The Devil Wears a Floral Apron - And may be wielding a knife!
Any manager or business owner with staff is likely at
some point in their career to run into the problem of the highly
talented but difficult worker. I haven’t seen any studies on it but I
am sure that creative industries like ours have a much higher incidence
of this problem.
Creativity often stems from an ability to call on one’s emotions more readily, which can also lead to heightened volatility. What should you do when you encounter this employee as: your store manager, top designer, best sales person? …Solve the problem immediately.
No doubt this employee will have spent a considerable amount of time
Give Honest Accurate Feedback
“One of the greatest gifts you can give another human being is constructive feedback on a blind spot they never knew they had. It’s a great disservice not to say what needs to be said because it isn’t comfortable. Care enough to give honest, accurate feedback.” Stephen R. Covey, 7 Habits for Managers
Don’t:
Label – Avoid accusatory language that puts people on the defensive and breeds mistrust. “You’re a bit of a prima Dona, aren’t you?’
Use Comparative Language – Comparisons make people feel inferior. “You should watch Sally, she really knows how to up sell.”
Do:
Think Win-Win – Be sure that you are trying to help the other person as well as the business. If you aren’t doing this for the good of all involved what is your motive?
Describe Your Concerns – To give really effective feedback use your perspective not theirs. “ It seems to me…”, “I am worried about…”
Give Specific Examples – focus on facts rather than opinions. “You disrupted everyone’s workload by being late for Monday’s staff meeting.”
Listen Empathically – When you really listen to an employee without judging, probing or advising you have a better chance of understanding what motivates their behaviour.
Source: 7 Habits for Managers, 2005 Franklin Covey
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telling you and any coworkers who will listen, how valuable they are and that the business can’t survive without them. But that’s the point; if your business can’t survive without them you should close shop now. Your long-term survival isn’t in the cards if you are working with a knife to your throat.
It would be easy to target the most talented designers as the greatest potential source of egos gone awry in the flower shop. Let’s face it they often have the highest profile, and customers tend to know them by name, but this would be stereotypical and totally uncalled for. There are lots of front store perfectionists who feel ‘nobody can do the job as well as he or she does’ and who can upset your workforce equally as much. They too must be dealt with ASAP.
The key to success here is to deal with this behaviour as soon as you see or hear about it. And remember you are dealing with the behaviour not the ego. The most effective way to do this is to use feedback. You don’t need to get hung up on the labels positive or negative feedback, you just have to get used to giving and getting regular feedback. Many people are totally unaware of how they come across, or how other people perceive their actions. When given the chance to change their relationship with their coworkers, most will respond in a positive manner.
And the truly difficult people – they will most likely have to go. These people affect the staff moral and ultimately will cost your business more than they will help it. This can be a very painful experience and could prove costly too. Make sure you have gone through the feedback process and documented your expectations clearly to avoid costly legal problems.
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