Dear Sylvia:Our department lost an employee and we are drowning in overwhelm! Help!

Dear Sylvia,

My company has cut back and our department lost one employee. Although my supervisor and other administrators know we cannot provide the same level of support and do everything that was done before, they still seem to be holding us to the same expectations they had when there were six employees instead of five. I have talked to them several times and explained we are all working extra and doing more than ever but still can’t keep up with the large workload and new initiatives. My department is drowning in overwhelm. How can I make them understand and adjust their expectations or provide additional help?

Dear Frustrated and Overwhelmed:

The situation you describe is both extremely common and challenging. Unfortunately, the economic crisis and slow recovery over the last three years has served as the catalyst for dramatic change in most companies across the nation. These dramatic changes have increased the stress experienced by millions of employees. While there are no easy answers to this problem, I think seeking clarity about your work-related priorities is essential. Because there are only so many hours in a day, I recommend that you engage your direct supervisor in conversation about what he/she sees as YOUR top five priorities, for example. Once you are clear about them (preferably in ranked order), you can organize your time in alignment with those priorities. Focusing on the identified priorities can help to reduce feelings of overwhelm, allowing you to be more productive in the long run. Although administrators/managers may want the work to flow as seamlessly as it once did, the reality of our times does not permit that. Trying to function as if you had more employees than you do sets all of you up for burnout. A plan for coping must be made.

My second recommendation is that you look for specific ways to nurture and care for yourself in the midst of this chronic stress. Schedule half an hour into each day when you do something just for you.

You must build it into your calendar or it won’t happen. Your body, mind, emotions, and spirit need refreshment on a regular basis or you risk getting sick. These half hour periods may revive your energy, boost your motivation, and prevent you from sinking into a low level depression that will detract from your quality of life. Figure out what makes you feel good–even temporarily–and give yourself permission to experience them. I am not talking about buying expensive items that don’t provide long-term relief but rather reading an inspirational story, walking around the block, calling a friend, enjoying a chair massage, eating an ice cream cone, taking a bath. These kinds of things seem small, but if you treat yourself to one of them daily, they have the power to make a significant impact on your overall health, contentment, and wellbeing.

–Sylvia

Do you have a business question? Send your questions via email at dearsylvia@launchinglives.biz or by mail to 4902 Carlisle Pike, PMB 297, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050. Limit one question per person, please!

Dear Sylvia: I Suspect My Employee is Not Being Honest

Dear Sylvia,

I have an employee who does strong work and shows enthusiasm for the job; however I believe this person is not being completely honest about the hours written on the timesheet when I’m not around. I have caught this once before and have said something, however I suspect it’s happening again. What should I do?

Signed,

New Boss

Dear New Boss:

Thank you for asking this important question.  I’m sure others also can benefit from my response to it.

My recommendation is that you design a time audit sheet to accompany the expense sheet.  The audit sheet requires employees to account for the specifics of what they are doing during a particular time block.  You may want to set it up in half hour increments.  Employees must complete the audit comprehensively, including each and every phone call.  I suggest that you ask people to do this for three consecutive months.  You can tell them that your purpose is to gain greater insight into how your company overall is spending its time.  This information will help you, as the business owner, to make more effective decisions going forward.

If you continue to have serious questions about how honestly one employee is completing his or her timesheet, I recommend that you speak privately with that person and express your concerns forthrightly.  Make sure you provide reasons for your questions.  Tell the person what you are observing and what leads you to draw these conclusions.  Ask the individual to tell you if your observations and conclusions are accurate.  In other words, probe for his or her side of the story.  Whatever you hear will undoubtedly be educational.  Finally, tell the employee exactly what you expect when folks fill out timesheets.  Be clear about the consequences to breaches of those expectations.  AND–document the conversation after it is over.

Do you have a business question? Send your questions via email at dearsylvia@launchinglives.biz or by mail to 4902 Carlisle Pike, PMB 297, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050. 

Dear Sylvia: How can I step up and voice my concerns without jeopardizing my job?

It’s time to reveal our next “Dear Sylvia” question and answer. Be sure to check the bottom of this post for further instructions on submitting your “Dear Sylvia” questions.

