It's Dignity!

Julia is elated to see him and at the chance of taking him home with her.

?I’m freeing you, says Julia; I should have done that earlier…(but)… I thought you were happy.

I was, but It isn’t happiness (that) I’m seeking out…. It’s…. Dignity

And Apollonius leaves a sad, stunned Julia to join his new family, the family of rebel slaves, only to be crucified the next dawn.?

What is Dignity- ‘Be recognized as Human’.

‘Fellow’ Human… equal… like the way one would like to treat self!

Are people in your team in the presence of ‘Dignity’?

Ahh, I’m sure they are. I treat all my team members as humans, with most I’m even on a first-name basis. I invite them to Diwali party, New Year Party, Holi Party, Beer Party. I give salaries, increments, promotions. I have never considered them as lesser people!

Lesser people! Hmmm… good that the thought came to your mind!

And are you struggling with high turnover?

And you have been providing ‘happiness’ in the form of money, promotions, exotic travel and everything seem to fall short!

Remember, Caesar was slaughtered by his rich, powerful Consul.

What if you consider the missing element as ‘Dignity’.

What are the signs that the presence of Dignity is missing in your team?

1)?????Most of your work time goes in guiding and managing the team.

2)?????Your team has not failed for a long time!

3)?????Less than 80% of people raise their hands in the meetings.

If the answer to any of the above is a yes, you have a hint why your most visible KRA, Turnover is soaring, along-with all the number troubles that an un-inspired, lesser mortal team faces.?

So, what to do?

For starters let’s look at

1)?????Removing Anonymity. Do you, as a lead, know your team and by that I do not mean how good are they at work and what are their training needs to perform better. But what is the person like in thoughts and aspirations. What are his hobbies. The concerns that he faces in life and how is the team standing for each other in such concerns.

Will this blur the line between work and life? Isn’t that the point?

Is it not contradictory to expect performance in a non-living area of your team’s time?

Can this make the concept of work-life balance redundant?

When your team is recognized as equals, they know it and they need not be told to share equal responsibilities. ?

2)?????Outline Relevance. Does your team know who is the person whose life they are impacting deeply by their work or are they performing the duties assigned to the best of their capabilities? A dignified work constitutes meaningful impact on another human. Help you team member identify if that person is your customer(customer facing roles), a colleague(administrative roles) or you, the boss(advisory, management roles).

A specific and embodied impact has a heart and soul of its own and becomes a constant source of inspiration.

A person cannot exist in the lower echelons of Maslow’s hierarchy for long. He may not know but his unending quest for the next job, actually, is for love and self-actualization. ?

3)?????Accurate Predictability. Can each member of your team predict their own performance? Yes, most of the corporates have now excelled in making such metrics.

The test is, can he also know his next increment, his next promotion, his next role basis these measures.

Hmmm… this is where Gods usually step in, running the show as fiefdom with an intent to make the junta feel happy! And for doing that the Gods will first make you fearful… so much so that even a zero increment seems like a blessing!

The knowledge of a clear path to control one’s destiny is the supreme constituent of dignity.

One may think that this soft aspect of job is of little consequence for numbers.

Think again

1)?????There are big savings to be made on hiring, training and re-training a team.

2)?????An inspired team excels in all areas of their performance with little guidance, bulging the toplines!

3)?????Setting the leader free to focus on their real job, that of expansion of their vision creating much bigger corporates.

So, will you consider treating people around you with Dignity? And without the above agenda!

And, did I mention the costs...nothing!?