If you’re a manager who doesn’t interact with your employees that often, chances are your employees haven’t formed a bond with you either. This is unfortunate because the better the bond you have with your team, the happier they’ll be showing up to work each day and satisfied with your job.
According to research, the number one thing most employees like about their jobs are the people they work with. As the boss, you might not be able to become friends with everyone on your team, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get to know them on a personal level. Many workers don’t quit their jobs — they quit their bosses. With that being the case, it’s in the leaders best interest to try an have a positive relationship with members of their team.
In a recent study, it was stated 93% of workers believe being able to trust their immediate bosses is a big factor that influences employee satisfaction. Despite that, half of employees don’t trust their immediate supervisors. In order for a company to grow, there has to be trust among a team and their leader. With that in mind, below are some getting-to-know-you questions that a leader can ask their staff, so they can get to know them better:
1. Who inspires you?
Maybe it’s an artist or someone close to them. Maybe it’s a politician. Maybe it’s a family member. This is a super fun question to ask. Inspiration plays a big role in employee engagement. When your employees are inspired and engaged to reach their full potential, great things can happen.
2. What’s your favorite vacation spot?
This question will help you get insight into your employee’s travel interests. Maybe they enjoy the mountains, beach or discovering historic places. This information may even lead to a new vacation spot for the a leader that they didn\’t know about.
3. What are you passionate about?
Maybe a salesperson, for example, is really passionate about graphic design. You won’t know until you ask. There’s no rule that says salespeople aren’t able to whip up infographics for their the marketing department. Find out what your employees like doing and let them work on similar projects once in a while. It’s a great way to increase employee engagement.
4. What’s your favorite movie?
Do they like comedy? Drama? Horror movie? Ask them what they like about their favorite movies. Get to know them on a human level. Just maybe, you might find out you never knew existed some films existed, and decide to watch it. Watching a favorite movie of a staff member may help you connect with your team on a personal level, you might also just discover a leadership trick or two.
5. What’s the best meal you’ve ever had?
If someone were to ask you this question, how long would it take for you to answer it? There’s a good chance you’ll learn some interesting about each person who answers it. Maybe the best meal they had was from a restaurant in Rome or maybe it was a meal prepared by their grandmother.
6. If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you go?
It may be a place you never heard of the before or it could be a place that\’s not to far from where you live. After you ask this question, you may want to begin planning a trip of your own.
7. What are some of your pet peeves?
Finding out what your employees don’t like, you can figure out what you can do to be perceived as a less annoying leader. It’s up to the leader whether to try and change the behavior accordingly.
8. Do you have a secret talent that no one knows about?
If you find out a worker plays the guitar, ask them if they would like to play for the team sometime. Maybe there is a fantastic chef on the team, and with a little encouragement that person agree to whip up a snack for the team.
9. What is your favorite color?
This question may help you learn what their personality type is and how to manage them accordingly. Answers to this question may also inspire you to paint the walls of your office certain colors, if possible to improve the office atmosphere.
10. What’s the most helpful way for you to get feedback?
Everyone works differently. Some people like receiving negative feedback, so they can improve. Others are more fragile. The only way you’ll find out which way individual employees prefer to receive feedback is by asking them directly. This will help you learn how to approach your staff most effectively.
If you’re worried that your employees might not be honest with you, use a survey to let them share their thoughts anonymously. Gaining the trust of your employees will not only help not managers grow as leaders but also help companies grow and succeed.