Dear Sylvia,

There is a huge disconnect and generational gap in our office and I can feel the walls crumbling in around our business! Our principal is at retirement age and the majority of our staff is, on average, about30 years old. In the last couple of years our business has expanded to include different market sectors, but we have no business or transition plan in place, which makes employees nervous and leaves them unmotivated. With recent staffing changes, there has been no explanation of how responsibilities and goals will be met. Our staff is unhappy and our management team is going in different directions. I am a leader by nature, so in my “middle-management” position, how can I step up and voice my concerns without overstepping and jeopardizing my job? I am afraid we will lose some of our key employees if the atmosphere at the office does not improve. Please, help us!

Signed: At the End of My Rope

Dear “At the End of My Rope:”

The KEY to dealing with your difficult, frustrating, and scary question lies in the ART OF QUESTIONING.

I don’t know how much practice you’ve had in asking the right question at the right time for the right reason.

I suggest that you begin to ask a series of meaningful open-ended questions of your principal during team/staff meetings (assuming you have them).

Here are a few examples:  “What does our future look like?  Where are we headed? How will we get there?”  You can follow those questions with statements such as “I’ve been noticing that our internal culture is shifting, and all of us know that there is a great deal of global instability.  Change is real and certain.  “How do you envision that we will deal with this over the next six months?  The next year?”

You can also express a need for receiving greater clarity about your own role in the business going forward.  When doing this, be sure to focus on YOUR needs rather than on the principal’s deficiencies and oversights.  Say something like:  “I want to make ongoing, meaningful contributions here, and to do that I could benefit from more clarity around X, Y, Z.”

Finally, I would recommend that your entire staff engage in a SWOTT Analysis, an intensive exercise that identifies your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats, and trends.  This is a great way to prepare for the future–and a responsible forerunner to a credible strategic/business plan.  You could suggest this to your principal by asking:  “Do you see any value in conducting a SWOTT Analysis over the next few months?  I’m thinking this could be really useful to all of us as we plan ahead.”

To sit back and say absolutely nothing puts you and your colleagues in a very vulnerable position!  But your questions and ideas must be delivered with finesse, diplomacy, and great care.

–Sylvia

Do you have a business question? Send your questions via email at dearsylvia@launchinglives.biz or by mail to 4902 Carlisle Pike, PMB 297, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050.  Limit one question per person, please!

Dear Sylvia: My boss refers to positions from 20 years ago! What should we do?

It’s time to reveal our first, “Dear Sylvia” question and answer. Be sure to check the bottom of this post for further instructions on submitting your “Dear Sylvia” questions.

Dear Sylvia,

Whenever we are in meetings where we are talking about planning, my boss refers back to a previous position she held and what she did 20 years ago.  This is a demotivator for the team.  She’s my boss, and I want to be respectful but these are new times and they call for some innovative thinking.

Signed:  Frustrated at Work

Dear Frustrated at Work,

The first thing to remember is that most if not all persons in management positions have egos that sometimes are very fragile.  Employees can deal with these egos in a group setting by verbally recognizing, honoring, and respecting the boss’s opinions–even when strongly disagreeing with them.  Once you do that, you can ask permission to share your own views on the subject being discussed.  Specifically related to the situation you described in your letter, you may want to say something like this:  “It’s interesting to hear how you handled X, Y, or Z many years ago.  I’m sure that worked well under those circumstances at that time.  Would you mind if I share some of my thoughts around this issue?  Because of the internal and external factors currently impacting how we must provide services today, I’ve come up with a few creative ideas that may be worth some exploration.  How does that sound?”  Try this language, and see what happens.

-Sylvia

Do you have a business question? Send your questions via email at dearsylvia@launchinglives.biz or by mail to 4902 Carlisle Pike, PMB 297, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050.  Click here to preview a short clip about this column.

“Dear Sylvia” Column to Offer Confidential Answers to Your Burning Business Questions

Do you have a question about business? Perhaps you are an executive, middle level manager,  or a small business owner finding yourself in a rut? Maybe you are having difficulties with people on your team? Or maybe you’re standing in your own way?

I am delighted to announce a FREE confidential outlet for submitting your questions: a new initiative from Launching Lives called “Dear Sylvia.”

“Dear Sylvia” will be a monthly column, featured on my blog, which will answer a question presented during the month.

Questions can be sent via email  at dearsylvia@launchinglives.biz or by mail to 4902 Carlisle Pike, PMB 297, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050.

All submissions will be considered; however, I will decide which questions I want to answer publicly.  Those who submit questions are welcome to sign their full name, but in the interest of privacy protection, I will use only people’s first names when referencing.

I look forward to your questions.  As “The Manager’s Coach”, my intention is to offer a solution to your business challenges in a way that others may benefit.

Click here to preview a short clip about the column.