People spend a third of their life at work, and with side hustles added to the mix, that amount can be much higher. With people spending more time at work than ever before, leaders are desperate to make labor feel more like a fellowship. Here are ways to build community in the office.
Know Where You Want To Go
To successfully enact a community culture in the workplace, you have to decide what identity you want to foster; otherwise, you are traveling without a map. Bring intention to your dream and determine your core beliefs about how you want the workplace to feel and function. Take a page from Kent J Thiry former DaVita’s executive CEO on how to activate that belief in an already established workforce. He is well known for bringing the Musketeer catchphrase to employees in a lighthearted call-and-answer: “One for all…!” “…And all for one!” Spend time researching companies that resonate with your ideas, and implement some of their actions to build spirit in your team.
Praise the Good You See
Even if you are introducing a new culture in the workplace, there is probably some amount of it already existing in the office. Give your employees careful consideration and notice when they act out what you want the whole team to embody. Does one of your workers always get pages from the printer that others forgot? Praise her for her thoughtfulness. If one team member enthusiastically reminds others of people’s birthdays, let him know how appreciated he is. Small examples of your dream community likely exist already. It is important that you nurture those seeds so workers feel seen and also don’t feel like the entire workplace is being thrown into upheaval when you begin to implement larger changes.
Build New Teams
Team events may seem like a small implementation, but they go a long way for getting people out from behind their desks and getting them to interact with co-workers from different departments in casual fun ways.
If you want an energetic group, start a sports team. Athletics are famous for boosting solidarity and trust among players. If your team identity is about giving back or being environmentally friendly, begin volunteer functions. Think out of the box and consider putting on plays together. Any team event can foster unity and pride in each participating member. To make the team events more enticing, add food and prizes to the mix.
Hear Your People
Creating a community means more than just leading; it involves listening. Hold more meetings to hear opinions and realign the office’s trajectory regularly. Office meetings allow you to assess how close you are to your cultural goal. This is a way for you to hear what is working and what doesn’t so you can correct what needs to be addressed.
Nurturing community at work is just one of a boss’s many hats, but esteeming solidarity in the workplace is an important one. It fuels the office with harmony and confidence. When you are intentional with where you drive the work culture, you can foster the type of solid teamwork that affects real change.
Daniel Bailey is a known content writer from California, USA. He writes content in different niches such as social media marketing, finance, business, etc. He’s a day time blogger and night time reader currently working for some blogs. He enjoys pie, as should all right-thinking people.
