How many times do children say ‘I’m bored’ yet they have far more opportunities today to be actively engaged than ever before. I am more convinced the boredom that stems from not being driven and challenged at work is the root cause of much of the unsupportive business behaviour we see in individuals. People should not have time for idle and mischievous thoughts! Let me explain my thoughts.
Difficult and disruptive individuals have often not been provided with the focus or targets they need to absorb their attention. It is only when an individual is challenged to perform to their best, and is taken up in making every effort to achieve what is expected of them, that they feel valued and worthwhile. This person will not be counter-productive. Quite the opposite, they are far more likely to remain focused and pro-active.
Driving and stretching a person’s abilities, and allowing them the opportunity to reach their potential, subdues their ‘human nature’ for mischief if they are that way inclined. Once you achieve a team environment where every member in that team is trying its hardest to succeed, anyone with negativity or a lack of ambition is soon isolated and will feel the desire to fall in line. Being actively engaged and having a real value and purpose to your work provides a huge sense of well-being, job satisfaction and happiness. Business as usual can be fun if it is something worth doing – and really fun when it is successful.
However dynamic an environment you work in, there will be times where the act of arriving at the same place at the same time creates feeling of monotony. There will inevitably be periods where ‘business as usual’ feels to your team as if they are treading water. Maybe your plans and initiatives are taking time to come good. This is not unusual. Boredom and the feeling of routine and ‘ordinary times’ affects all of us at different times. People like a structure to their day but this can soon create the feeling of a treadmill existence that de-motivates and affects productivity. Fresh personal targets and challenges, and an empathetic manager soon provide the initiative for most individuals to pull themselves out of their lull.
If it is the team who collectively have an air of ordinariness, it time to act to avoid losing the impetus. Ordinary times call for an extra-ordinary leader. It is easy to motivate people when they are interested, when the sales figures are high, when they are chasing the ‘big one’. The inevitable periods of ‘business as usual’ demand more from a leader than when a particular event has their team rallying around to meet the deadline.
Have you noticed how managers can instigate change much more easily than sustain it? Only outstanding managers can inspire their people during times where ‘business as usual’ is what matters. Only outstanding leaders can challenge and excite their team day after day, after day – and achieve outstanding results.
There is much talk of ‘High Performance Teams’ in business. Athletes achieve high performance for a concentrated space of time – they build up to it. In business a high performance team need to display a continuous level of performance – it is their on-going daily work. Establishing a high level of performance as ‘business as usual’ is hard enough, but sustaining it is harder. Recognising their effort with continual praise and encouragement is essential to keep the team at its peak performance.
Even managers in the most exciting and vibrant environments, where the stakes are high and the rewards higher, sustainability can be an issue. Even Vince Lombardi, head coach of top flight American Football teams, recognized this issue. ‘Each week there is a different challenge, but there is also that unavoidable degree of sameness to these meetings’
Periods of regular business are enhanced through building up a head of steam and ‘maintaining momentum’. Success breeds success. Winning becomes a habit. However you should remember that momentum is fragile and you need to guard it, nurture it, encourage it and maintain it as you press ahead.
