By Joe Kiedinger, CEO, Prophit Co.
It’s the never-ending cycle. Your company turnover has been higher than you’d like and every time you lose talent, you have to start from square one. You want to build a strong culture and align your leadership team on a common goal, but you feel like you’re constantly onboarding. I get it.
Ask yourself this question. What is the cause of turnover? The No. 1 reason people leave their employment in the U.S. is … stress! And why are people stressed? Because their dignity, the very core of their being, is being violated in the workplace, again and again.
Certainly, there are societal pressures and expectations that add to our stress levels; however, the most common is least understood: dignity violations.
What is dignity, exactly? Merriam Webster defines it as “the quality or state of being worthy of honor and respect.” It’s the one quality that threads us all together. We all want to be treated with respect.
The trick is understanding that each of us has our own unique dignity. We’re all unique human beings with different motivations and communication styles. That’s why it’s all too easy to offend others. We assume they’re just like us, but they’re not.
Because the golden rule is misleading, my friends. You know the one: treat others like you’d like to be treated. In its original biblical context, it made perfect sense: to teach humanity a strong lesson in how to treat one another. In the workplace, however, most of us are already exercising the golden rule, but it’s not working equally well for everyone we interact with.
You see, we all feel dignified and respected in different ways. Say you asked your associate Michelle to give a spur-of-the-moment update in your all-company meeting. She rose to the occasion and beamed with pride because she was asked to share. You did the very same with your associate Ben and he was visibly stressed and had little to say because he thrives on careful preparation.
We need to learn about others if we ever want to communicate effectively with them.
That’s precisely what Prophit Co.’s Dignify® program does. It’s a patented system that reveals the why, what and how of every person in an organization. Why they behave the way they do, what motivates them and how to place and retain them in the work setting.
If you are a leader who truly wants to instill a servant leadership mindset, this tool was built for servant leaders. Knowing how others want to be treated removes accidental misunderstandings and hurt feelings, which cost companies money in the form of productivity.
Ready to leverage the power of dignity to shape your company? We can help you there.
For more leadership and organizational health articles, videos and podcasts, subscribe to the Prophit Co. Post email list at https://www.prophit.com/subscribe.
For more information on leadership coaching, workshops and keynote speaking, contact Prophit Co. CEO Joe Kiedinger at joek@prophit.com or (920) 435-4878.
About the Author
Joe Kiedinger
CEO of Prophit Co.
Joe Kiedinger is a well-versed keynote speaker, entrepreneur, author of three books on leadership: The Brander in Chief, Remove Your Fear, Build Your Career and The Dignity Based Franchise, blogger of Wisdom on Wednesday, CEO of Prophit Co., and holds a utility patent for the technology, Dignify®. He was named one of the “20 People You Should Know” by the Green Bay Chamber of Wisconsin’s Bay Business Journal and is deeply passionate about his personal purpose: teaching acceptance in an unaccepting world. He can be reached at joek@prophit.com.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Insight Publications, LLC.
