People who feel valued will value the work they do One of our directors posted a blog on Safety, health and environment (SHE) and a mindset shift to reduce the number of accidents... This was my response... I believe that individually and as a business we need a completely different mind-set, one that is completely alien to some people and requires an even bigger shift in our thinking. Most people and this blog only focus on half of the story, half of the person – its focuses on the outcome, recordables, and not on the overall person. Our mental health and physical health are connected and a line manager has responsibility for not only the physical safety of the individuals within the team, but their mental wellbeing too.  I believe that if we focus on what we can control/ influence we will not only improve our overall safety, but will improve the quality of the work we do too. If leaders focused on their teams overall wellbeing (we are more than the jobs we do, showing that actually cared about them), if individuals in a team had their mates back (like a buddy – checking they have the right PPE, right tools for the job etc), if all teams did this then it would cause a shift in mind-set that we need. How can we show we value people? This depends on the leader and their people, but some basics are: - Listen more than speak – people need to feel heard, they might have some great ideas - Show you appreciate them – do you say thank you or celebrate success? – its not about giving them an award for doing their job or arriving on time, its when they go above and beyond - Empower people – build trust and let your people shine, support them if they need clarification – you won't know what they are capable of if you don’t let them try and they will not gain the confidence to do knew things if they aren’t given the opportunity - Get to know them as people, they are more than the job they do – they are humans, with fears, hopes and dreams, just like you. Do you know how to motivate them to be the best they can be? When you connect with people at this level you will build trust, loyalty and make them feel valued - Spend more time focusing on what they can do, rather than what they cannot do – we are wired to focus on the negative (although not when it comes to SHE, which is interesting!).  we aren’t good at everything – this is the power of the team, when we come together we are stronger, high performing, if we utilise peoples strengths and bring our weaknesses to a manageable level, then the good stuff happens – we focus on ability and not on inability. Caring for people and valuing them does not take extra time, it just needs to become a habit rather than a burden. Do everything from a place of valuing people – that way we can all truly feel safe to challenge, because it comes from good intentions of looking after people and ensuring we leave in the same physical state and dear I say – leaving in an even better mental state. When we shift our mind-set towards valuing people we will see – increased productivity, positive morale, better team work, improved wellbeing of our people and better retention. This will impact on SHE and the quality of their work.

Posted by Nikki AfH Team at 2019-10-18 15:18:37 UTC