Management Tips to Help Your Teams Thrive

Successful teams are the foundation on which businesses are built. Strong, consistent teamwork helps ensure that safety and quality standards are upheld, deadlines are met, employees are happy and engaged, and productivity and profitability are optimized.

What can you, as a manager, do to help your teams thrive and maximize their potential?

Start with who’s on the team, and why.

If you inherit an already existing team, it may have a legacy component that can pose challenges. You may be reluctant to make changes, especially if you’re the newcomer and some of the team members have been around for quite a while. But in reality, that may be the problem. Is it time for fresh perspectives and ideas?

You may need to act, but a word of caution: not too quickly. Team building takes time and patience. But it also takes courage, so when the time is right, you can acknowledge that a team is not functioning as well as it might, and then make changes.

Align team vision with business vision.

There should be a team vision that’s in sync with your organizational vision and goals – and that vision should be clearly and frequently communicated. Once this is happening, you can help people grow and develop in their roles on the team, and help your business achieve greater success as a result.

Show, don’t tell. Define what behaviors coincide with your values and what progress metrics you need to track. Then, to truly embed them, you need to embody them. Practice what you preach. Don’t micromanage or do other people’s jobs for them, but be prepared to roll up your sleeves and help as needed. Know your role, as well as those of each team member.

Get to know your team members.

Even though you may be facing a pressing deadline, it’s a good idea to spend as much time as possible getting to know your team members as the unique individuals they are. Learn their passions as well as their strengths, weaknesses, ideas and concerns. Build relationships early on and nurture them on an ongoing basis.

Actively listen to people. It’s critical that they feel heard and understood if they are to be engaged and productive.

Demonstrate your confidence in people’s skills.

For team members already meeting or exceeding performance expectations, find tasks and challenges that help them stretch beyond even their own expectations. A majority of the time, they will achieve these goals, even if they don’t believe they can. And when they do, it will further build their confidence.

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For further resources and insight into being an effective team leader – and building your teams with the right talent for optimal business growth and success – contact PrideStaff Fresno today.

Secrets to Finding a Great Job (That are Not Really Secrets)

It’s no secret that the current labor market leans in favor of job seekers. And that includes you, right?

But, this doesn’t mean landing the job of your dreams is a given. Things could still go wrong and there may be setbacks along the way. However, you can be more successful by building not only the hard skills required in a job description, but also the know-how to get you successfully through the hiring process.

Here are Five Job Search (Secret) Tips That Hold True No Matter What the Market Looks Like:

1. Make networking a priority.

Think about who you know who might be able to give you the inside information on a job opening. When you’re proactive about networking, the right opportunity is more likely to come your way. Now is not the time to be shy – so put yourself out there. Work with a career counselor to perfect this and other techniques, including how to successfully move out of your comfort zone when needed.

2. Do your research.

The more background information you have on your interviewers, a job and a company, the better off you’ll be and the less anxious you’ll feel. Start your research on a company’s website and take it from there. You may also want to talk to current or former employees, vendors, and others who have connections to desired employers.

3. Prepare for interviews part one: Have compelling stories to tell.

On your resume and cover letter and in interviews, be prepared to present your strengths and weaknesses using compelling short stories – not just general, vague statements. Strengthen your case with specific examples and numbers that demonstrate your achievements and how you have turned weaknesses into strengths.

4. Prepare for interviews part two: Make a list of your own questions.

Your job search is a two-way street. As much as an employer wants to find an employee that will succeed at their organization, you need to ensure that a position is the right fit for you. Both via your research and the questions that you ask about a job, a company and its vision, culture and mission, you illustrate your commitment to becoming part of a team – as long as you can confirm that it works for you.

5. Learn from your letdowns.

No one is likely to bat a thousand in their job hunt. So if you don’t get a position you were positive was right for you, give yourself a little time to lick your wounds – and then move on. Dust yourself off and recalculate based on what you’ve learned. If you can successfully identify your weaknesses – and yes, everyone has them – then you can turn them into strengths for the next round.

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Let PrideStaff Fresno be your one-stop shop to find the job that’s the perfect fit for you – from resume prep and networking through interviewing skills and negotiating your final offer.

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Mindset Matters: How to Bring Your Best to Work and Home

Can the way you think about yourself affect what you achieve?

The answer is a solid “yes.” Your mindset matters in all you do, whether it’s at work or in your personal life. And the way you think about your intellect, talents, and skills determines whether you remain mired in old habits or stretch, grow, and develop new ones.

The key is to adopt a growth mindset versus a fixed mindset.

