7 Ways Leaders can Use Emotional Intelligence to Cheer Up Teams in Lockdown

For a leader, a good productivity may not be the only indicator that his team is doing well. Those who think far and ahead, believe in enhancing communication, collaboration, compassion and hence, overall engagement in the teams.

There are various ways leaders build, measure and grow these values and abilities in the team. However, the proliferation seems much more challenging for them in the current situation of lockdown, and hence, remote working.

A study by the Institute of Employment Studies (IES), found 50 per cent of respondents were not happy with their current work-life balance in current remote working situation, and 33 per cent reported feeling isolated.

What does it all reflect? While we do not have a choice over lockdown and WFH, as leaders, we can indeed, make things look easier for our teams and, pump in new ideas to keep them motivated.

In the face of tech, these roles will pose greater challenges for existing leaders to re-look their long-endured skillset – which is hard to do away with. Something that strongly points towards cognitive biases — a fixed way of looking at things.

Emotional Intelligence and Effective Leadership during WFH

A leader’s emotional intelligence plays a vital role in shaping up his individual abilities to cope with challenges and conflicts, to ensure the outcomes are productive and sustainable. These capabilities further translate into better team coordination, collaboration and performance.

How do we tailor those abilities in the current situation to Inspire and Encourage?

The situation naturally inflicts several unknown anxieties and disappointments. An employee may or may not reach out to you citing an emotional challenge or a mood swing. However, it will likely reflect in the behaviour (communication in the present situation) or the performance.

As leaders, we need to sit down and thing of newer and “cool” ways of boosting the team’s confidence and focus. The constraints of virtual meetings or distancing remain. Yet, if you think in a creative manner, possibilities may turn out to be endless.

7 Things Leaders Can Do to Inspire and Cheer the Teams

Communication Intelligence

Your team’s mental well-being should be the highest priority for you. Communicating regularly and clearly is important. However, clarity demands an additional effort to double check if the message goes out well and is received well. Within that, respecting the boundaries mindfully is critical too. Train the team to speak up and speak right.

Virtual Coffee Catch Up

This meeting should happen with a coffee in hand, make that a norm, and the meeting should happen regardless of all other different agenda calls with same people. The objective of this meeting should be a fun and usual chit chat with the team.

Social vLog

Organize a social vlog, encourage and challenge team member to do a task not work related, either record and sing or share an interesting piece of information.

Feedback from Team

Ask your team member how else can you support them, for example if they feel stressed about not meeting the deadline, or a project getting delayed give them time and offer your support to get things moving. This is hard. You need to prove that you understand.

Recognition

Working from home – amid lacking conducive atmosphere and infrastructure is already a challenge. When you acknowledge the hardships faced by your team and recognize their contribution, they will feel connected.

Propel Optimism

Without compromising on the realities, keep them motivated by encouraging them to hope for the better. If you see positive signs in the uncertainties, speak up and ask them to speak about it. For instance, if the business is growing or there are possibilities of improving cash reserve etc, keep the teams informed so that they feel less burdened on concerns of job loss or paycuts etc.

Remind on Self-Care

Self-caring is about spending time with yourself with an intent to introspect and understand how can you improve at your performance. As a leader, you must practice it, and set the right examples for your team. It is important that you guide them and constantly remind them to self-introspect and keep up the mental health. They must not feel drained with work all day.

Summing Up

As a leader, your success in motivating your team everyday will reflect through your ability to help teams believe that this phase will slowly pass by. They must conclude that collaboration will make things look easier.

As a leader, your success in motivating your team everyday will reflect through your ability to help teams believe that this phase will slowly pass by. They must conclude that collaboration will make things look easier.

If you have any comments or ideas to add, or you’d like to learn more on the subject, or find expert guidance on the HOWs, connect with us here. You can also write to us at shalini@whiteraycoaching.com.