Are Your Employees Too Easily Distracted?

In a small business with employees, you know that overseeing performances is critical. That said you’d like to think that those you hire will always come to work and give 100 percent on a daily basis. In cases where they do not do this, you always have the option of replacing them. As you step back and look at your small business operations, are you getting the most out of your workers?

For some small business owners, the answer to that question is unfortunately a no. If you’re one of them, how can you change that moving ahead?

Setting Guidelines to Follow

So that your workplace is as productive as can be, keep the following pointers in mind:

1. Avoiding distractions

In today’s digital age, it can be quite commonplace for employees to get distracted. If yours are doing so, how do you turn the tide and remove as many distractions as possible?

For starters, unwanted distractions in the workplace can be problematic on several fronts.

First, they can prevent your employees from getting their respective jobs done. Also, they lead to a drop in revenue as work fails to get done. Third, they can turn away customers who want answers today, not tomorrow.
While you should never babysit workers, let them know there are certain expectations.

With employees having a right to a few breaks daily, allow them to use time to access the Internet for personal use. You should also understand if they have to take an important personal call during the day.

When you treat your team with respect, they more times than not will return it. In doing so, they will be less inclined to waste your time and that of your customers.

2. Creating a quality environment

You can’t expect your team to sit in windowless rooms with only a clock to look at. Make so that your employees enjoy coming to work on a daily basis.

Some of the ways to go about this include:

· Positive environment – Make your office a positive environment to work out of. One way to do this is awarding employees for outstanding production. You can hang awards on the wall with the worker’s name and picture. Doing so gives them the sense of accomplishment that can spur them on to even greater things.

· Fun environment – Put activities in your office for employees to enjoy on their breaks. These can include Foosball, a Ping-Pong table, video games and more. You might also consider giving them passes to the nearest gym for them to go enjoy a good workout at lunch time etc.

· Making meetings fun – Many employees will say attending meetings is as fun as going to the dentist. That said make the meeting experience more enjoyable. Bringing in qualified guest speakers can enlighten an otherwise dull environment. You can also make a part of the meetings devoted to funny customer stories to share.

3. Avoid fear of retribution

When you look at athletics, most athletes can expect to perform under a fair amount of pressure. In cases where some are not able to, they fear retribution from both management and the fans.

In turning to your office, don’t make it so employees are afraid of failing. Keep in mind that everyone makes mistakes in the workplace. Yes, that even means you as a boss.

There are times when a client will turn elsewhere for business. There are also times that a customer’s account will have errors. Always do your best to encourage your workers to succeed, yet not penalize them when things do not go a certain way.

As an example, how do you react if one of your employees is in an accident in a company vehicle?

While their health should be the main concern, you can’t forget the fact there is damage to one of your vehicles. Worse yet, what if it was a hit-and-run accident?

If the time comes for a license plate lookup, you can use one of the online services to help track down the guilty party.

Make it clear to your employee that he or she was not at fault (unless evidence shows otherwise). The last thing your worker wants is to fear retribution for the accident.

Giving your employees a sound environment to work in is almost a guarantee for success.

As a small business owner, how do you make for a great work environment?