Be The Leader They Can Trust — Nobody wants to work for a leader who throws someone under the bus at the first sign of trouble. If you want your team to follow you, you need to be the one who sets the example by leading with character. Be the kind of person you’d like to follow, now!

Be Consistent — You’ve been a great leader for nine business days in a row, and then you melted down one day when the going got tough. Your associates will remember the one day of weakness and forget the other nine days of strength. Consistency builds their trust in you.

Build Great Culture — When the culture is right in a business, you can feel it within the first ten steps inside the front door. Brand your culture and talk about it all the time. Make certain that it’s not just talk. Make sure that you never compromise on your values, and make culture a huge part of how the company is operated. Leverage culture in recruiting, hiring, training, onboarding, motivating, performance managing, disciplining, continuing education, continuous improvement, and firing. Be congruent!

Listen And Care — Somebody wise said that they don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Your associates are NOT numbers; they are human beings with feelings! They have children, parents, friends, pets and interests outside of work. Everyone wants to be recognized and understood. Learn the names of their wives, husbands, significant others, children, and pets of your associates. Listen to them, they will tell you where your team needs to go. Care about them, and they will join your vision for where you’d like the team to go.

Create A Welcoming Work Environment –Does your break room look like a whirlwind went through? Is your office a rundown mess? Your facility needs to reflect your priorities, and your priorities need to center around your customers and your associates. Unless your customers and associates are comfortable when in your offices, why would they want to come back? Your offices should reflect the same environment you choose for your home. If you have a beautiful home, have a beautiful office. Don’t forget about artwork, lighting, coffee, tea, snacks, windows, quality furnishings and making people FEEL welcome. Remember, happy associates means happy customers and happy partners turns into a happy bottom line.