Managing to Make a Difference

Chapter 2Get to Know Your Employees

The first step in cultivating positive relationships is getting to know your people. Right away, we are giving you a simple, practical tool that will help you rapidly build positive relationships with people you have just met. It will also help you improve relationships with people you already know. The tool, called “Focus On You®,” consists of the following six questions.

Focus on You

1. What name do you prefer to be called?
2. If you boil it all down to a few words, what do you really get paid to do?
3. What are your positive hot buttons—your interests in and out of work that are instant conversation starters?
4. Tell us about two successes you have had, one professional and one personal.
5. What do you do best—in and out of work?
6. Tell us about two goals you have, one professional and one personal.

To use this tool with one or more people, hand out a blank copy of the Focus On You Worksheet to everyone and explain the six questions. Give everyone (including yourself) a few minutes to make notes on their own responses to the six questions in the boxes provided. Take turns allowing each person (including yourself) to share their answers to all the questions, without interruption. Then invite follow-up questions. Each person should take three to five minutes. Take notes on what everyone says. These notes are worth keeping and referring back to later. We have provided an example that includes Kim's notes on her own answers and her notes on Larry's answers ...