HAVE FUN

Enjoy down time or activity with your staff.

I had some trouble with manager/staff relations when I managed a group home. When my supervisor brought it to my attention, I went to my staff. I went into the group home open minded, leaving defensiveness outside. I asked each staff one to one, what I could do to improve communication between us at the group home.

One staff didn't have anything specific for improvement. His response was not helpful, he said everything I did was wrong, everything I wrote in the com log sounded rude, and everytime I talked to anyone at the group home, everyone thought I was short with them. No amount of prompting turned him around to give me specifics that related to him and I. Sometimes it's best to know when to say when and move on.

I didn't get discouraged and my other two staff were much more helpful. They had specific examples of what didn't work with them. They had suggestions for improvement. One staff suggested accompaning them on outings with the residents. The other staff suggested coming in and having coffee on Sunday morning during shift change (the staff had developed the habit of all visiting over coffee during that time). I listened to them and implemented their suggestions.

Recently the manager where I work came in during the early evening. She did some paperwork. Addressed a few issues and asked some questions to clarify a few things. Then she made a difference, she made time to just visit. We all laughed for about 1/2 an hour or more. She fulfilled her responsibilities and balanced it with having fun with us. I don't know if she even realized that making that time for us, she made a difference in her relationship with us.

There will always be business to take care of, but a manager who has a close relationship with group home staff knows how to keep things balanced and enjoy some down time. A good manager knows how to have some fun with staff.