Activating Autonomy

After identifying the different responses to autonomy in the workplace in yesterday's post, how do we support our people to embrace theirs?

Learned helplessness

Coach this team member to exercise autonomy in small ways, like asking when or where to have a one-on-one. Even having the opportunity to make small decisions can help people feel safer to act. Listen to what they say. Then start to co-create experiments, things to try, so it is an exploration rather than something they feel they can fail at. And be sure to encourage small wins.

Stressed by responsibility

Under stress, this team member will need support with thinking things through. Coach them in prioritisation and decision-making. Let them know you are there for them, but you trust them with this - and explicitly tell them why you trust them with this. When they know you have their back, it will greatly increase their confidence.

Frustrated and disengaged

This might be more about you and the work environment. Certainly, a good place to start investigating. Maybe you don't trust your team member to do the work to the standard it needs to be done, or they do it inefficiently - or they don't do it they way you would. Whatever the reason, you need to find opportunities for them to do some things their way. If you are micromanaging, quit it. Improve your coaching skills and frontend your requests by asking how they will approach doing the work. If the outcome will be roughly the same, let your way go.

Thrive and achieve

Watch these people don't overload themselves but find ways to continue to stretch them. It might be good to find them a mentor in the organisation or look for secondments that broaden and challenge them. These achievers need to align their drive with the goals and delivery for the organisation. But if you want to keep them, keep encouraging them to grow.

We can all encourage others to think for themselves, to do things their way and be (or become) more satisfied and happier at work.

I'd love to hear what you do - or have seen work - to develop healthy autonomy in your workplace.

#doonethingdeep #autonomy #leader #manager