When good people start leaving, most leaders blame the workload: too much to do, too few people, long hours and a lot of uncertainty. It's a fair guess, and it's almost never the whole story.
Most of us have had stretches of long hours and real uncertainty that turned out to be some of our favorite times at work.
In this episode of In The Arena, Shaun Dyke and Chris Stemp talk through why good people leave and what a leader can do about it.
The workload becomes a reason to leave when something around it is missing. People will work hard, through long hours and a lot of ambiguity, if they can see a future in what they're doing. They'll keep going when they know their work is seen and valued.
And even people who feel valued will leave when the load gets so out of balance that there's no end in sight. That's usually when pay starts to matter, and even then, more money rarely makes up for a job with no future or work nobody values.
Turnover is a result, and it comes primarily from the climate a leader creates. This episode will show you how to retain that great talent.
What you'll learn:
• Why "my team is overwhelmed" is often the wrong read
• What a leader can't control, and why it can't become a crutch
• "People don't leave companies, they leave leaders," and what that means for you
• Why teams that say they're overloaded are often asking for more meaningful work
• Recognition that isn't "you're a rock star"
• Effort imbalance: three jobs, plenty of thank-yous, and no end in sight
• Where pay fits, and when it starts to matter
• Three questions to ask about each of your best people
• The simplest way to find out how someone wants to be recognized
• If you're the one thinking about leaving: what to bring to your leader
⏱️ Chapters
00:00 Worried about losing your best people?
03:52 What you can't control, and what you can
06:25 Is it really the workload?
10:25 Reason 1: They don't see a future
13:16 Reason 2: They don't feel valued
15:17 Reason 3: Effort imbalance, and where pay fits
18:49 Three questions to ask about your best people
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In The Arena is a podcast about what it really means to live and lead well: the patterns that run us, the scripts we inherit, and the beliefs we reinforce without realizing it. Hosted by Shaun Dyke of DoorTwo.