Everyone Can Grow

If you have a fixed mindset, you tend to believe that your level of intelligence is something you were born with – and there’s nothing you can do to change it. With a growth mindset, by contrast, you don’t accept that your intelligence and abilities are fixed, but rather that they can grow and improve throughout your life. In building a growth mindset, you stop settling for less than the best in yourself.

Here’s how to begin creating a growth mindset for your career:

Fully internalize the growth concept: the idea that you are truly able to improve and enhance your intelligence and skill levels. This is a mindset shift in itself. It will help set the foundation for continuous learning throughout your life and equally important, relieve the sting that comes with failures along the way.
Acknowledge that while talent definitely counts, it’s only one part of an overall package. As noted by personal development expert Zig Ziglar, “your attitude determines your altitude.” A key to developing a growth mindset is to continuously check your positivity barometer: think and act positively and with confidence. It won’t always be easy, but then, many of life’s best things come only as a result of hard work and practice.
Keep your mind open. Like an umbrella keeping the rain away or a parachute not only saving your life but enabling an awesome, albeit pretty scary-at-first experience, this is when your mind works best.

The 90/90/1 Rule

Another leadership expert, Robin Sharma, developed the 90/90/1 rule as a means of finding the time to work on priorities, including the shift from a fixed to a growth mindset. In Sharma’s own words, following the 90/90/1 rule works like this: “For the next 90 days, devote the first 90 minutes of your day to the one best opportunity in your life. Nothing else. Zero distractions. Just get that project done. Period.”

This may mean signing out of email, silencing your phone, closing your office door, or whatever else it takes to make sure you’re not interrupted. Then, for an hour and a half, focus solely on whatever project, idea or vision is your number-one priority. Do this for a period of three months, and chances are you’ll make significant progress toward achieving that goal.
If 90 minutes- or 90 days – sounds daunting, adapt the rule to 45/45/1 or 30/30/1. Because any goal has to be realistic in order to work.

Looking to Take Your Career To the Next Level?

For more tips on your personal and professional development, contact PrideStaff today. We’re here to help you realize your full growth mindset and make this your best year yet, at work and in life.

As a Manager, This is How to Motivate Your Employees

Employee motivation is all about finding and building the level of commitment each staff member has to your organization – as well as to their own future growth – and ensuring that the two continue to intersect. Because, when all the pieces fall into place, the results can be awesome for everyone involved.

The actions you take on a day-to-day basis can help you foster a culture that inspires engagement, innovation and motivation from your team members.

Start with These Motivation Management Tips

Communicating Effectively

Keep your employees in the loop and up to date by being as transparent as possible in providing updates. If in doubt, err on the side of overcommunicating. As you do so, make sure you tailor each message and means of delivery to your audience. Convey to your team members how whatever you need to say impacts them, as well as your business overall.

Maintain an open-door policy. Even if it’s a remote door. Give every employee accessibility to talk with their manager, share ideas, and discuss concerns in a safe environment.

Creating Opportunities for Career Development

For your business to grow, you must help your employees grow.

Offer mentoring and coaching programs.
Invite employees to attend meetings and events that will help them grow and network. This includes cross-departmental and cross-functional meetings and/or situations where a manager can allow an employee to represent them in a higher-level forum, in their absence.
Stay on top of employees’ performance development plans (PDPs). Work with them regularly to review plans and tweak them as needed.

Giving People Autonomy

Give your employees as much independence as possible when it comes to making decisions and getting their work done.

Provide authority for employees to self-manage. Within the framework of their PDPs, delegate decision-making, after clearly defining limits and any critical points where you will need to give and receive feedback.

Recognizing Success

Hands down, this is one of the best ways to build employee motivation. It’s human nature: People want – and benefit from – recognition for a job well done. And it’s a highly powerful motivation builder.

Reward achievements appropriately. Recognition awards don’t have to be monetary. Or extravagant. They just have to be meaningful. Tailor each one to the employee and specific accomplishment.

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By practicing these tactics on a regular basis – hint: do not push them to the back burner, no matter how busy things get! –before you know it, they will become routine, in a really, really good and productive way. They will help you become an employer of choice, and help your employees reach optimal levels of motivation and loyalty. What better way to kick off a new year?

For more tips as you move in this direction and develop your winning workforce for 2022 and beyond, contact PrideStaff Fresno today. If you’re hiring and need help finding employees, reach out today and we can get the ball rolling for you!

Follow This Guide to Improve Your Communication Skills

Continuously improving your communication skills helps in virtually every area of your life and career. At work, becoming a better communicator makes it easier for you to not only achieve success, but also to have your victories noted by people who count.

