AAC
SEEMS TO ME ... Hiring
preaching and started meddling!” But I believe if you’re the elected official or department head you should be and want to be, then you want to be a real leader — a true public ser- vant. Leading is not about your position. It’s more about your passion for excellence and making a difference. You can lead without a title. C.S. Lewis wisely said, “Do the right thing, even when no one is looking. It is called integrity.” Integrity is by far the most important asset of a leader. It is refreshing and motivating to employees to have a leader — a boss — that strives to do the right thing no matter how difficult. Never punish loyal employees for being honest. Loyal em-
ployees tell you what you need to hear, not necessarily what you want to hear. To be leaders, we have to understand that 1) loyal criticism is a true blessing; 2) loyalty is built on honesty and trust; and 3) loyal employees are precious gems, not step- pingstones. Never push loyal people to the point where they don’t care anymore. If we are not ready to be loyal to our loyal employees, we are not ready to lead them. Loyal people are those who have these characteristics: • They care about success — of the team, of the boss, and
their own;
• They tell you what you need to hear; • They do not disagree with you in public and support your decisions publicly; and • They work hard and are dependable.
To earn their loyalty you must: • Take their problems as your own; • Be there for them when they need you; • Create an atmosphere of appreciation and mutual trust; • Never patronize them, never criticize them in public; and • Create opportunities for them.
As a general rule, people don’t quit jobs. Tey quit their bosses. Te worst place an employee can be is stuck in a situation with a micromanager who doesn’t care about their development, and there are no opportunities for growth and advancement. Micromanagement is a complete waste of everybody’s time.
It sucks the life out of employees, fosters anxiety, and creates a high-stress work environment. Hire the right people and give them room to get on with the job. If things aren’t going the way you desire in your office or department — there is always a better way than micromanaging people. Train, mentor and coach employees and give them clear objectives. Ten get out of their way. Te best ideas and advancements in an operation come as a result of empowering your team. Bad bosses keep employees down. Good bosses lift employ-
ees up. Never take employees for granted. Tey need: • Opportunities to excel;
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• To be listened to; • Feedback to help them be their best; • Recognition and reward for a job well done; •
Less stress and more support;
• Honesty and integrity from leadership; • Respect, trust and empowerment; and • Leadership that is ready to go to the moon and back for them.
If you take care of your employees, they will take care of your constituents your county. If you treat employees like they don’t make a difference, they won’t. If you don’t show appreciation to those who deserve it, they’ll learn to stop doing the things you appreciate. Employees are tired of being treated like dirt. A great county operation depends on hiring the right people
and being the right kind of boss. You don’t hire people like those recently listed in a survey of human resource profession- als that shared excuses from employees arriving late to work that are so horrible, they’re funny. A few of the “crown jewel” excuses for being late:
1. Rough night. Employee woke up on the front lawn of a house two blocks away from his home. 2. Cozy parking. Employee was late to work because he fell asleep in the car when he got to work. 3. Free candy = national holiday. Employee thought Hal-
loween was a work holiday. 4. Te suspense was brutal. Employee was watching some- thing on TV and really wanted to see the end. 5. Short-term memory loss. Employee forgot that the com- pany had changed locations.
Take the time and make the effort to hire the right people for the job, and then treat them like a real leader should. Hire tough so you can manage easy. Promote the right ones for the right reasons. Albert Einstein said, “I was raised to treat the janitor with the same respect as the CEO.” Tat goes back to what I said in the beginning: Te true measure of a leader is how they treat their employees, not their equals. You can tell a lot about a person by how they treat people, especially those that may be below them in position. We should all take note of what Dalai Lama said, “Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.”
Note: Quorum Courts should take note. Although, in most cases, the quorum court does not have direct employees under their super- vision, they must provide the funding — the appropriation — to properly compensate both the employees and the county elected of- ficials of their county. To some degree, the success of the implementa- tion of the precepts of this article depend on proper funding.
COUNTY LINES, SPRING 2018
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