2019t breathe down their neck in-between for updates. An inspired team member will bend over backwards to exceed expectations. A micromanaged one won\u2019t.<\/p>

Take credit for your team\u2019s work<\/strong><\/p>

Yes I\u2019ve had them, too: managers taking credit for my work. Which I don\u2019t get \u2013 at all. As a manager, every success of your team will reflect positively on you, your competence, your leadership. The more you let your team shine, the more they will run for you.<\/p>

In contrast, taking credit for your team\u2019s work kills their spirit. As simple as that. They will stop respecting you. Nor is it credible to anyone above in the pecking order that you alone would have achieved all the results of your group.<\/p>

Just don\u2019t do it.<\/p>

Show your team how smart you are \u2013 all the time<\/strong><\/p>

One of the surest ways to demoralise people and lose their interest and loyalty fast is to constantly show them you\u2019re smarter than they are; especially when you copy others to demonstrate your superiority, or let it out on them in meetings in front of colleagues.<\/p>

The sad truth is that you might know more than they do, in some areas. However, the way to deal with that is not to constantly rub it in. Be graceful, be generous, be humble. Your people will adore you for it.<\/p>

Dismiss and disrespect your team<\/strong><\/p>

Tell them off in front of colleagues. Ignore them in meetings. Employees who don\u2019t feel important to you will not want to give their best for you. If you\u2019re known to not answer emails, shun them, cancel meetings last minute or routinely show up 20 minutes late, they will feel they don\u2019t matter and eventually stop trying to engage with you.<\/p>

If you publicly insult employees, yell at them, badmouth absent people or gossip about others, you\u2019re on a sure path to ruining trust and relationships. Being humiliated in front of peers is a huge blow to anyone\u2019s ego. When it happens, this is another certain way to damage someone\u2019s self-esteem and wipe out their respect for you.<\/p>

Confuse and misguide your team<\/strong><\/p>

Brief your team member about something they need to achieve for you. Then change direction without letting them know. But still hold them accountable for not following the change in direction, which no one told them about. It\u2019ll confuse them mightily, leaving them stranded somewhere between disappointment and anger. They will question the value you\u2019re placing on them and their contributions if they\u2019re not kept in the loop or if they feel forgotten.<\/p>

Another great way of unsettling your team is to not set expectations at all. Leave them to guess what they should be doing. Then hold them accountable for goals they weren\u2019t aware of. Best, wait until the year is over before informing them that they haven\u2019t met expectations. It\u2019ll leave them deflated, feeling like a failure no matter how hard they have worked for you.<\/p>

Marginalise your team and fail to retain them<\/strong><\/p>

When leaders focus on really unimportant details, like who was in the office first or stayed last, or how long exactly did you break for lunch when working from home today \u2013 when you\u2019ve just been slaving through the weekend to ensure to keep things afloat \u2013 they will leave you defeated, not wanting to go the \u2018extra mile\u2019 for them.<\/p>

When employees aren\u2019t recognised for achievements that matter, they will \u2018check out\u2019, as whatever they do there\u2019s nothing that seems meaningful and, therefore, no way for them to succeed.<\/p>

Lastly, if you\u2019re experiencing high turnover, especially among capable talent, this could mean one of two things. Either, you\u2019re a terrific manager who develops and supports team members and makes them visible in record time, so that other leaders inside and outside your organisation notice and pinch them; or the opposite \u2026 someone who frustrates people, doesn\u2019t make them feel valued or treated fairly.<\/p>

Make your pick!<\/p>

Top people management tips<\/span><\/h4>
  • Create an inspiring, shared vision for your team<\/li>
  • Help people stretch and grow<\/li>
  • Set goals yet allow people the freedom to reach these in their own way<\/li>
  • Don\u2019t micromanage experienced team members<\/li>
  • Don\u2019t try to constantly control employees<\/li>
  • Let team members shine for their successes; don\u2019t take credit for their work<\/li>
  • Don\u2019t constantly rub in how much smarter you are than anyone else<\/li>
  • Treat your team with respect and don\u2019t be dismissive<\/li>
  • Never insult or humiliate people<\/li>
  • Be consistent in directing your employees<\/li>
  • Agree on clear targets and help people achieve them<\/li>
  • Avoid confusing people with unclear or ever-changing goals<\/li>
  • Recognise colleagues for achievements that matter<\/li>
  • Don\u2019t marginalise them by focusing on unimportant details<\/li>
  • Make people feel valued and treat them fairly<\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    How do poor managers treat employees? This post also holds hints to support and retain strong talent and benefit from their continued enthusiasm and drive for results.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":467,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"0","ocean_second_sidebar":"0","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"0","ocean_custom_header_template":"0","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"0","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"0","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"0","ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"off","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-allgemein","entry","has-media"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1048","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1048"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1048\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6163,"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1048\/revisions\/6163"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/467"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1048"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1048"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stretch-coaching.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1048"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}