Communication in the workplace isn’t just about how well you talk to and collaborate with others. It also leads to building stronger relationships, minimizing waste and errors, and working as productively as possible.

In one recent survey of 400 corporations, it was found that communication barriers cost an estimated $37 billion per year in lost productivity.

Tips for More Effective Communication

Effective communication happens when a message is sent and received accurately and in a timely fashion. It sounds simple – and in fact, it doesn’t have to be difficult or complicated. But there are some tips you can follow to make sure it happens consistently. And, like playing a sport or mastering a musical instrument, practice makes perfect.

Practice active listening.

Believe it or not, by closing your mouth and focusing on what the other person in a conversation has to say, you often can get a lot more accomplished. This includes listening to what someone is not Pay attention to things like body language and tone of voice. Don’t interrupt or jump in to give advice or state your opinion, until asked. Hint: Here’s where that practice comes in!

Even if it scares you a little – or a lot – hone your public speaking skills.

No matter how introverted you are, in order to advance in your career you will most likely need to be able to speak confidently in front of your team and/or other groups. If the mere thought of public speaking makes you lose sleep or break out in hives, rest assured. You can always minimize the need to do so, and this too, gets easier the more you do it.

Know how to give feedback.

There’s positive feedback and there’s negative feedback. As much as possible, try to focus on the positive. Disclaimer: Sometimes negative feedback is necessary too. And in those instances, make sure it becomes a teaching moment.

Work on your written communication skills, too.

To be effective when conveying information in writing, you need to be clear and concise, and at the same time complete and accurate. Learn to compose text in ways that your audience can easily understand. This applies whether it’s an email, a sales proposal, or an instruction manual for a product, service or in-house tech tool.

Looking For A Job In Fresno? PrideStaff is Your Best Resource!

When it comes to improving your communication skills and building your career in areas including administration, customer service, IT, accounting and finance, legal support, healthcare and production, consider partnering with PrideStaff Fresno. We’ve got the resources, the expertise, and the opportunities you’ve been looking for in the Central Valley and beyond. Read our related posts or reach out to us today to learn more.

These 4 Tips Will Help You Become More Valuable to Your Employer

To advance your career and make your day-to-day job as fulfilling as possible, it helps to become your boss’s go-to person – the one they naturally turn to for insight, support, and the ability to take on more responsibilities quickly.

In other words, become more valuable to your employer by being indispensable. This means taking things a step beyond being known as a “good” employee and entering the realm of “great.” Essential employees are true hot commodities at their organizations. Being one of them also ensures that your managers will likely do whatever it takes to keep you happy and engaged.

Here are some ideas for how to get to that point:

Support your boss’s goals.

Remember, they should be your goals, too. Ask clarifying questions to help ensure that your goals align. Consistently strive to understand your boss’s priorities, so you can work to help realize them.

Know your boss’s communication preferences.

Everyone has a different communication style. Pay attention to the clues and learn what works best for your manager. For instance, some people prefer frequent updates, while others are fine with spreading them apart more. So, get to know your boss’s style. If you’re still not sure, ask. They’ll appreciate it.

Stay on top of things, but avoid gossip.

Keep your eyes and ears open for developments, progress, and any signs of problems that relate to you, your team, or your boss. Share this information with your manager at the earliest possible stage to avoid or help mitigate any problems. At the same time, avoid gossip and steer clear of participating in or spreading rumors. It can quickly become toxic.

Build bridges.

Building connections with colleagues and other team members will reflect well on you – and your boss. In addition, it will give your boss more confidence about granting you additional responsibilities in the future. As you develop relationships, protect, build, and promote your boss’s reputation and represent their interests. Be a leader yourself by taking ownership, including your mistakes, and by sharing credit. If you’re in a customer-facing role, establish a personal rapport with clients, as well.

To become more indispensable in your job – or to take your career to the next level via a brand new opportunity – connect with the career development experts at PrideStaff Fresno today. Our best-in-class approach has helped thousands to realize their professional goals, and we’re ready and waiting to help you do the same.

What Should You Do When You Make a Mistake at Work?

It happens to the best of us.

No matter how well prepared, organized, skilled or knowledgeable you are, occasional mistakes at work are bound to happen. Hopefully, most will be minor and quickly rectified. But in reality, serious mishaps also sometimes occur. And when they do, there are steps you can take to make the best of an unfortunate situation.

Own up to it.

As soon as you realize you’ve made a mistake, accept reality and immediately tell your boss. Denial isn’t going to make it disappear, and it speaks positively to your integrity and honesty when you take ownership. Trying to cover it up, on the other hand, will only hurt your relationship with your manager and erode trust and respect.

