In my Leadership Trainings I often teach my 5 Types of Employees; from “The Inspired & Motivated” all the way to “The Grouch”! The BIGGEST misconception is “The Grouch” is the most difficult employee to work with and causes the greatest dysfunction within your organization. In my experience, this couldn’t be further from the truth! Yes, your “Grouches” are negative and recruit better than you; but they’re in small numbers, will struggle to create a full-blown mutiny, and typically do their job. Whereas, some… not all… of your “Inspired & Motivated” are Type A, focused on their job, climbing the ladder, focused their ability to earn more, do more, and be more with blinders’ on and unaware of those around them, or… they’re simply addicted to being this version of “busy”. Therefore, they tend to take fewer vacation days, work while on vacation, initiate emails off work-hours, during the evening, on weekends, and have the nerve to CC the boss!
These Managers, Leaders, or Coworkers are good people, but may unknowingly and unintentionally set a standard and expectation within your organization that increases revenue, but decreases culture! Perhaps you’re that person, or you’re the person feeling pressure to respond to those off-hour emails, or you’re the boss of a Team where this is going on; what do you do?
Sell Your Position!
When you’re in a position of authority… a Leader, a Boss, Manager, etc. it’s your job to sell your job to the people under you! This is hard to do when your people see you not taking vacations, responding to calls and emails while at the beach with your family, sending emails on the weekends, missing family events and your kids’ activities, and on your fourteenth marriage because you’re always working! As you read this, it may be bubbling inside you to say, “Well this is the way I am” or any other reason that helps to rationalize the behavior. I will agree, there are times when obsession wins… I started my company from the ground up, woke up early to do work, stayed up late, worked holidays, and I still do something about my business EVERY DAY; however I’d never expect my Team to operate that way or want them to think they have to. Therefore, I never send emails or attempt to contact them during our non-work-hour times.
The point is, one day you may wish to get promoted, move on, vacation, or retire… and you can’t do that if no one under you wants your job. Why would your people what to be you if they believe that’s how they HAVE TO operate? Leaders sell their position to those under them daily by choosing to show up to work with a smile, connecting , getting results, setting boundaries, and enjoying their work/life harmony… Be Mindful!
You may be asking yourself, what if the company is global and time zones are an issue. In this case, a traditional 9-5 work schedule is not likely; however boundaries are always possible and we’ll get to that a bit later! The next 5 Keys are for Leaders of Teams, Middle Management, and sometimes Front-Line Employees within organizations interested in preventing or leading through these Off-Hour violations.
The Leader’s 3!
Every Leader needs to know their Leader’s 3… your Vision & Vision Factors, Expectations, & Rules! As I travel the world presenting my Leadership Trainings, it never ceases to amaze me leaders do not have their Leader’s 3 to memory. Every company has a Mission Statement their Front-Line can’t say, but rarely this:
- What’s your Vision for your Team? This is the opportunity to state, “We will be the BEST, ELITE, etc. in _________! What’s your Vision Factors: The 3-5 Things that when done consistently your Vision has to come true!
Can you be elite, stay elite, and keep elite people with the processes and culture that currently exist within your team or company?
- What are your Expectations of your Team. Mine are The 3P’s… I need my People to be Positive, Passionate, & Productive!
Is your off-hour work culture conducive to maintaining the 3P’s?
- What are your Rules? You don’t need many, but you better have some… or you won’t be leading for very long! I share my rules in other articles, videos, and in my Trainings; for the sake of this article… wouldn’t this be an ideal spot for your off-work-hours communication rules?
As a leader, it’s our job to set the tone for the Team or Organization. You’re Leader’s 3 gets echoed in your meetings, 1-on-1 Meetings, within decision-making processes, on the walls throughout the building, in the signature in your emails… to the point your people begin to say it unconsciously and can lead new employees without you having to do all the dirty work!
Define an “Emergency”!
As much as you’d like to have no off-work-hour communication; it’s not always so Black & White! There will be some grey moments and professional seasons you’ll have to put your cape on and get stuff done on YOUR TIME. During my last job as an Employee… I entered the interview, said my name, that I needed a job, that I was a Professional Speaker & Author, and didn’t plan on being there for long; but I’d be their best hire ever!
That took some stones to say, but I couldn’t hold it back! I wanted to put pressure on myself to not embarrass myself and be there three years later and to protect my off-work hours time. I shared my time outside of work was dedicated to building my business, servicing the few companies I had contracts with, and being a Family Man. We discussed what an “emergency” in the profession actually was and what would be expected of me. Inevitably, one day the Emergency Phone Call came; I was asked to address a few work issues on my time off. They were polite, I was understanding, and most importantly they were beyond grateful I was able to respond and follow-through. During the year I was there, I received only two of these calls and was gifted “Thanks and Tremendous Gratitude” each time.
Be a leader and be sure to define what an “Emergency” actually is. Without this, EVERYTHING a coworker may need, want, or thinks can become an emergency and EVERYTHING becomes a High Priority/Handle Now… Be Mindful!
