Tag Archive for ‘Earning Credibility’ at DrivenLeaders.com

gen y respect 10 Tips on How to be Taken Seriously as a Leader Earning credibility and being taken seriously continue to be challenging issues for many Gen-Y employees as they step into roles of increasing responsibly.

In preparation for advancement, many training programs focus solely on building “competencies,” the cornerstones to success. I agree the ability to negotiate, communicate, influence, and persuade others are indispensable qualities when it comes to leading successful teams. And there is no doubt that enhancing these skills builds one’s credibility and sets the groundwork for long-term success. However, for Gen-Y Leaders, the risk of undermining that credibility early on is very real thing. Many sabotage themselves, losing control and credibility before they even have the opportunity to utilize there abilities, simply by falling into classic traps that are easily overlooked.

Highlighting this point, authors Caitlin Friedman and Kimberly Yorio, offer some basic and practical suggestions that lay the foundation for being taken seriously when moving into the role of team leader. The following ten steps can be found with greater detail in their book, The Girl’s Guide To Starting Your Own Business.

1. Be on time every day. It’s your business. Lead by example.

2. Don’t make a habit of leaving early. Your employees will resent you if you walk out the door at three and call them from the gym at five-thirty to check in.

3. Don’t go drinking with your assistant. Or swap stories. You need to set the example. What you do in your private time away from the office should remain fodder for your peers, not your subordinates.

4. Don’t ask them to do anything that is not work-related. It’s rude and fosters resentment. This includes walking your dog, picking up your dry cleaning, and buying your personal holiday presents, unless, of course, the job is personal assistant.

5. Don’t let them hear you on personal calls. Not only will they will imitate you for months if they hear you refer to your spouse with pet names, they will feel entitled to be on their own calls all day.

6. You are not their friend. Be a pleasant boss, but never leave the door open to talk about personal drama. You want your employees to feel comfortable talking to you about serious personal problems (especially if they will impact her job performance) - a sick mother or child-care problem, for example. But the last thing you can afford is to become a surrogate therapist for employee dating or marital woes.

7. Pitch in when you can. If you have assigned what you know to be a tedious task, such as mailing five hundred company brochures, spend at least a few minutes pitching in. This is your team; make it happen together. A little willingness to get your hands dirty will go a long way when you need a really big ditch dug.

8. Do not share company financial issues or problems. If your employees suspect things are not going well, they will be looking for another job before you know it. There is a whole philosophy of open-book management that works in big public companies (the law requires it, anyway), but in small companies you don’t need your employees second-guessing your decisions.

9. If something goes wrong with a client or customer, you have to take the blame. As the boss, you are responsible for everything running smoothly. If you have a problem employee, you need to monitor him or her closely, provide more training, or let her go. You cannot make bad employees the scapegoats for mistakes.

10. Manage, but don’t smother. Granted this is your business and you’ve got the most to lose, but you’ve got to let your employees take responsibility for their workload. Guide, cajole, pester — don’t suffocate.

What other suggestions would you offer from your experience?