Don’t point fingers. If you were working on a team project when your mistake happened, chances are other people were also involved. If you can, get your coworkers to approach your boss with you. But even if they deny any responsibility, don’t throw them under the bus. It won’t help; in fact, you’ll show even more of your leadership strengths by being the bigger person. Let others handle themselves.

Make a plan to correct your error.

Turn a lemon into lemonade and make this an opportunity to demonstrate your problem-solving skills and ability to deal with pressure. Try to come up with a plan to correct your mistake, ideally before you meet with your boss, but if you can’t, ask for whatever help you need and reassure them that you’ll continue to work diligently toward a solution.

Once you do know your plan, present it to your boss. Be very clear and specific about the details, including cost and how long it will take. Have a Plan B ready, just in case Plan A isn’t acceptable.

Apologize without beating yourself up.

Apologize for your mistake concisely and sincerely, and then move on. If you continue to dwell on it, it will only stick in people’s minds – and nobody wants that. Instead, redirect the conversation to the corrective action you have planned.

Last but not least, take action.

After meeting with your boss, get started on your corrective action plan ASAP – preferably on your own time. Come in early, work through lunch, or stay late if necessary. But if you are a non-exempt employee and your boss will have to authorize overtime pay if you work too many hours, be sure to get permission beforehand.

Nobody’s perfect. And while you can’t expect to be, you can take whatever steps work for you as you advance as a professional – either in your current role or by finding your next great opportunity. The PrideStaff Fresno team of career development experts is here to help. Think of us as an experienced resource, connected networker, and career coach, all rolled into one. Read our related posts or contact us today to learn more.

Learn How to Calm Your Nerves When Starting a New Job

It’s normal to have a few jitters when starting a new job. It might be more troublesome if you didn’t feel a little nervous. This is, after all, a major life transition, so it may trigger a variety of emotions including some stress and anxiety. The key is to keep moving forward, as you would with any other major life change, and keep a positive attitude throughout, even if you’re feeling a bit shaky on the inside. This, too, shall pass – and you’ll be off and running in this new chapter.

Ahead of Time

Don’t let anticipatory anxiety overwhelm you in the days leading up to your first day at your new job. It helps to follow that age-old advice and be prepared.

If possible, take some time off so you can make a clean break from your previous workplace.

Shift your sleep schedule, if necessary, so you don’t arrive feeling tired or groggy.

Continue to learn as much as you can about your new company. If you haven’t already, see if anyone in your network knows any of your soon-to-be coworkers, and ask for introductions. Then, you’ll have at least one friendly face when you arrive.

If you’ll be working on-site, take a trial run of your new commute. And if not, get your remote worksite all set to go.

Practice good self-care. Regular physical exercise helps as it releases mood-boosting endorphins, helps ease stress, promotes better sleep, and relaxes tense muscles. Don’t overdo it, especially if you haven’t been physically active, but even a short walk or a 15-minute stretch can help.

Talk things out with a family member or friend. Preferably someone who has recently been through a job change themselves. Sharing your worries can help normalize those jitters and make you feel less alone. Plus, time spent with loved ones is a positive distraction.

On Day One

Set that alarm a little early so you can arrive at work promptly and unrushed. (A good tip every day, but especially on the first one!) Eat a healthy breakfast and put a smile on your face. It’s Go Time.

When you arrive, introduce yourself to anyone you haven’t met yet.

It’s okay to ask questions. It shows your interest and enthusiasm about being part of your new team. Other people generally like to help – it makes them feel good, too. You won’t look incompetent, but rather, like a team player who welcomes collaboration and camaraderie.

During Those First Weeks

While keeping an open mind and a positive attitude:

Resist the urge to change the way things are done, unless you’ve specifically been asked to. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to shine and interject your own methods, style, and ideas, all in good time.

Use your breaks and lunch hours to reach out to your coworkers. Establishing relationships is important to your long-term future at your company.

Volunteer for projects that will get you noticed but first, complete the ones your boss has assigned to you. Take on additional work only if you feel confident you can complete it well and on time.

For additional guidance in your job transition, reach out to the career development experts at PrideStaff Fresno. We’ll have you shining in your new role in no time!

Follow These Tips to be a Successful Manager

There have been volumes written and countless studies done on how to improve as a manager, regardless of your industry or the size of the team you lead. But the key to success lies in that very last word: lead. Because the best managers out there aren’t just managers. They’re leaders.

“Leadership is unlocking people’s potential to become better.” (Bill Bradley)

Among the top leadership skills is a person’s ability to know what their employees need to succeed in their own jobs, and then meeting those needs. Managers who stand out as true leaders accomplish this in several ways. As outlined by Gallup in the criteria for its Exceptional Workplace Award, these shining stars tend to share common behaviors including:

Connecting a common purpose to individual and team activities.

