Trust Archives

Why We All Need Friends at Work

12/04/2021Jon Rennie

Do you have a best friend at work? It might just be the secret to happiness and success.

My son joined the Navy last year, and this Thanksgiving, he didn’t have enough leave to come home. So, we traveled up to see him for the holiday as a family.

We stayed in a hotel and ate our Thanksgiving meal at a local restaurant.

It wasn’t ideal, but at least we were together.

On Saturday, we were all invited to a party. One of my son’s shipmates also had family in town. His family had rented an entire house for the holiday and invited a dozen sailors from the base for drinks and a traditional Cuban meal.

That night was the first time I saw my son interacting with his closest Navy buddies.

The laughter, jokes, smiles, and friendship were all very familiar. I recognized them from my own time in the Navy.

Seeing my son surrounded by friends that loved him and loved being around him made me extremely happy as a father.

It was the first time since he left for the Navy that I knew he had found his place.

He belonged to a special group, and I knew he would be successful in his Navy career.

I knew it because I could see his deep friendships.

There is an African Proverb that says, “if you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

Having friends at work is a powerful indicator of happiness and success.

Having friends at work is a powerful indicator of happiness and success. Click To Tweet

How do I know? It certainly has been the case throughout my career and it was also one of the findings in my favorite leadership book.

First, Break All the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently was written by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman. Buckingham and Coffman were Gallup analysts when they wrote this book. They drew upon 25 years of Gallup studies of 80,000 managers across 400 companies.

One of their conclusions was that solid personal relationships signify a positive workplace.

Solid personal relationships signify a positive workplace. Click To Tweet

Employees who could identify that they had close friends at work were more likely to be happy and successful in their careers.

The reasons are pretty straightforward.

When things are going great, you have friends to celebrate the moments.

In the tough times, friends will be there to help you get through.

Close friends watch out for you and have your back to ensure no one can come after you.

They support your crazy ideas and help make them a reality.

They are a shoulder to cry on and a hand to high five when you hit your goals.

Why do we need friends at work? Having close friends at work leads to happiness and success.

As leaders, we need to foster an atmosphere where friendships can form and thrive. It’s both good for employees and the overall performance of the business.

Leading like you are all in the same boat is a good place to start. Learn more in my new leadership book.

[US Navy Photo]

A Sense of Belonging

10/01/202008/06/2021Jon Rennie

Can you remember a time when you felt like you really belonged?

For me, it was the day I became a submariner.

During the pinning ceremony, the gold dolphin insignia was placed on my uniform signifying I was a qualified submarine officer. That insignia told the world I belonged to an exceptional group of people qualified in underwater warfare.

It was one of my proudest moments, and it’s an important identity I have kept my whole life.

So what about you? How do you feel when you really belong?

There something powerful about that feeling. It’s in our human nature to want to belong, to be part of a tribe. The problem is that this feeling is missing for so many people. Unfortunately, COVID has even made the situation worse. Young people, especially, are feeling increasingly disconnected.

It’s in our human nature to want to belong, to be part of a tribe. Click To Tweet

While we are connected more-and-more virtually, we are becoming disconnected both physically and emotionally.

Human connection was a primary topic in my conversation with Gabriel Klingman on my recent podcast episode. Gabriel was a manager at Starbucks for nearly a decade. One of the things he observed about young people is that they had a real “longing to belong.”

He also observed that, if you could create an environment where they felt like they were part of something special, it unleashed their potential as an employee. They became dedicated to what they did because there was a feeling of belonging.

He observed that belonging drove performance, especially with younger employees.

Creating a sense of belonging is an integral part of leadership. As you build your team, you need to consider if your employees feel like they belong to something special.

Have you created an environment where it’s special to be part of your tribe? Or is it just a job?

Work has the potential to be more than just a four-letter word. It can be where people can go, have friends, and strive together towards a common goal.

Work has the potential to be more than just a four-letter word. Click To Tweet

For some people, it might be the only place where they feel like they belong. They might have a troubled home life, but when they come to work, there’s stability. I know for me, my business feels more like a family than a company.

The question is, how can you create a culture of belonging within your team?

Creating a high-performance culture and a high-performing team requires a feeling of belonging and connection.

I challenge you today to think about how you can create a tribe with a true sense of belonging. It will help your employees reach their full potential and help you become a more effective leader.

Listen in to my whole discussion with Gabriel Klingman here.

P.S. I understand many who are reading this have bosses who don’t understand the value of people and relationships. For those of you with bosses like this, I am offering a new service. For just $10, I will anonymously mail a copy of my book, “I Have the Watch: Becoming a Leader Worth Following,” to your boss with a personal note. Click here and enter the discount code BOSS at checkout.

Are Employees an Expense or an Asset? The Answer May Surprise You

10/19/201708/06/2021Jon Rennie

“Being an employee of several different companies, I can honestly say that I’ve felt like nothing more than a line item on a spreadsheet somewhere that an accountant is desperately trying to eliminate.”

This comment was written by a reader on my recent article, Putting Employees Ahead of Customers, and it got me thinking. Why do so many managers treat their employees like a cost that needs to be eliminated?

My conclusion was that the problem may be related to accounting. Why? Because in accounting, employees are an expense.

Consider this. By accounting rules, the cost of workers is treated as an expense on the income statement. In fact, personnel expense is one of the highest costs a company incurs. Many managers see this sizable cost every month and conclude that people are expensive. They see people as a problem. By seeing people as a costly expense, these managers think that a quick way to more profits is by reducing people or salaries. They look at employees as an expense or a problem that must be reduced or eliminated.

“Assets are company resources which have future economic value.”

Great leaders see things differently. They consider employees as an asset. In accounting terms, assets are company resources which have future economic value. Instead of seeing employees as a problem, these leaders see them as a valuable resource. They know that people have the capability to grow sales, satisfy customers, improve processes, innovate products, and do countless other things that add money to both the top and bottom line. As a CEO, I see daily examples of this in my business, Peak Demand.

If you think of employees as an asset, as I do, you treat them differently. You understand the importance of keeping them happy and operating at peak performance. You recognize the importance of leadership. You realize your team will be at their best when they are loved, appreciated, respected, engaged, and acknowledged.

It seems simple to me but it’s not often practiced. I think one of the problems is the lack of leadership training in business schools. Most graduate and undergraduate students take multiple courses in accounting but they may only attend one or two lectures on leadership. The result is we are sending young managers to the workplace with a belief that numbers are more important than people.

“Great leaders know better”

In accounting, employees are an expense but great leaders know better. They know people are an asset that represent the future results of a company. They see their team as an important resource that needs to be led properly to maximize performance. They understand their team will be at their best when they are loved, appreciated, respected, engaged, and acknowledged.

Where do you stand? Do you see employees as an expense or an asset? Have you worked for a manager who treated you like an expense or a problem that needed to be reduced? How did that feel? Have you worked for a leader that treated you like an important asset? What was that like? Let me know in the comment section below.