Keeping great people, are we really listening?
I often think about how much time, energy and investment goes into finding the right people for a business.
Recruitment can be hard enough, but once you have found someone who is a good fit, the real work begins. You train them, support them, teach them how your business works and, hopefully, watch them grow in confidence and become an important part of your team.
So, when a good member of staff leaves, it can feel like a real loss.
Not just because you have to find someone new, but because you lose the experience, knowledge and relationships that person has built along the way.
It got me thinking about something quite simple.
What if we spent more time asking our staff what they need before they decide they need to leave?
As business owners and managers, we can become so focused on keeping the business moving that we don't always have the time to stop and ask how the people around us are actually doing.
We might think we know.
We see them working hard. We have conversations in passing. We ask, “Everything okay?”
And often the answer is, “Yes, fine.”
But is it?
Work and Life
Work-life balance is talked about a lot these days, but I wonder how often we really stop to understand what it means to the people in our own businesses.
For one person, it might mean being able to finish on time.
For another, it might be having more flexibility around family.
Someone else may simply need to feel that when they leave work, they can actually switch off.
We are all different.
And perhaps that's the point.
We can't assume that what works for one person will work for another.
Sometimes, what people need most isn't a major change. It might simply be the opportunity to talk, to be heard and to feel that their opinion matters.
Creating the space to talk
This is one of the reasons I have developed my 6-hour staff workshop.
Six hours might sound like a long time, but how often do we actually give our teams that amount of uninterrupted time to stop and think?
The workshop creates a space away from the usual pressures of the working day.
A space to explore the here and now.
How are things really feeling?
What's working well?
What's causing frustration?
How is work affecting life outside of work?
What would make things better?
And perhaps most importantly, what do staff wish their business owner or manager understood?
I don't see my role as coming in and telling a business what it should do.
My role is to create the environment where people can think, talk and listen.
Through discussion, reflection and practical activities, we can explore work-life balance, communication, relationships within the team and the things that may be getting in the way of people feeling happy and valued at work.
There is also an opportunity to look at how feedback can be given constructively to business owners and managers.
Because feedback shouldn't only happen when something goes wrong.
It should be part of creating a healthy business where people feel able to say, “This is working well,” or, “I think we could do this differently.”
What could you discover?
I believe that sometimes the biggest changes can come from simply asking better questions and being prepared to listen to the answers.
Imagine - Your staff may have ideas you haven't thought of.
Imagine - They may have concerns you didn't realise were there.
Imagine - They may be perfectly happy, but have suggestions that could make things even better.
And sometimes, they may simply need to know that their voice matters.
Let's STOP imagining and let's find out! For me, that's what this workshop is really about.
Stopping. Listening. Reflecting. And looking at what could be possible.
Because retaining good people isn't just about keeping someone on the payroll.
It's about creating a place where people want to stay.
So perhaps ask yourself:
When was the last time I really asked my team how they were doing?
Do my staff feel comfortable telling me what they really think?
Am I listening to understand, or simply listening to respond?
What could I learn if I gave my team six hours to step away from the day-to-day and reflect?
And finally…
What might change if my staff felt truly heard?
If these questions have made you stop and think, perhaps it's time to create that space.
I'd love to talk to you about how a six-hour workshop could work for your team and what we could discover together.
Sometimes, the best way to keep great people is simply to give them the opportunity to be heard.
Get in touch and lets discuss what would benefit your company.
WhatsApp to find out more +34 696 982 873
