Here are some points to become a ‘Warm’ Leaders…

We should start by bringing about a change in our mindset and making a habit of the behaviours discussed below.

Serve your people: Start believing that your job is to serve your employees. Therefore, you should be available for them whenever they require you. Periodically, ask people what challenges they are facing. Once you know them, put in sincere effort to either reduce or eliminate them.

Lead with compassion: You should lead with compassion by forming meaningful relationships with your employees and empowering them so they are able to achieve their potential. This you can do by asking people how you can contribute towards their well-being and growth.

Help others succeed: ‘As a leader, it’s less about trying to be successful (yourself), and more about making others succeed.’ said Sundar Pichai on a visit to his alma mater. At regular intervals ask people what you can do to help them. Put in, sincere effort to help.

Practice active listening: Listen to people with the intent of understanding them and not replying immediately. Also, do not listen in complete silence. Punctuate it with a ‘yes’ or ‘hmm’ to indicate that you are indeed listening and not merely hearing. If you have not understood a point, ask your colleague to explain it again. In the end, summarize important elements of the conversations to make sure you have understood what was sought to be communicated to you.

Have non-violent conversations: Be compassionate while having conversations with your employees. Punctuate your conversations with ‘Please’, ‘May I?’, and ‘Thank you’. Refrain from accusing, blaming, or finding fault with others, or proving yourself right. They too will respond in a similar vein.

Apologize when you are in the wrong: Most people believe that they will be perceived as a wimp if they apologize. But we believe that if you apologize when you have committed an error, you come across as someone who is trustworthy.

Let us share an example to illustrate this point. we had made a commitment to the vendor that the payment would be released on a specific date. For unforeseen reasons, it had to be deferred.

When we made the payment, we self-penalized and paid the vendor interest for the number of days the payment was delayed. By following this strategy,  you can strengthen the trust between the vendor and your company. They forgot the lapse but remembered our act of generosity.

Keep your ego in check: Never allow your ego to the surface because it gives you a false sense of superiority. Experience has taught us that everybody knows more than you some way or the other.

Business Leaders

Draw Appreciate, but only in deserving cases: inspiration from Sir Alex Ferguson. He had to manage multi-millionaire football stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham, and Wayne Rooney among others. To motivate them he used two words: ‘Well done’, He believes that there is nobody in the world who does not like to hear these two words, ‘Those are the two best words ever invented, You don’t need to use superlatives: believes Sir Alex, But use it sparingly and in deserving cases only, Excessive use diminishes its value,

Does appreciation work in a corporate environment? Dan a Duke University professor did an experiment, among factory workers, in a factory located in Israel. The workers were offered three reward options for improving productivity—receiving a $30 bonus, a pizza voucher, or a ‘Well done!’ complimentary text message from the boss. . . . while a bonus resulted in a spike in worker productivity, it then declined to below what it was before the bonus was offered. Gratitude and compliments are better motivators,’ Ariely says.

‘Acknowledgment is a kind of human magic.’ Make people feel special: You can achieve this by Knowing them as people, Focusing on their strengths, Treating them as they want to be treated, Being courteous to them, Giving credit where it is genuinely due,  Being patient with them, Demonstrate that you care.

A word of caution—do this to demonstrate genuine care and not to manipulate them to work harder. Use positive body language: Let us share a secret with you. Non-verbal communication (NVC) is more impactful than verbal communication, People subconsciously pick up NVC and form opinions based on it, So, make a conscious effort to learn the basics of body language so that you do not send out any unintended messages. Let us share a few tips on body language to come across as a warm person.

Eye contact: Try to maintain eye contact with the person you are speaking to. This makes you seem more honest.

Hands: Keep your palms facing up when making a point. This indicates that you are making a request for your ideas to be heard and accepted.

Pointing a finger: Do not do it during a discussion or while making a point. It is tantamount to accusing a person.

Speak slowly: When you speak at a fast pace you run the risk of being incoherent and appearing nervous. Make a conscious effort to speak slowly. This will make you appear more confident.

Smile: Make it a point to smile when engaging with people or having a conversation because it makes you appear more approachable, likable, and confident. 

For more information on creating an effective marketing plan for your business, contact HyperEffects. We help enhance your customer service while building a sense of community, by getting a customer forum added to your company’s website. HyperEffects also helps companies get extravagant and enticing videos that could attract potential clients.