Ask yourself this: Am I a leader or a co-worker? The reason why I’m not using the word boss is because the gap between leading people and bossing around people is distinctively on different parts of the spectrum. Over the decades, there have been negative connotations about boss characters in general.
1. Am I a leader or a co-worker?
As an entrepreneur, you are leading a concept, and it’s only fair to your team that you do the same with them. You lead them rather than boss them around. By being a leader, do you lose all kinds of assertiveness? No. You don’t. You see, you could be an assertive leader at times necessary, but not all year round. Can you be a co-worker sometimes? Yes, sometimes, you need to get your own hands dirty to look different through your workers' perspective. Your workforce will most likely respect you more when you experience what they do on a daily basis.
2. Work Environment
The work environment you surround your team with is one of the most important aspects of success. There’s a saying “happy wife, happy life” in this particular case, a happy team makes a triumphant feast. In other words, because the team was put in a good environment, they were able to truly thrive beyond expectations and created a feast instead of settling for a meal.
3. Listen to them
One of the most empowering actions you could do to a team member is to make time to listen to their concerns. By feeling heard, team members will become less anxious and more confident in pitching their ideas to you. This of course does not mean that you take every idea and implement, but you take the time to listen to what they have to say.
4. Be their friend?
There has always been an evident question mark when it comes to friendships in the workplace. Can a leader be friends with the team? Many people struggle with this especially when they hire close friends. Can professional and social life be separate? It honestly depends on who you’re dealing with. If you can work in harmony with friends without making anyone else in the office feel left out, then go along with that. If not, you’ll need to establish some sort of professional environment that would prevent bias and favoritism as well. Also, there is nothing wrong with having a healthy relationship with your team. You can be their friend, but you have to set boundaries that will not tarnish your work environment.