Acknowledging the opinions of team members and acting upon this feedback.

Coaching their teams in ways that allow for genuine candor.

Committing to one meaningful conversation per week with each team member.

Motivating others by connecting their work to their innate tendencies.

Recognizing and rewarding milestones and jobs well done.

Caring about their employees as real people.

Making it their number-one priority to develop new stars.

“Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be.” (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

A key aspect of management success is being a person whom others want to follow. Every action you take during your management tenure at an organization helps determine whether or not this will be the case. Here are a few tips to get you started:

Build relationships.

“Great leaders are willing to sacrifice the numbers to save the people. Poor leaders sacrifice the people to save the numbers.” (Simon Sinek)

Get to know each of your employees as people, not just cogs to keep the corporate wheel turning.

Manage by walking around. Stop and interact with people at their desks or workstations and, without taking up too much time, ask not only about work, but also about how their lives are going. How was their weekend? How is their son’s football team doing this season? How’s their mom feeling after her surgery? In short, show that you care.

Help people maintain needed work/life balance. This has never been more crucial than in today’s world. Relationships aren’t only about the bottom line on a production spreadsheet, though that’s certainly crucial to everyone’s future. Make them about the people behind those figures.

Communicate often and well.

“Leadership is the act of giving people a platform for spreading ideas that work.” (Seth Godin)

Communicate effectively in person, print, texts, emails, and verbal interactions. If necessary, sharpen your skills in areas like active listening, public speaking, and confrontation and conflict resolution.

Hint: Often, the most effective communication occurs when you say nothing at all. Start by serving as the sounding board a person needs to air their views or ideas. Acknowledge that you have heard and that you understand. You’ll learn to pinpoint when the time is right to respond.

The PrideStaff team is here to help your staff and manage your workforce more effectively – and develop stronger leadership skills in yourself and your team members in the process. Read our related posts or contact us today to learn more.

Follow These Tips to Build Trust with Your Employees

Trust is a two-way street. If you show your employees that you trust them, they’ll be more likely to reciprocate.

When trust becomes a natural part of your day-to-day working environment, you’ll soon realize you’ve built a healthy, employee-friendly culture based on this solid foundation.

Mutual trust between all team members is vital to business success. In a Harvard Business Review study, workers at high-trust companies reported 94 percent less stress, showed 50 percent higher productivity, and experienced 40 percent less burnout.

Clearly, trust matters.

The positive results of trust in the workplace are many, including employees feeling more pride in their work and a greater likelihood of going above and beyond to achieve goals, meet deadlines, and deliver expected results.

Trust builds engagement. In another study, 80 percent of HR professionals linked engagement to employees’ trust in their leaders.

Take the right steps to build trust.

Here are some tips for making sure trust is woven into the fiber of your company and its culture:

Actively listen. Ask your employees to share their ideas and viewpoints, and when they do, genuinely listen. To improve team members’ skills, it can be very beneficial to offer active listening training. Active listening is based on letting the other person speak in a way that a listener can truly understand what they’re trying to communicate – and letting them know it.

Seek – and act on – employee feedback. Employees want a voice in their organization. Solicit feedback continuously, but don’t let the data gather dust on a shelf or waste away in a database. Analyze the results and act on them accordingly. And most importantly, follow through in a timely fashion.

Show appreciation. Authentic recognition for jobs well done helps build a sense of community – which is fertile ground for trust. Appreciation helps employees feel emotionally secure, so when you recognize your team often, they’ll be more likely to trust you.

Don’t micromanage. Most employees don’t want you constantly looking over their shoulder. Be there as a resource and support person, but then walk away and let your employees know you believe in their knowledge, skills, and experience. Be supportive without hovering.

Be honest and transparent. Even if the truth is difficult to hear, be honest with your employees while remaining sensitive to their feelings. And be as transparent as possible when discussing business changes and updates, even if the news isn’t good. Your team won’t trust you if you catch them by surprise or neglect to inform them of significant changes.

Practice what you preach. Actions really do speak louder than words. In addition to being consistent and emulating the performance, you want to see from your team, ensure consistency in your mood. Try to stay cool and collected, even when the going gets tough, to preserve those trust levels you’ve worked so hard to achieve.

As you build trust, engagement, productivity – and your industry-leading team – consider partnering with the PrideStaff Fresno team. Our staffing and workforce development experts can deliver the results you need, and our track record of success in the Central Valley speaks for itself. Read our related posts or contact us today to learn more.