Get Protection!
A few years ago, I conducted my Evolve & Lead Training Program with a company; afterward, a few leaders of the organization approached me and expressed frustration and exhaustion due to their leadership peers consistent barrage of off-work-hour emails. One woman shared she was responding to phone calls at a weekend family function, another woman at the beach, and one gentleman while at his son’s game… I could go on, but you get the point! The thing to remember is; what’s done in the beginning will be expected throughout the middle and the end. I’ve learned this the hard way throughout my life… once you do something one time; it may now be expected all the time! You respond to that one email over the weekend because you had time and wanted to be nice and BAM… it’s an expectation and if you don’t respond to it the next time you’re not a “Team Player”!
I first suggest sharing your concern and your suggested solution with your coworkers first. When you have a great or good relationship; it may be in person or virtual. However, an undocumented conversation never happened and you may prefer to email your concern and suggested solution regarding the consistent off-work-hour violation in an email. Either way, it may sound something like… “Hi Everyone and I hope you all are enjoying the day! I look forward to helping out with the issues you mentioned when I return to work on ___. My life has really picked up outside of outside of work and I’m not able to respond like I have in the past off work hours. I have an idea I think will help _______”. Perhaps your idea is for them to email you and schedule the send for it to arrive in your inbox the morning of your return; allowing them to write and send when you want, for you to receive it when you want, and work on it when it’s more appropriate. You may also share the blueprint on how to best reach you in case of a “Defined Emergency”!
When going to your coworker is effective, great! When it’s not… get protection from your boss! You may believe he or she knows what’s going on within your Team; believe me, they may not. All they know and see is that the job keeps getting done and if no one tells them what it’s taking to get it done… why would they address it or stop it? When this is the case, you can go to your boss and bring a suggested solution with your problem. “Hi ____, Thanks for making time for me. I love what I get to do here and the Team is great. Lately, I’ve been getting swamped with a lot of emails, texts, and work calls off hours. I don’t mind being a “Team Player”; my life has relay picked up outside of work and I’m not able to respond like I have in the past. I have an idea I think will help, but wanted to know what you liked about it and anything you’d fine-tune or change”.
This is the time to share what you think an emergency is, question what’s an emergency, your plan to disconnect from the off-work-hour communication loop, and how people can reach you when there really is a pressing need… allowing you your Team Player Card! I call this A Leader’s Blueprint:
- What method would you like to be contacted in case of an emergency: work email, personal email, text, Slack, phone call, message to work phone, etc?
- What sentence can they start with that will signify they mean business?
- What do they need, specifically?
You may find your boss has no idea this barrage of off-work-hour contact. You may find out he/she is against it… or, promotes it. In either case, you’re going to find out who you’re working for! Many years ago, I was struggling with my workload and my bosses had a tough conversation with me. I shared I used to take work home to stay caught up when I was first hired. I now have three kids, they’re in sports, my after-work life had changed quite a bit, and I wasn’t willing to crack open my computer at 10:00pm after my kids had gone to bed. I offered my solution to shut myself down on Fridays to catch up… and they offered me two weeks at headquarters to fully shut-down and catch up. WOW!!!
Lastly, after you share your suggested solution and possibly brainstorm a more effective way; share you’ll follow-through with your plan for your Team and if they don’t hear from you… all is great! If they hear from other people; at least you were able to protect your leader’s blindside and they won’t be surprised when someone comes kicking in their door or making side comments about your lack of organizational commitment.
Follow-Through!
This Key is short and sweet! The fact you’re reading this means you’re a Go-Getter, an Inspired & Motivated, and you care about your craft! The fact this is true means you’ll still be tempted to respond to all of those rings, dings, and chimes your computer and phone are doing during your off-work hours. You have options:
- Follow-through on what I shared and get back to the communication when work resumes!
- Give yourself a certain off-work-hours-time-of-day with a specific timeframe to address or review off-hour work issues so you aren’t returning to work blind!
Get Results!
Let me be blunt… you’re fully entitled to only work the designated working hours within your company’s employee handbook. Many leaders say this employee is giving the bare minimum… which typically translates to an employee actually doing the job they agreed to and get paid for. However, this employee is not typically reading an article like this. Since you are… before you engage in a Time-War, be sure your work is impeccable, you get results, and no matter what anyone says about you protecting your Work/Life Harmony… it will never be said you weren’t great at your craft!
These are The 6 Keys to Leading Through A Leader’s Off-Hours! I don’t promise it will be clean or you’ll always get your desired response. I do promise you’re going to find out what type of company and boss you work for. The choice is yours and be mindful Work/life Harmony is a huge part of Leadership!
“Leaders sell their position to those under them daily by choosing to show up to work with a smile, connecting , getting results, setting boundaries, and enjoying their work/life harmony… Be Mindful!” – Andre Young
Written by: Andre Young
Ready to enhance Leadership & Work/Life Harmony for your people and organization? Click www.youevolvingnow.com to connect, chat, and customize with Andre Young!!!
