At the end of Sunday's New England and Baltimore football game (well, actually it was more like a pounding than a game) the television commentator said that the Baltimore coach wouldn't have to work as hard this coming week as he had the previous week. It seems that Coach Harbaugh spent an awful lot of time telling his team how good they were, and clearly the 33-14 final score proved his point.
It reminded me once again that good storeowners and managers need to tell their teams that they're good at what they do. Most owners/managers fall into one of three categories.
Some owners and managers constantly let the team know how good they are but the performance doesn't necessarily reflect that. At first you might think it's because the team isn't as good as the owner/manager says it is. While that can certainly be the case, more often than not it's because the owner/manager isn't expecting enough.
I know I keep saying this but I'm going to say it again - there is a direct correlation between high expectations and specialty store results. People too often confuse mediocrity with high-performance. Managers and owners need to motivate their team to keep reaching for higher performance by nailing the basics of an extraordinary experience with every customer.
There is another group of owners and managers that have a really good team but never let them know. I once worked for a manager like that. He was a nice guy but the man never, ever, praised anyone or gave any positive feedback. He didn't give any developmental feedback of any sort. While this manager/owner may expect more from their team than the first type of owner/manager, the staff will never know it because no one ever tells them.
The best owners and managers tell the staff how good they are because, well, they are. They've set daily goals and the staff is either achieving them, or at the very least they're taking the actions necessary to reach the goal. Everyone on the team knows why he/she is being praised. Usually it's a combination of both team and individual focus and development.
I'm big on telling people how good they are because they're demonstrating right behaviors. This way, even if the results right now aren't always what we want to see, they eventually will be if the staff keeps showing that they're taking the actions necessary to get there. It's a big old wheel that the leader has to keep spinning.
Here's what I want you think about. In what area could you walk up right now and tell your team how good they are? Wait; before you head off to do this, what do you think they will say? Okay, now ask them. If their answer matches yours, you're right on the money. If they don't match, think about what developmental work you should be doing with the staff.
It reminded me once again that good storeowners and managers need to tell their teams that they're good at what they do. Most owners/managers fall into one of three categories.
Some owners and managers constantly let the team know how good they are but the performance doesn't necessarily reflect that. At first you might think it's because the team isn't as good as the owner/manager says it is. While that can certainly be the case, more often than not it's because the owner/manager isn't expecting enough.
I know I keep saying this but I'm going to say it again - there is a direct correlation between high expectations and specialty store results. People too often confuse mediocrity with high-performance. Managers and owners need to motivate their team to keep reaching for higher performance by nailing the basics of an extraordinary experience with every customer.
There is another group of owners and managers that have a really good team but never let them know. I once worked for a manager like that. He was a nice guy but the man never, ever, praised anyone or gave any positive feedback. He didn't give any developmental feedback of any sort. While this manager/owner may expect more from their team than the first type of owner/manager, the staff will never know it because no one ever tells them.
The best owners and managers tell the staff how good they are because, well, they are. They've set daily goals and the staff is either achieving them, or at the very least they're taking the actions necessary to reach the goal. Everyone on the team knows why he/she is being praised. Usually it's a combination of both team and individual focus and development.
I'm big on telling people how good they are because they're demonstrating right behaviors. This way, even if the results right now aren't always what we want to see, they eventually will be if the staff keeps showing that they're taking the actions necessary to get there. It's a big old wheel that the leader has to keep spinning.
Here's what I want you think about. In what area could you walk up right now and tell your team how good they are? Wait; before you head off to do this, what do you think they will say? Okay, now ask them. If their answer matches yours, you're right on the money. If they don't match, think about what developmental work you should be doing with the staff.
Go ahead; tell your team how good they are. I'm sure they've earned it.
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At Dynamic Experiences Group we help good and even great companies to dramatically improve their sales and customer advocacy.
How? By
- Dramatically improving the customer experience.
- Help managers and owners to become better leaders.
- Coach owners and executives to improve their organization.
- Present high-energy high-impact programs
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