by John Stevens
December 14, 2010 12:47 PM
Unless you are one of the lucky few you know how hard it is to work your way up from the bottom. Some are able to start there and rise up to the top and even break into business ownership. The trouble can be that once they get there they have trouble acting like an owner and instead end up micro managing and undermining their employees.
It can be understandable for an owner of a self storage facility to want to make sure that every little thing is done right. In many cases they have done it before themselves and do now how to get the job done. However, once the leap is made to ownership it is not necessary to do all those things. That’s what you have employees for.
The trouble can be in letting your employees do their jobs. You hire them because you think they are capable so there is no reason not to let them unless you don’t trust them. When you do break into ownership though that is one thing you have to do.
Establishing trust between you the owner and your self storage facility manager is something that is easier said than done though. Once that trust is established than you’ll find that your facility will run much smoother and life as the owner will be much easier and stress free.
A mistake most owners make is in thinking that it has to be the facility manager that has to earn the trust, but in reality it is a two way street. Owners need to earn the trust of their employees just as much as the employees need to earn the owners trust. Employees need to feel like they will have the chance to do their jobs without too much interference from ownership.
One of the first things owners need to do is limit the amount of lecturing they give their managers and employees. As the owner it is your right to instruct your employees as to how you want things done in order to make sure that things are done properly. Done in moderation it can be seen as just that, but if done too much than it comes across as a lack of faith and a disbelief that the people you hired to do a job are capable of doing it.
Instead of lecturing consider approaching your employees in a different manner. As them reflective style questions that elicit their thoughts and opinions on something. That way you can see whether they do know what they are doing and just what instruction they may need if any. Chances are good you could actually learn something as well.
Along with limiting your lecturing improving your own listening skills. This means you actually let your people do the talking without interrupting them with your own thoughts and opinions. Doing so will tend to put them on the defensive, especially if they get the impression that you are judging them before you even know the full story. Interject when they are talking too often and their confidence will start to erode which will likely affect how they work.
Let your people talk. Be interested in what they are saying and let them say all that they feel they need to say. You’ll find that they will tell you everything that you need to know and then some once they feel like you will actually listen.
Learn how to be a better listener and less of a talker and pretty soon your self storage facility will run like the well-oiled machine you ever always wanted!
Sources Used:
“Three Keys to Building Trust Between Self-Storage Owners and Managers.” InsideSelfStorage.com; December 11,2010.
“How to make employees feel valued.” Businessknowledgesource.com. December 14, 2010.