Are you in charge of a team? If you’re a business owner, it’s highly likely! Whether this team is two people or it’s a full roster of ten, you’re the one in charge. And let’s face it, that’s a difficult thing to manage. Even when you’re skilled and experienced in heading up a team and making difficult calls, each scenario presents its own challenges for you to tackle.

But if you’re someone who’s never been the boss before, team management may seem like the hardest thing in the world. Even worse, you know your team is dissatisfied with the way you’re handling things, and that’s not motivating in the slightest!

So let’s make this part of business ownership much easier and more efficient. If you’re a team leader who’s being grinded down by the responsibility, here are a few things to start applying to the way you work.

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Listening as Much as You Speak

The best team leaders know how to give direction as well as sit back and listen to their team. You need to be able to do both if you want to be an efficient leader in a way that feels easy.

Listen as much as you speak, and make sure your team feels heard. You want them to know you’re here to support them just as much as you are to lead them, and that’s quite the fine balance to strike. If someone has something to say, let them do so, and try not to interrupt.

Soon, everyone on your team will understand that everyone has their own chance to speak up and use their voice. That can be a very motivating thing in the modern working world.

Clear Expectations

Your team should always know what you expect from them. If they don’t, they’re always going to find themselves on the back foot when interacting with you.

They may feel your directions are vague, or that your feedback is unfair, and all because you didn’t communicate your expectations for work in a clear way.

Don’t leave anyone on your team guessing. Make sure they have everything they need to get to work and create what it is you’re looking for.

You should also let them know they can come to you if they have any questions, and that you’re more than happy to clear up any misunderstandings in a constructive and non-judgemental way.

Smooth Communication

It’s an important point we’ve touched on before, but it bears repeating here as well. Communication, and more specifically smooth communication, is essential to keeping your team on target at all times.

Make sure there are avenues to allow for this. A group email chain, a group chat you can all send messages to, or a project management app you can all sign up to work on – or all three! If you use these channels, it’ll be rare for an employee to say they don’t know what’s going on or what will be expected of them.

Ensure you lead the way here by putting regular check-in messages into the chats, which everyone can react and/or reply to within the next hour or so.

Keeping Critical Conversations Private

Don’t criticize a team member in front of the team. Do so behind closed doors where it’s just the two of you. This is a much more constructive way to conduct this kind of meeting, and will help to counteract the feelings of resentment that can be common when an employee needs ‘a talking to’.

No one wants to be dressed down with an audience to enjoy it. Again, it’s a small matter of respect, and treating those who work for you like capable adults. Call them into your office, shut the door behind them, and have a quiet chat just between the two of you.

Position and Progress Tracking

If you’re running a team that isn’t always in the office, you’re going to need a way to track their position and progress. While they’re on the clock, having an idea of what they’re doing, how they’re progressing, and if they’re running into any trouble has a variety of benefits.

For one, it means you can step in to support when it’s required, and that will always be appreciated. For another, you can check in when someone is taking too long, or is positioned somewhere they really shouldn’t be. That can bring productivity levels up, and send waste output plummeting to the ground.

This is most important when you’re running a team that’s regularly on the move. Someone in the waste processing industry, for example, is likely to have their employees and business assets on the go at all times. But without tracking, if a worker and the truck they’re in has taken an extra hour or two on a job, what are you supposed to do other than wait until they get back?

Start using software that allows you to maintain this detailed overview. Apps like CurbWaste and the accompanying CurbWaste industry glossary are made with this problem in mind. But waste isn’t the only industry that can be helped by this kind of program; entertainment companies, marketing businesses, and even freelance teams can benefit from in-depth management apps.

Respecting Your Own Boundaries

If you set boundaries with your team, make sure you respect them yourself. For example, if you cannot be contacted outside of work hours, don’t contact them in the same period.

Show your team that you follow your own advice, and that the rules truly do apply to everyone. It may seem like a small matter of respect, but it has rather large implications for your team dynamic as a whole.

After all, if you seem to be the kind of leader who takes but never gives, you’re not going to create any goodwill within your team. That can make it a lot harder to motivate them, and you may notice an increase in employee turnover over the coming months.

Asking for Feedback

In the same way you’d review one of your team member’s performance every 6 months or so, let them apply the same kind of constructive criticism to you. It’s the only way to be sure your team has the chance to let you know how they’re feeling, whether or not they’re being supported, and if there are any issues on the horizon.

If you’re the kind of leader who can take criticism just as much as you give it, you’re going to seem like much more of a fair and responsible person. You showcase honesty and allow for it within the workplace, which will definitely help to create a workplace culture of equality and dignity.

Being the Best Leader You Can Be

At the core of team management needs, that’s the one goal all business owners will have in mind. They want their team to respect them and look up to them, and that means curating methods within the workplace to make hitting that goal easy and efficient.

Make sure you’re taking the tips above into hand and using them on your journey. Your team has been handpicked for the roles you’ve assigned them to, so you know they’re already good to do the job. Now it’s just about putting your best in to get the best out of them in return.

And you’re more than capable of this! You just need to believe in your ability to be the team leader, which will help you to develop the skills to match.

About the Author: Garlak Theodorakis

My name is Garlak Theodorakis, I am graphic designer with almost 10 year experience in the field. Founded Tooft.com in january 2010 with idea to share my knowledge with the world.