Is Lack of Communication Killing YOUR Business?
Communication is, I believe, almost the secret to life!
You know what its like, you hear a comment from someone and you immediately make up your mind on what they meant and how you are going to respond. Its only later in the conversation or later that day or week that the penny drops, if you are lucky, and you realise you completely misunderstood what they said. This can play havok with your personal relationships with partners, friends and family. You see the problem is that we communicate to other people the way we like to be communicated too, which sounds reasonable but most people are not like you so the message gets lost or confused.
This can have serious consequences in the work place and is often the reson why some businesses fail. If you are the owner/boss or manager then it is even more important that the lines of communication are open and more importantly effective. I talk to a lot of business owners in the fitness industry who tell me thay can’t seem to keep good staff. Once we have a good look at the way they find and hire their staff then it becomes obvious to me that the communication is the problem.
These days people don’t come into a job interview to be interviewed, they come in to interview YOU! How you feel about that is not important its what you DO about it that counts. If you don’t know how they communicate and what they want, how are you going to be able to convince them to work for you now and for the next few years? Using a ’system’ is the only way for you to know what to say and when to say it.
My newest employee in my PT studio is a young man who is very mature and wants to know he has the ability to grow and develop in the business, taking on more responsibility if he proves himself to have the qualities we need. Now I need to communicate that to him in the interview and as he continues to work for me. I can do this by telling him, recognising his efforts personally and publically, rewarding his work financially and in other ways (movie tickets, restaurant vouchers, bottle of wine etc) and, ultimately giving him a promotion.
Is he going to know that this is the progression he has to look forward to if I don’t tell him?
I hear business owners say “but I want them to work in the business as if it was their’s”. Well tell them! Let them know that they will have the opportunity to become the manager and potentially own the business themselves if they do all the right things! Would that motivate me to work hard consistently…you betcha!
Now lets go back to what I said earlier. If your potential staff member wants to work hard in a stable job without too much responsibility or change and is happy to do the same tasks each day, would you communicate the potential to one day run the business? No. You would be listening to what they want and then explain that the position you have would be for someone who is reliable and can do similar tasks each day, wants a long term job and would be responsible for their own actions only. Would this sound attractive to them?
Now folks remember that this is the same position! A PT instructor who does some group classes, cleaning and building client relationships. Its how you communicate the position that makes all of the difference. Is their room for both types of personalities and wants? Absolutely! Do I want both types of people in my business? Absolutely! The key is being able to communicate what you need and what they want. The roles and tasks that the position holds must be written down in detail and the staff must understand and appreciate these requirements.
You need to be able to do this at the start and then consistently throughout the working life of that staff member in your business. You must have a staff meeting each week where everyone has the opportunity to speak and people are recognised for their good work and bad. You must be able to see where people excell and where they fall short and immediately take action.Then you will have a loyal, respectful group of employees whose needs are met and love working for such a leader. Without these systems in place your business will be at the mercy of your staff and, believe me, that is no fun at all.
For those of you who want a system to find, hire, train and manage staff join us on the !2th of March for our Duplicator Discovery Webinar where I will take you through the tools and system of this brilliant program. Learn how I and hundreds of other fitness business owners have duplicated themselves in their businesses and have a ‘bubbling pot’ of potential staff just waiting to get a chance to work for you.
Go to www.PTDuplicatorNow.com to register for this awesome webinar.
Committed to your success
Ric Isaac