TOP TIPS: Seven ways to build employee confidence

Creating small victories and promoting achievements can help your employees to remain confident even during times of major change.

by Carol Kinsey Goman, Ph.D., Kinsey Consulting Services

The personality trait most responsible for an individual's ability to deal well with change is confidence. Confident people are self-motivated, have high self-esteem and take risks. But even the most confident of employees may suffer a crisis of self-doubt in times of radical change – leadership strategies then become a critical factor. Here are seven ways that managers can help build employee confidence:

1. Acknowledge weaknesses, but play to people's strengths

Todd Mansfield, the executive vice president of Disney Development Company, found that his company had been spending too much time on employee weaknesses. He said, "When we'd sit down to evaluate associates, we'd spend 20 percent of our time talking about the things they did well and 80 percent on what needed to be improved. That's just not effective. We ought to spend energy helping people determine what they're gifted at doing and align their responsibilities with those capabilities."

We ought to spend energy helping people determine what they're gifted at doing and align their responsibilities with those capabilities.

2. Don't assume people know how good they are

I gave a speech for the top management team of a software company in Northern California that was relocating out of state. A few days later the president of the company telephoned me to say, "I have an administrative assistant who is probably the brightest, most creative person I've worked with. The problem is, she's married and can't move her family out of the Bay Area. I was wondering if you would see her for a private counseling session, so that when she applies for a new job, she will come across just as terrific as she really is. I'll even pay for the session."

Of course, I agreed, and looked forward to meeting this talented woman. When she came into my office I said, "This is a real pleasure. I've heard so many nice things about you. Tell me about yourself. What is it that you do exceptionally well? What would you most want a prospective employer to know about you?" The woman was silent for several seconds. Finally, she sighed and said, "I really don't know. I do a lot of things well, but when I do them, I don't notice."

3. When people do something very well, acknowledge it immediately

Timing is everything when it comes to building confidence. Get in the habit of commenting on outstanding employee behavior as soon as you notice it. When managers at El Torito Restaurants in Irvine, California, catch a worker doing something exceptional, they immediately give the employee a "Star Buck." Each restaurant has a monthly drawing from the pool of "stars" for prizes (cash, TV, etc.) and each region has a drawing for US$1,000 cash.

4. Encourage people to recognize their own achievements and then to go public

One manager I know came up with a creative solution to her employees' lament that, although she did a pretty good job overall, there were times when she seemed too preoccupied to notice accomplishments. She put a hand-painted sign in her office and jokingly encouraged employees to display it whenever they had a significant achievement. What started out as an office gag is now a favorite employee ritual. The sign reads, "I just did something wonderful. Ask me about it!"

I just did something wonderful. Ask me about it!

5. Help people identify and capitalize on their strengths

Everyone has unique talents and abilities that are not always used in their present jobs. Paula Banks, a former HR director at Sears, once had a secretary who was doing an adequate, but mediocre job. Paula talked to the woman and found out that, in her spare time, she was a top salesperson for Mary Kay Cosmetics. In Paula's words: "I found out she had great sales skills, so I changed her duties to include more of what she was really good at – organizing, follow-through and closing deals. She had this tremendous ability. My job was to figure out how to use it."

6. Create small victories

To encourage people on the way to achieving goals of exceptional performance, managers need to design "small wins." One manager put it this way, "A stretch goal can scare people to death. I always begin with a mini-goal that I know my staff can achieve and then I use that victory as a confidence-builder for reaching the larger objective."

7. Prepare for the future

An oil company was beginning a reengineering effort, and during a meeting I was facilitating, members of the change taskforce began to discuss the drop in confidence the workforce was experiencing. One of the managers shook her head. "Not my staff," she said. "Everyone in my department is doing just fine."

When we asked her why they were doing so well, the manager said that every week she brought her team together and spent an hour or more going over strategy for various organizational contingencies. "We look at the current changes going on in the business and the changes we anticipate in the future, and then we plan how best to position ourselves for all outcomes," she said. "We plan our personal financial and career strategies, share information and leads about open positions throughout the company, we've even planned a response if our entire function is eliminated. My staff feel that there isn't anything this change can do to us that we can't handle."

Now that's confidence!

Carol presents keynote addresses and seminars for management conferences and major trade associations. Carol can be reached through her website.