Do you wish that your team would take more initiative? Even if your spa or massage practice employees are handling their responsibilities with the utmost professionalism, you may be finding that they still come to you for direction about fulfilling projects or tasks or rarely come up with ideas for moving the business along. As you aim to expand your business, having employees that take the initiative is critical. Not only do they take the responsibility off of your shoulders; they provide the ideas that fuel growth.
Are you getting in the way?
At times when employees fail to show initiative, you need to ask yourself, “am I in the way.” As an example, you may be inhibiting your team from taking charge because you tend to jump in too frequently to take over. Maybe you never or rarely ask for suggestions about new ways to do things relative to selling retail products, handling clients, marketing services, or other aspects of your spa or massage practice.
If your team doesn’t feel you want their input, they will stop making suggestions and follow orders over time. If you are so busy you can’t stay on top of everything; projects will start to fall through the cracks over time.
Instill confidence
Ways to instill confidence in your team include:
Be clear about expectations: Clearly communicate what the goals and deadlines are for a certain project. Provide the training and coaching some may need to handle the task.
Be honest: Being honest with your team earns their respect and trust. If there are issues or problems with your spa or massage practice that your team should know about, share what you feel is appropriate. Also, be honest when you are giving someone feedback. You don’t need to be overly critical, but most people want to do the best they can and value honest feedback.
Listen Your employees who are dealing with clients and suppliers of your professional and at-home products or running marketing can be a great source of ideas to expand the business.
Give credit when due: Give credit for a job well done. Acknowledging good work motivates your team to strive to continue to do better.
Show appreciation: Even if you don’t implement someone’s suggestions, thank them for the input. By ignoring or undervaluing someone’s efforts, you can discourage them from offering suggestions. Also, when others notice your lack of input, they are discouraged from taking the initiative.
Create a safe environment: Continually motivate and encourage employees to take action. If they need the training to take on more responsibility, let them know that they have the authority to make decisions after they are prepared.
Foster a supportive environment: Your team should understand that it’s okay to make mistakes and that you are there to help them learn. Everyone should be encouraged to try something new and understand that even failing can be a learning experience.
Think about your spa or massage practice culture and consider what changes need to be made to foster an environment that motivates more initiative.