What if I am just a little bit tired?
Tired is relative. I am tired today. I got about 6 hours of sleep and feel like the world is closing in around me. Am I tired or am I anxious? As a manager, you would love to have everyone working full strength and with everything in perfect arrangement in the universe. It doesn’t happen that way. You will have someone who is working on auto-pilot, doing their job and yet feel as though they are “tired”. What is tired?
Is it issues at home? Is it a lack of sleep due to a project or school? Is it a feeling of discontent? Is it the fact they are just not very excited about what they are doing today? How do you manage that?
I have three things to consider.
One, it is human to be imperfect and without a drive one day or two. Sometimes we just want to stay in bed. We just want to say “Uh, yeah, I don’t care today about the quality of the ‘thing’ that I do”. Sometimes I see managers needing to feel empowered to make everyone super-human. They aren’t and you can’t. As much as the job needs to be done, we just can’t be that 100% everyone wishes we were. Some days, yes and some days, no. No one wakes up wanting to fail. They just wake up some days wanting to be less than perfect or maybe even mediocre that day. Some days, they just don’t care. That is the first reality check. Don’t try and coach this! Sometimes the attitude needs to be left alone. I am not saying let an attitude of apathy affect your customer experience. If it is obvious and affecting your ability to deliver your service, tag it and handle it. I am saying some days you may just have to let your team be.
The second consideration is if you understand the individual team members “button”? Do you know what is important to that individual? Do they have a family? Do they have a hobby? Do they like to go to tractor pulls? Having a unique understanding of who you manage allows you the ability to speak to what may be making them tired. I have my own business. I have an interest in what is happening in my country and in the world. I have two very young daughters. I would like to move to a different house. I have a son going back to Afghanistan in May. I have a set of realities that may make me just a tad tired. As manager, do you need to get into my business? NO. Let me say that again, NO. What may be necessary is your awareness as a means to create a context for how to lead me. Listen, I don’t need another dad. I just need a manager who understands some of my realities. Don’t fix me. Know some of the things that make me “me”.
Last. Sometimes we are just tired. Let me re-phrase that. We are seeking for something we do not know yet and that is exhausting us. Are we invigorated by what we do? I know some love what they do and some are just coasting along. That does not make us bad or evil. We are just engaged in something we are less than thrilled about. Is this it? Is this what I am supposed to be doing 24/7 for the next however many years? I want “x”, but was given “y”. Or was I given it or accepted it? We accept a lot in our lives. Some things are “yep, I want that.” And others are “huh, I want that?” Sometimes, we are tired because we missed or are missing our purpose. This may seem heavy and maybe a little “touchy-feely or tree-huggy.” I wish managing others could be so easy and free and clear. Wake up. Others are complicated. Or is it just me?
This may seem all negative and stuff. No, it is not the intention. I could say I walked a mile to my high school every day. I could. It was exactly a mile. It made me tired. But that is not the measure of discussion today. I am tired right now. And I do not necessarily think it is because I did not get enough sleep. I am having a coffee and wondering how “this” all works out. Define tired. I understand what is in front of me. I just don’t feel too motivated. My choice. And yet I am still a powerful employee. Just tired, or is it just wondering? Which is it? Which one can you manage?
I love my job. I am just tired today.