People are complicated creatures. Every individual is different and requires a different approach. That makes the job of managers so incredibly difficult. As a manager you have to deal with unexpected or irrational behavior almost every day. At least, irrational in your eyes, because you too have your own unique ways of thinking and do things your way. Yet we can gain guidance from a number of core human values ​​that were devised years ago by psychologists and sociologists such as Maslow, Watson, Freud and Jung. They have tried to understand the behavior of people, the brain. Because not all of us have studied psychology and because this is actually quite a shame in our daily practice as managers, we have listed a number of important lessons from psychology.

Explain why

It is human nature to want to explain things, to look for logic in everything we do. As a manager you have to make decisions where you know you can never please everyone. By clearly explaining why you are making or need to make a decision, you can better meet the desire for logic and even an unpleasant decision quickly becomes plausible.

Remove insecurities

Change. We can't handle it very well. Change brings uncertainty and our brain is not in favor of that. An important task for you as a manager is to remove uncertainties where possible, including in the changing situations that regularly arise within companies. A contract extension, for example, when your employee is going through a difficult period.

Stand between and not above your team

By definition, the human brain tends not to trust people who elevate themselves above others. We have difficulty with this, especially in Western society. It is precisely for this reason that populist politicians, who appear to stand 'between' the people or at least want to appear that way, have become so popular. As a manager you obviously have to exude a certain authority, but that is not the same as standing above your team. Stand among your people, gain their trust. Don't sit in your ivory tower, but just on the work floor.

Reward creativity and initiative

Managers are often not fans of their employees being active outside of work with their own hobby, in politics or, for example, with their own company. Naturally, you want to prevent your employee from being more concerned with his or her own affairs than with his or her work, but practice shows that self-development also ensures better performance at work. It is not without reason that Maslow placed recognition and self-realization at the very top of his pyramid of needs. So reward creativity, initiative, hobbies and entrepreneurship among your employees, instead of working against it.

Everyone is part of the team

There is another psychological lesson that Maslow can help us with. There is also room in the same pyramid of needs for another important human characteristic. The need for social contact. We feel comfortable and safe when we have contact with others. That is why working in teams is often more successful than working individually. As a manager it is crucial to realize this. Those team building efforts, which you may not always feel like doing, are a crucial part of success. And that also applies to the culture in your team.

Do you want to become a better manager and inspiring leader for your team? Do you want to learn to apply these and more psychological lessons in practice? Then take a look at our management training offering, including the inspiring leadership training.