Wondering why your people don’t care? Well, your people don’t care because you don’t care for your people.
This will be a short post, which is probably good because there are likely to be a whole bunch of people who won’t like it.
Perhaps cause the truth hurts?
You call yourself a leader? Then you must care first.
As a leader you cannot expect your people to do anything first, especially care. When your people know, with very little doubt, that you truly care about them then they will feel it is safe to care about you.
If your people can’t trust you, if they don’t see you as honest and credible, then they CAN’T trust you. It’s virtually humanly impossible to truly care about someone you believe does not have your interests in mind.
If you’re trying to get your people to care, about their job, the company and especially your customers then you had better be prepared to demonstrate that you care first. Until they can care about you it will be pretty difficult for them to care about much of anything.
You can tell them to care, you can even try ordering them to care but you should know that people buy into the leader before they buy into their leadership. If they can’t buy into you why would they buy into anything you want them to do.
Stop waiting for your people to care, start SHOWING that you understand that they are people, people with the same needs, challenges and emotions that you have. When you SHOW that you care you will no longer have to wonder why your people don’t.
It’s called follow the leader for a reason, YOU go first!
Well said, Steve. I learned that in addition to being a leader the very same “experience” applies when I am a parent…..a coach…..a spouse….a lover….a partner….a teacher.
Absolutely true Joe!
Great post Steve. I was going to mention something along the lines as Steve regarding parenting. That’s the 1st and most important leadership job that sets the tone for the rest of a child’s life!
Sometimes, parents expect the child to be a better person than the parent is…to be all loving, all giving and forgiving….they don’t understand that they are the model and the mirror. For the most part, the child can only mirror back what it ‘see’s. (from parents, family, teachers, friends, culture etc)
Apologies…I was going to mention something along the lines as Joe. : )
Great great point. Parents ARE leaders. Leaders model the type of behavior they will get back from their followers- whether they want that behavior or not.
When I’m editing, if I’m convinced that the author doesn’t care, why should I?
Yep, that’s how it works!
If you are an editor then, doesn’t that make ‘you’ the leader though, and the author the follower? I’m assuming they are hiring you to edit their work because they need someone who can do it better than they can.
So in that light, I would hope that the person I am hiring to help me, because I’m not good at doing it myself, will care about the work they do for me. If they don’t, why should I hire them?
The thoughts and words come from the author. The author is the leader. The editor’s job is to ensure that nothing gets between the reader and the message. Ideally, the author cares about such things. The editor collaborates. The editor doesn’t do all the work and wave the magic wand. Whose name is on the spine of the book? The author, who is the leader.
(I am both author and editor, and I always think the author leads. The editor is just an incredibly useful assistant.)
Thanks for clarifying Michael. In that case, if I felt that I couldn’t care for the job because my client doesn’t seem to care, I would rather not take that job than perform less than quality work because the other person doesn’t care! 😃
Perhaps I’m too old school still in some ways. I still believe in trying my best. It’s about our character, not the other persons character.
We are emotional beings. Show me you care and you touch my heart. As a father I try every single day to show that I care for my boys and it works. He have great realationship. Thanks for the valuable reminder.
Thanks for your comment, as parents it’s far too easy to forget that we are the primary leader for our kids. They example we set early in their life will always be a part of who they are. Not THAT is an awesome responsibility!