3 Keys Ways Leaders Can Take Their Employees from “Disposable Batteries” to Energized Team Members

Your employees aren’t batteries, so why treat them like they’re disposable or easily replaced? That’s the mindset of Josh Levin, a recent guest on the Mindfulness Manufacturing podcast and the CEO of Empowered Electric in Kansas City, Missouri. With his high energy and “people over profit” attitude, Josh is a great example of a leader who knows his employees are the real driving force behind his business. Here are just a few of the great characteristics that leaders like Josh can use to take their employees from “disposable” to energized!

Characteristic #1: Appreciation

If your employees don’t feel valued or appreciation, they’re unlikely to do their best work. An under-appreciated employee might show up and do the bare minimum. An employee who knows they’re valued will be more willing to go above-and-beyond. To create a workplace where employees feel valued and engaged, Josh suggests one easy solution: employee evaluations. By offering regular and thoughtful employee evaluations at Empowered Electric, Josh is able to offer feedback to his team members, learn about their needs or concerns, and work with them to find productive solutions. Most important, evaluations serve as a way for him to connect with his employees.

Characteristic #2: Humility

When I was researching Josh before the podcast, I was struck by a detail on his website. Instead of showing off his own role, he made his employees the face of the company. Even though he is the CEO, he recognizes that his organization isn’t just about him. By making his employees the face and voice of Empowered Electric, he shows how a little humility can go a long way. For leaders, growing this kind of mindset can take time. When you’re near the top, it’s easy to forget that your share your successes—and your failures—with the rest of your team. A way leaders can grow their mindset is by taking a window/mirror approach to how they view themselves and their team, which you can learn more about in this article.

Characteristic #3: Passion

Great leaders are passionate about all aspects of their organization! This includes being passionate about your employees and your culture, but also a passion for growing yourself into a better leader. To grow their passion, Josh recommends leaders “keep their passion tank” filled by studying the behavior of successful people. By doing this, leaders can learn about the characteristics and skills that contribute to success, then find creative and productive ways to reach that mindset for themselves. On the flip side, leaders can also examine the behavior of unsuccessful people. Oftentimes, you can learn important lessons by watching an unsuccessful person, then changing your behavior to go in the opposite direction.

Learn More on the Podcast

To hear more tips on leadership from Josh Levin, check out his appearance on the Mindfulness Manufacturing podcast here.

Mindfulness Manufacturing

Our show is about providing listeners with real stories that come from a place of experience, transparency, and authenticity. Most importantly it’s about what we learn from these stories and applying Mindfulness in our everyday work and personal lives.
Our intention is to create an environment where people can learn through open honest discussions on how we apply Mindfulness. Although our experiences and stories come from time in a manufacturing environment hence the title “Mindfulness Manufacturing”, we still see our discussions and topics relatable to any organization or profession.

In manufacturing, we’re all familiar with stress. But did you know that a lack of challenges and too much comfort can also have a negative impact on your health, mindset, and productivity? This is the core concept Paul Taylor presents in his great book Death by Comfort: How Modern Life is Killing Us and What We Can Do About It. As a former British Royal Navy crew member and a current Ph.D. candidate in applied psychology, Paul has in-depth knowledge about stress, resilience, and performance.

In this episode on stress, comfort, and psychological safety, Paul draws from his own experiences and research to delve deeper into why discomfort and challenging situations build confidence and resilience, plus shares some of his favorite methods for rethinking how you perceive stress and engage with your team.

2:20 – In manufacturing, stress can be inevitable, so you need to find the right level of stress in your environment 3:36 – You can use principles from physical fitness and apply them to stress management 7:11 – To stay healthy and keep a productive mindset, you need to balance stress and recovery 11:54 – When you practice self-efficacy and do hard tasks, it builds your confidence 16:21 – Uncomfortable yet necessary conversations play a key role in workplace environments 17:38 – To change and improve how you give feedback and have challenging conversations, use the SBI (situation-behavior-impact) model 18:36 – Use the OARS model for motivational interviewing to encourage open questions, affirmations, reflective listening, and summarizing 24:58 – Take time to understand your purpose and the impact of your work 24:58 – Don’t overlook the role of accountability in psychological safety

Connect with Paul Taylor Visit his website Listen to The Paul Taylor Podcast Buy Death by Comfort on Amazon or at your favorite bookseller Read my book report on Death by Comfort