When we talk about workplace management, most times our minds go to the day-to-day running of an organisation. We often think of organising, planning, directing, controlling and handling an organisation's affairs. Our minds direct us to the manager of an organisation giving out instructions and directives, asking for feedback, sitting through long meetings, dictating letters or emails to his secretary and hosting company galas or functions. Yes, these are the things we mostly see managers doing.

There is an aspect however that we most times overlook; Managing people. Humans are our greatest assets or resources as some would put it. Managing people is key to running an organisation smoothly. How does one person or a few people manage the entire staff with minimal conflict and issues, despite everyone having different characters, backgrounds, qualifications and attitudes? Let's look at the basics of excellent general management before going into managing people.

What are those skills that a great manager needs or requires?

Great management.

• What is involved in being a great manager?

• A great manager is an effective communicator. Great managers communicate clearly and do not get their audience confused by

• He is also an effective delegator. Being an effective delegator is a skill that you can learn and master. (How to delegate effectively). He knows the right persons to assign tasks to

• Excellent managers are knowledgeable and professional.

• They also put the company first.

• Great managers are flexible yet firm

• They also fit into the roles of great motivators well. Managers have the most responsibility when it comes to motivating employees.

• Great managers are role models to those working under them

How to Manage People

The key to managing people effectively is having a good measure of understanding of emotional intelligence and applying it. Candace Pert, an American neuroscientist said that "emotions are the glue that holds the cell of an organism together".

Managing people is quite different from managing assets and other non-human resources. It is a daunting task but a whole lot of people have recorded great success at it and you can too.

Emotional intelligence- Wikipedia defines emotional intelligence as the ability to perceive, use, understand, manage and handle emotions. This has to do, not just with your own emotions but with that of others. Lots of people lose their jobs or abandon their careers for reasons related to their emotions or that of those in their workplaces such as poor team playing skills, lack of trust, resistance to change, inability to adapt, inability to manage conflict and work-related stress.

Emotional intelligence involves channelling your emotions and those of others positively. The ability to ease stress, communicate, sympathize, show empathy and resolve conflicts at all times irrespective of what you or those around you are feeling at every point in time. People who possess strong emotional intelligence skills can rise above all difficulties and manage themselves and others.

How to develop and apply emotional intelligence. (Managing people)

1. Be calm at all times: It takes time to perfect the act of staying calm during tumultuous times but it is doable. Take deep breaths, and avoid hasty replies or reactions. Always remind yourself that every situation can be salvaged and if it is beyond redemption there is no point in losing yourself over it. This does not mean that you cannot express emotions such as anger, frustration or tiredness. It is more about how to control those emotions. ( https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/380740 )

2. As a team leader, take responsibility: Delegate effectively, follow up on assigned tasks and give feedback to those working for you and with you

3. Know what triggers you and those around you: Do away with those triggers or minimize them. Better still, find ways to keep your cool around those stress triggers when they cannot be gotten rid of

4. Communicate: Avoid keeping your emotions bottled up and encourage your employees to do the same

5. Be observant:  doing this helps you notice changes in your colleagues or employees even before it becomes pronounced

6. Build emotional connections with your employees or colleagues: Do this while maintaining professional or ethical boundaries. Get to know those who work for and with you. Have a little insight into their upbringing, wants, needs, hopes and goals etc. This will help you understand them better. Their actions and inactions would make sense to you and you will know how to work/manage them better with little or no conflicts. Knowing your employees on a personal level saves you a ton of stress. 

7. Treat your employees the same way but deal with them as individuals: Know with whom to be assertive, patronizing, demanding etc. Know who will not abuse free rein and who should not be given a break under any circumstance.

As you try to develop your emotional intelligence skills, do not downplay the role of communication in your relationship with your employees. Do not be aloof or regard yourself as a "master". Use every given opportunity to communicate with your employees freely. This involves using SmartSMSSolutions bulk messaging service. It enables you to message all your employees at the same time. It also saves you time and money as it is affordable. Create a free bulk SMS account with us today and ease communication with your employees and even clients.